Iraq Minister Demands Exit Timetable

Iraq won’t accept any security deal that doesn’t include strict guidelines for a US withdrawal, National Security Adviser Mouwaffak al-Rubaie said today. The US waved off similar statements from Nouri al-Maliki yesterday, saying they didn’t believe the Iraqi PM really wanted a timetable, but Rubaie’s comments left little to interpretation. “Our stance in the negotiations … will be strong,” he said. “We will not accept any memorandum of understanding that doesn’t have specific dates to withdraw foreign forces.” (More Iraqi government stories.)