Some of the disputed areas have been infiltrated by Al Qaida and other
insurgents. Officials said Al Qaida has won Sunni support to attack Kurdish
and Shi'ite interests in northern provinces.
The proposal would be limited to the provinces of Diyala, Kirkuk and
Nineveh, officials said. They said this would require a revision of the
Status of Forces Agreement signed by Baghdad and Washington in late 2008.
"If approved, the altered security arrangement would be a temporary
measure to improve confidence in the security situation and pressure
terrorist networks," an official said.
So far, Iraqi and Kurdish representatives have not rejected the plan. On
Aug. 17, Odierno met senior Iraqi and Kurdish defense and security officials
and later deemed this an important step toward the definition of any joint
security framework.
"Today's meeting represents an important first step in working through
the security issues in the disputed areas,” Odierno said. "I was pleased
with the positive and overall sense of cooperation. All parties are focused
on improving security for all Iraqis."
Officials said the U.S. plan cited troop levels for a joint force as
well as command and coordination. They said the proposal also stipulated an
intelligence exchange and supervision.
