ERBIL, July 18 (AKnews) - The secretary general of the United Nations Ban Ki-moon said Wednesday that the political crisis in Iraq has undermined efforts to resolve the problem of the areas in which ownership is disputed between Baghdad and Erbil.
Iraq has been witnessing an unprecedented political crisis since the departure of US troops at the end of last year after the issuance of an arrest warrant against Vice President Tareq al-Hashemi. Disputes between Erbil and Baghdad also continue on oil issues in addition to power sharing and conflicts between Iraqiya and the State of Law Coalition (SLC).
Ki-moon said in a periodic report issued by the United Nations Mission in Iraq: "I still believe that addressing these issues is still essential for the stability of Iraq in the future."
Ki-moon urged political leaders to resolve the outstanding problems between the governments of the Kurdistan Region and Baghdad, adding that the United Nations is ready to mediate and that elections should be held in Kirkuk Provincial Council.
The provincial elections were held in Iraq in 2009, except in Kirkuk due to differences between parties about how to distribute seats in the province.
Article 23 related to Kirkuk in the provincial elections law no. 36 of 2008 says the distribution of seats among Kurds, Arabs and Turkmen should be 32 percent for each of them, but Kurds strongly reject the application of this article.
Kirkuk and areas in Nineveh, Diyala and Salahaddin are all disputed between the governments of Baghdad and Erbil.
By Murtada al-Yusuf
RN/DM/AKnews