.US urges Iraq's new PM to choose ministers wisely
BAGHDAD, April 22 (Reuters) - The U.S. ambassador to Iraq, a driving force in pressing politicians to break a deadlock over a new government, urged Prime Minister-designate Jawad al-Maliki to choose strong, competent ministers who can unite the nation.
Speaking soon after President Jalal Talabani asked Maliki to form a government of national unity, Zalmay Khalilzad said the move was critical to ending the bloodshed gripping the country and allowing U.S. troops to go home.
"We believe it's important that the ministers that are selected Â… are competent ministers who are unifiers and who are strong people who can attract the trust of the Iraqi people," he told a news conference.
"I have discussed this issue with the Iraqi leaders," he added, saying he met Maliki on Friday -- when his nomination by the leading Shi'ite bloc was announced -- and again on Saturday.
"With the formation of a national unity government, with a good programme and with competent ministers, Iraq will be put on the right trajectory and over time the security environment will improve."
Sunni Arab politicians have accused Shi'ite leaders of pursuing sectarian policies and sanctioning militia death squads, charges they deny.
Khalilzad said Iraq's growing ability to ensure its own security would allow the United States to draw down its troop levels, but did not put a time frame on that.
As sectarian violence between Shi'ites and minority Sunnis mounted after the bombing of a Shi'ite shrine in February, Khalilzad spearheaded Washington's increasingly public push to force Iraqi leaders to establish a government bringing together both groups, as well as ethnic Kurds.
Such a rainbow coalition is seen as the best way to ease the tensions and avert a slide into all-out civil war.
In Washington, U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said Maliki's appointment was an "important milestone" and the Shi'ite politician was someone the United States could work with.
"This is a good day for Iraq. It is an important day for Iraq," said Rice in a conference call with reporters.
With a Shi'ite-dominated interim government, there had been concerns about the way some ministries operated.
Maliki, a tough-talking Shi'ite leader, now has one month to form a government, which must still be approved by the 275-seat parliament.
"We are going to form a family that will not be based on sectarian or ethnic backgrounds," he told a news conference before he was chosen to form the government.
Reuters
Speaking soon after President Jalal Talabani asked Maliki to form a government of national unity, Zalmay Khalilzad said the move was critical to ending the bloodshed gripping the country and allowing U.S. troops to go home.
"We believe it's important that the ministers that are selected Â… are competent ministers who are unifiers and who are strong people who can attract the trust of the Iraqi people," he told a news conference.
"I have discussed this issue with the Iraqi leaders," he added, saying he met Maliki on Friday -- when his nomination by the leading Shi'ite bloc was announced -- and again on Saturday.
"With the formation of a national unity government, with a good programme and with competent ministers, Iraq will be put on the right trajectory and over time the security environment will improve."
Sunni Arab politicians have accused Shi'ite leaders of pursuing sectarian policies and sanctioning militia death squads, charges they deny.
Khalilzad said Iraq's growing ability to ensure its own security would allow the United States to draw down its troop levels, but did not put a time frame on that.
As sectarian violence between Shi'ites and minority Sunnis mounted after the bombing of a Shi'ite shrine in February, Khalilzad spearheaded Washington's increasingly public push to force Iraqi leaders to establish a government bringing together both groups, as well as ethnic Kurds.
Such a rainbow coalition is seen as the best way to ease the tensions and avert a slide into all-out civil war.
In Washington, U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said Maliki's appointment was an "important milestone" and the Shi'ite politician was someone the United States could work with.
"This is a good day for Iraq. It is an important day for Iraq," said Rice in a conference call with reporters.
With a Shi'ite-dominated interim government, there had been concerns about the way some ministries operated.
Maliki, a tough-talking Shi'ite leader, now has one month to form a government, which must still be approved by the 275-seat parliament.
"We are going to form a family that will not be based on sectarian or ethnic backgrounds," he told a news conference before he was chosen to form the government.
Reuters
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