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Kerry Seeks Saudi Help in Delicate Effort to Unite Factions in Iraq Saudi King Promises Help in Delicate Effort to Unite Factions in Iraq
(about 1 hour later)
JIDDA, Saudi Arabia — Secretary of State John Kerry arrived here Friday as part of a delicate attempt to enlist the support of the Saudi monarch for the formation of a multisect government in Iraq. JIDDA, Saudi Arabia — King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia assured American officials on Friday that he would use his influence with Sunni leaders in Iraq to try to speed the formation of a multi-sect government there, a senior State Department official said.
Mr. Kerry also met with Ahmad Assi al-Jarba, the head of the moderate Syrian opposition, at the start of his visit here. That meeting came one day after the White House announced that it was seeking $500 million from Congress so the Pentagon could train and arm “vetted elements” of the Syrian opposition. The king’s assurance marks a shift in the Sunni monarchy’s stance and was conveyed to Secretary of State John Kerry in a three-and-a-half-hour long meeting here.
Mr. Jarba, a leader of the Shammar tribe, which has branches in Saudi Arabia and Iraq, has had strong backing from the Saudis. Mr. Kerry described him as a leader who could help the United States counter Sunni militants from the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria and who may also be able to play a role in influencing Sunni leaders to help form an inclusive Iraqi government. Iraq now has a Shiite-led government. The Saudis had been reluctant to support the formation of a new Iraqi government until it became clear that Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki would not be given a third term.
“President Jarba represents a tribe that reaches right into Iraq,” Mr. Kerry said at their meeting at the airport here. “He knows people there.” The failing security situation in Iraq, which has bought militants from the Islamic State for Iraq and Syria to within striking distance of the Saudi border in western Iraq, appeared to have led to a change in Saudi calculations.
“We are also in a moment of increased effort with the opposition,” added Mr. Kerry, who said the coalition Mr. Jarba represents “has the ability to be a very important player in pushing back” against ISIS. The Saudis also appeared to be calculating that Mr. Maliki’s ability to secure a third term was in jeopardy and that the best way to block him was to encourage Sunni parties to join Kurdish parties and Mr. Maliki’s Shiite rivals in backing an alternative.
In a statement that is likely to fuel suspicions by the Iraqi prime minister, Nuri Kamal al-Maliki, that the United States and the Saudis are conspiring against him, Mr. Jarba lashed out at Mr. Maliki. “Both the secretary and the king believe that the security challenges that Iraq faces require a new government,” said the State Department official, referring to the government formation process underway in Baghdad.
“The policies of Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki after eight years in power have resulted in greater division,” Mr. Jarba said. “Now the situation is very grave, and there are sectarian militias ruling the country.” “The two shared a view that all of Iraq’s communities should be participating on an urgent basis in the political process to allow it to move forward, and that both the secretary and King Abdullah in their conversations with Iraqi leaders would convey that message directly to them,” added the official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity under State Department protocol.
“The borders between Iraq and Syria are practically open,” added Mr. Jarba, who said ISIS had just seized Bukamal and was mounting a severe attack in Deir al-Zour, two cities in eastern Syria. The Iraqi Parliament is scheduled to begin the process of forming a new government on Tuesday. To keep the political process on track, American officials would like the Sunnis to settle on their choice for Parliament speaker by then. For some time, in an informal understanding, a Shiite Arab has been prime minister, an ethnic Kurd president and a Sunni Arab speaker. 
Mr. Kerry’s meeting with King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia presented a diplomatic challenge. The meeting was held at an ornate palace that featured a marble map of the world with Islamic countries colored in green. Mr. Kerry underscored in his meeting with the king that Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, Iraq’s top Shiite cleric, had urged the selection of a Shiite prime minister by then.
The Saudis’ disdain for Mr. Maliki is longstanding.The Saudis’ disdain for Mr. Maliki is longstanding.
“I don’t trust this man,” King Abdullah told John O. Brennan, the C.I.A. director, who was then President Obama’s counterterrorism director, in a March 2009 meeting, according to a classified cable that was made public by WikiLeaks. “He is an Iranian agent.” “I don’t trust this man,” King Abdullah told John O. Brennan, the C.I.A. director who was then Mr. Obama’s counterterrorism director, in a March 15, 2009, meeting, according to classified cable that was made public by WikiLeaks. “He is an Iranian agent.”
And while it has become clear that the Obama administration would also welcome a move by the Iraqis to pick another prime minister, the Saudi attitude poses a problem for American diplomacy. Mr. Kerry’s meeting with King Abdullah was their first of the Iraq crisis and was held at an ornate palace that featured a marble map of the world with Muslim countries colored in green.
The Iraqi Parliament is scheduled to begin forming a new government on Monday. To keep the political process on track, American officials would like the Sunnis to settle on their choice for speaker of Parliament by then. It followed a Thursday meeting in Paris in which there were indications of a shift in the Saudi stance on Iraq.
But if the Saudis refuse to encourage their fellow Sunnis in Iraq to join the political process unless Mr. Maliki first agrees to hand over power to a successor, the efforts to quickly form a new multisect government may falter. During the meeting here, the king discussed security measures the kingdom was taking to deal with the potential threat from ISIS in neighboring Iraq. Mr. Kerry also noted approving a public statement earlier this week from a Saudi official that the kingdom would increase its oil production to make up for any disruption of supply from Iraq.
While there is Sunni, Kurdish and even some Shiite opposition to Mr. Maliki, the prime minister’s State of Law party secured more seats in Parliament during recent elections than its rivals did. And Mr. Maliki appears determined to have a third term. Mr. Kerry also met separately here with Ahmad al-Jarba, the president of the moderate Syrian Opposition Coalition.
The United States is encouraging the leaders of neighboring Sunni states not to “focus on the perceived transgressions of past years,” a senior State Department official told reporters on Thursday. That meeting came one day after the White House announced it was seeking $500 million from Congress so that the Pentagon could train and arm “vetted elements” of the Syrian opposition. A leader of the Shammar tribe, which has branches in Saudi Arabia and Iraq, Mr. Jarba has had strong backing from the Saudis. And Mr. Kerry described him as a leader who could help the United States counter militants from ISIS, and who might also be able to play a role in influencing Sunni politics in Iraq.
“We need things to keep moving forward,” the official added. “Iraq can’t abide months and months, or even weeks and weeks, of delays.” “President Jarba represents a tribe that reaches right into Iraq,” said Mr. Kerry at their meeting at the airport here. “He knows people there.”
Just before Mr. Kerry left Saudi Arabia he called Massoud Barzani, the president of the Kurdish autonomous region. Mr. Kerry had met with Mr. Barzani in Erbil on Tuesday and urged the Kurds to put aside their dreams of statehood and join the government formation process in Iraq.