Epstein Secrets

41 The head of the Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq at the time, Abdul Aziz al-Hakim, and President Jalal Talabani struggled to get Washington and Tehran to work together. Despite the collapse of the nuclear negotiations that were then taking place between Iran and the European Union, the United Stat

ch as independent oil exports and the future of the disputed city of Kirkuk will backfire. Washington is loath EFTA00669742 to take sides between Erbil and Baghdad. And if it does, it is unlikely to act to antagonize Mr. Maliki. Neither will Tehran. Iran and America must also manage external spoile

an agreement announced Sunday that would allow the IAEA "to continue some monitoring of Iran's atomic program momentarily eased a standoff between Tehran and Western nations and may provide a narrow opening for diplomacy as the Biden administration attempts to restart negotiations with Iran." However,

es after at least four rockets struck Balad Air Base on Saturday night, wounding one person," and "a dozen rockets targeted coalition forces outside Erbil International Airport, killing one non-U.S. contractor and wounding nine more people, including five Americans" last week. The Hill (2/22, Kheel,

A01737588 Nations. This week's issue of The New Yorker includes a Profile based on twenty-five years of conversations with him, including four in Tehran and New York since last September. Zarif is now the pivotal broker in nuclear talks between his government and six world powers-Britain, China, Fra

. According to Rebwar Sayid Gul -- a senior official with the Kurdistan Islamic Union who attended a May 18 gathering with other Kurdish leaders in Erbil -- the Kurdish blocs "have decided that if Maliki is nominated for a third term, [they] will hold a referendum on independence and separation from

would be an illusory victory. It can only end in defeat — and the strengthening of the insurgents' sworn Shiite enemies in Baghdad and, especially, Tehran. First, consider the brute demographic reality. Unlike in Syria, Sunnis are a relatively small part of the Iraqi population, about 25 percent — tho

ital: "We saw Ferraris and Bentleys being driven by students at the American University of Iraq in Suleimaniyah, and at the only five-star hotel in Erbil, the car park was filled with new BMW's and Range Rovers. The few international restaurants in Erbil cost approximately $90 per person for a meal w