Dr. Qahtan al-Jubouri, former Iraqi Tourism Minister and official spokesman of the Sadrist Sairoun alliance, said Tuesday that the current extensive meetings held among Iraqi political leaders remain at the protocol level and are simply aimed at gauging their stances.
He told Asharq Al-Awsat that the “Sairoun bloc does not have red lines regarding allying itself with any other political power in Iraq, on condition that they respect the program we believe in and which we based our electoral campaign on.”
The spokesman said that the alliance was not attached to naming a particular person for the position of premiership.
Moqtada al-Sadr, whose Sairoun alliance got the most votes in the May 12 parliamentary elections, has intensified his meetings with leaders of other alliances and parties ahead of forming the biggest parliamentary bloc that would ultimately form the new cabinet.
On Tuesday, the Shiite cleric met with a delegation from the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP), which is headed by President Masoud Barzani.
“Sadr emphasized the government moving towards resolving all outstanding issues with Erbil in the upcoming stage and working paternally with all the components of the Iraq people,” Rudaw news agency quoted a statement issued by Sadr’s office as saying.
The statement added that Sadr welcomed at his Baghdad residence Fadhil Mirani, the secretary general of the KDP, stressing his keenness for the emergence a “paternal” government that could cater to all sides.
“Iraq is a tent under which everyone can seek shade,” Sadr stated.
