Self-restraint urged for Kurdish-Arab row

BAGHDAD, July 10 (UPI) -- Rancor between the Kurdish and central governments in Iraq requires patient dialogue and self-discipline to settle, says Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki.

Analysts worry simmering tensions between the government in Iraqi Kurdistan and Baghdad could boil over to military conflict if left unresolved.

The two governments are at odds over a series of issues, from administrative authority over the so-called disputed territories in northern Iraq to the sharing of revenue from the country's rich oil resources.

Kurdish forces have reportedly crossed the de facto line demarcating Iraqi Kurdistan from greater Iraq, a matter that brought rival military factions to near-conflict in 2008 over the city of Khanaqin in Diyala province.

In an interview with The Wall Street Journal, Maliki said while relations between the two governments were tense, he did not see a great potential for conflict.

"The facts on the ground show that self-discipline is something we need at this stage," he said.

On the recent visit to Iraq by U.S. Vice President Joe Biden, who one time favored a "soft partition" of Iraq, Maliki said he received "very firm" reassurances that national reconciliation was strictly an Iraqi matter.

Maliki is scheduled for an imminent visit to Washington to meet with Biden and U.S. President Barack Obama. The Shiite premier said he would bring a message of friendship to underscore the long-term strategic partnership between the two countries.