III
110th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. CON. RES. 37
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
June 7, 2007
Mr. Biden (for himself, Mr. Brownback, Mrs. Boxer, Mr. Smith, Mr. Nelson of Florida, and Mrs. Hutchison) submitted the following concurrent resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations
CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
Expressing the sense of Congress on federalism in Iraq.
Whereas Iraq continues to experience a self-sustaining cycle of sectarian violence;
Whereas the ongoing sectarian violence presents a threat to regional and world peace, and the long-term security interests of the United States are best served by an Iraq that is stable, not a haven for terrorists, and not a threat to its neighbors;
Whereas Iraqis must reach a comprehensive and sustainable political settlement in order to achieve stability, and the failure of the Iraqis to reach such a settlement is a primary cause of increasing violence in Iraq;
Whereas the Key Judgments of the January 2007 National
Intelligence Estimate entitled Prospects for Iraq’s Stability: A
Challenging Road Ahead
state, A number of identifiable
developments could help to reverse the negative trends driving Iraq’s current
trajectory. They include: Broader Sunni acceptance of the current political
structure and federalism to begin to reduce one of the major sources of Iraq’s
instability … Significant concessions by Shia and Kurds to create space for
Sunni acceptance of federalism
;
Whereas Article One of the Constitution of Iraq declares
Iraq to be a single, independent federal state;
Whereas Section Five of the Constitution of Iraq declares
that the federal system in the Republic of Iraq is made up of a
decentralized capital, regions, and governorates, and local
administrations
and enumerates the expansive powers of regions and the
limited powers of the central government and establishes the mechanisms for the
creation of new federal regions;
Whereas the federal system created by the Constitution of Iraq would give Iraqis local control over their police and certain laws, including those related to employment, education, religion, and marriage;
Whereas the Constitution of Iraq recognizes the administrative role of the Kurdistan Regional Government in 3 northern Iraqi provinces, known also as the Kurdistan Region;
Whereas the Kurdistan region, recognized by the Constitution of Iraq, is largely stable and peaceful;
Whereas the Iraqi Parliament approved a federalism law on October 11th, 2006, which establishes procedures for the creation of new federal regions and will go into effect 18 months after approval;
Whereas Iraqis recognize Baghdad as the capital of Iraq, and the Constitution of Iraq stipulates that Baghdad may not merge with any federal region;
Whereas, despite their differences, Iraq’s sectarian and ethnic groups support the unity and territorial integrity of Iraq; and
Whereas Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki stated on
November 27, 2006, The crisis is political, and the ones who can stop
the cycle of aggravation and bloodletting of innocents are the
politicians
: Now, therefore, be it
That it is the sense of Congress that—
the United States should actively support a political settlement among Iraq’s major factions based upon the provisions of the Constitution of Iraq that create a federal system of government and allow for the creation of federal regions;
the active support referenced in paragraph (1) above should include—
calling on the international community, including countries with troops in Iraq, the permanent 5 members of the United Nations Security Council, members of the Gulf Cooperation Council, and Iraq’s neighbors—
to support an Iraqi political settlement based on federalism;
to acknowledge the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Iraq; and
to fulfill commitments for the urgent delivery of significant assistance and debt relief to Iraq, especially those made by the member states of the Gulf Cooperation Council;
further calling on Iraq’s neighbors to pledge not to intervene in or destabilize Iraq and to agree to related verification mechanisms; and
convening a conference for Iraqis to reach an agreement on a comprehensive political settlement based on the creation of federal regions within a united Iraq;
the United States should urge the Government of Iraq to quickly agree upon and implement a law providing for the equitable distribution of oil revenues, which is a critical component of a comprehensive political settlement based upon federalism; and
the steps described in paragraphs (1), (2), and (3) above could lead to an Iraq that is stable, not a haven for terrorists, and not a threat to its neighbors.
