[Excerpt: "We as Kurds want one of those two posts and we will not give it up," Talabani said.]
http://www.gulfnews.com/Articles/RegionNF.asp?ArticleID=150526 Kurdish leader demands PM's post Agencies Arbil/Baghdad: Kurdish political leader Jalal Talabani announced he would seek the office of either president or prime minister when the new National Assembly convenes. Talabani, head of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, made the announcement at a joint news conference with the leader of the other main Kurdish faction, Massoud Barzani. Talabani and Barazani said the Kurds should get one of the two posts in the new elected Iraqi government. "We as Kurds want one of those two posts and we will not give it up," Talabani said. Meanwhile, the chief UN envoy met with the leader of main Sunni political party yesterday, amid mounting efforts to convince the wary minority community to participate in the next government. Ashraf Qazi expressed the hope that parties which boycotted Sunday's polls, in particular Sunnis, would "participate in drawing up the constitution ... and our efforts will continue in this direction." Many Sunni political groups ordered followers to boycott the historic elections, following which Shiite majority are set to take power after decades of Sunni domination. "It is the duty of the UN mission in Iraq to consult all main political leaders to examine the latest developments and the help that the UN can give in the next phase of the political transition," Qazi told reporters. The leader of the Islamic Party, Mohsen Abdul Hamid, said their talks had revolved around "the next government, the constitution and how to bring about cooperation to sort out Iraq's affairs". Asked about talks with Sunni leaders initiated by interim Prime Minister Eyad Allawi, Abdul Hamid said: "We want to reach a shared point of view with all parties in order to guarantee the future of Iraq." Allawi met with several Sunni leaders on Wednesday, including Abdul Hamid. Another meeting is set for Monday. "Now that the political parties are starting consultations to form the next, elected government, all agreed on the importance of this being a fully inclusive process. "All parts and all sectors of Iraqi society should be involved," Allawi's office said in a statement. "For us, Iraq is more important than all the secondary conflicts even if Sunnis in general, and the [Islamic] party in particular, have withdrawn" from the elections, said Abdul Hamid. The Islamic Party withdrew from the electoral race after its requests were turned down to delay the vote until an improvement in the security situation. "We will not be in parliament and that doesn't really matter to us ... What is important are [talks] between all Iraqis with the aim of cooperating to resolve the country's problems," Abdul Hamid said. Asked about his party's possible participation in the new government, he said that the issue had not been raised within his party and "we are not considering it". Qazi later met interim Finance Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi, a candidate for the premiership, his spokesman said. "The meeting is part of consultations to explore ways that the UN can help" the political process, said Qazi's spokesman, Ayman Al Safadi. On Wednesday, the main Sunni religious organisation, the Committee of Muslim Scholars, said the election had been illegitimate. Qazi is due to meet the committee's leader, Hareth Al Dari, "very soon", said Al Safadi. enditem UNRESTRICTED ------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor --------------------~--> DonorsChoose. A simple way to provide underprivileged children resources often lacking in public schools. 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