US embassy cable - 05BAGHDAD3484

C O N F I D E N T I A L BAGHDAD 003484 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/25/2025 
TAGS: PGOV, KISL, PREL, IZ, KCRS 
SUBJECT: SHIA ISLAMIST DEPUTY PRESIDENT SAYS REACHING OUT 
TO DISAFFECTED SUNNI ARABS MAY BE POSSIBLE 
 
Classified By: Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d) 
 
1.  (C)  Deputy President Abdel Mehdi told the Ambassador on 
August 24 that the Shia Coalition was willing to reach out to 
the Sunni Arabs on the language in the constitution.  The 
Shia Coalition perceives that the future Iraqi central 
government will be weak.  The Shia leadership, anxious for 
government initiative, will promote one or more regional 
governments in southern Iraq to address issues like economic 
development, he said. 
 
2.  (C)  The Ambassador pushed for at least some measure of 
Sunni approval of the draft constitution on both military and 
political grounds.  Abdel Mehdi agreed, and said that he 
thought the Shia Coalition would agree to grant a role to the 
future elected national assembly in laying out national 
guidelines for how governorates would merge into regional 
entities in a federal Iraq.  He added that the Shia Coalition 
might also agree to give the national assembly the right to 
veto any new region by a two-thirds vote. 
 
3.  (C)  Abdel Mehdi said that in return for such a 
concession the Shia Coalition wanted specific written 
assurances that the U.S. would be supportive of (a) Shia 
governorates merging if the populations in those governorates 
were to seek to move in that direction, and (b) economic 
development in southern Iraq.  He said that even if regions 
were not to be formed, U.S. development assistance is greatly 
needed by the nine governorates of southern Iraq.  The 
Ambassador replied that the U.S. is advocating a simplified 
provision on federalism in the draft constitution not to 
block Shia regions from forming but to boost Sunni Arab 
support for the draft.  He pledged to obtain guidance from 
Washington about written assurances. 
 
4.  (C)  Abdel Mehdi said the Shia Coalition might be 
prepared also to tone down the draft's language on the 
de-Baathification Commission's continued work.  The 
Ambassador expressed his appreciation, but observed that this 
would not be a major concession; the commission will keep 
working regardless of whether it is mentioned in the 
constitution or not.  Abdel Mehdi cautioned that the draft 
referring to the de-Baathification commission was published 
in Sabah newspaper earlier this week; removing it now would 
raise suspicions among the Shia public and would cost votes 
in Shia areas. 
 
5.  (C)  The Ambassador also raised the language about 
religious freedom in the draft, and urged that the Shia 
Coalition restore the specific reference to an individual's 
right to religious freedom.  Abdel Mehdi cautioned that 
within the Shia Coalition there was very little support for 
such language.  He warned that making the proposed change 
would be extremely difficult. 
 
Khalilzad