Barzani to take Kirkuk issue to U.S.

ERBIL, Iraq, Aug. 13 (UPI) -- Kurdish President Massoud Barzani will take up the issue of the status of Kirkuk and the Iraqi-Kurdish row with the U.S. president, sources said Wednesday.

Unidentified sources for the Iraqi television network al-Sumaria said Barzani plans to meet with U.S. President George Bush and Defense Secretary Robert Gates later this month to discuss the status of Kirkuk, Iraqi military issues and the security agreement between Washington and Baghdad that is set to replace the expiring U.N. mandate there.

Tensions between the Kurdistan Regional Government and Baghdad escalated recently, in part due to the jurisdiction of Kirkuk and the provincial elections law, as well as the deployment of Iraqi forces and the Sunni paramilitary force Sons of Iraq in Kurdish territories.

The same sources said the meeting with U.S. officials may include Iraqi President Jalal Talabani, who is in Washington for medical treatment.

Iraqi Parliamentary Speaker Mahmoud Mashhadani announced the formation of a special committee to deal with the provincial elections law and Kirkuk following a failed measure in July.

Kurdish parliamentarian Sami al-Atruchi said the committee was still in negotiations and did not expect a resolution anytime soon.

He suggested provincial elections may take place in May 2009. They were originally scheduled for October.