BAGHDAD, Jan. 15 (UPI) -- A majority of Iraq's parliamentarians have signed an agreement against Iraqi Kurds' moves to unilaterally develop the oil sector and control oil-rich Kirkuk.

The new agreement between a dozen political factions in Iraq also aligns one-time opponents against a dominant Shiite political party that wants to create a large autonomous region in the oil-rich south.

Dar Al Hayat reports leaders of political parties representing 150 of Iraq's 275 parliamentarians signed the pact.

"There must be a formula for maintaining the unity of Iraq and the distribution of its wealth," Osama Najafi, of former Prime Minister Ayad Allawi's secular National List party, said at a news conference.

"Oil and gas are a national wealth and we are concerned about those who want to go it alone when it comes to signing deals," he said, Gulf Daily News reports.