Iraqi president is ready to talk with opposition

CAIRO, Egypt – Iraq’s president said Sunday he was willing to talk with opposition figures and members of Saddam Hussein’s outlawed Baath Party, and he called on the Sunni-led insurgency to lay down its arms and join the political process.

However, President Jalal Talabani insisted at a reconciliation conference that the Shiite- and Kurdish-dominated government would not meet with Baath Party members who are participating in the Sunni-led insurgency attacking Iraqi and U.S.-led forces in the country.

“I am the president of Iraq, and I am responsible for all Iraqis. If those who describe themselves as Iraqi resistance want to contact me, they are welcome,” Talabani told reporters at the U.S.-backed and Arab League-sponsored conference. “I am committed to listen to them, even those who are criminals and are on trial.”

Later, the delegates agreed to reconvene in late February for a fuller reconciliation meeting. A draft of a final communique obtained by the Associated Press stated that delegates to the February meeting would decide on a timetable for the withdrawal of foreign troops from Iraq.

The document also said Iraqis of all sectarian, religious and political affiliations could participate in the meeting if they agreed to lay down arms.

Talabani’s remarks came amid reports he already met in Cairo with representatives of the former regime. Those reports appeared to catch some Shiite delegates by surprise.

“This is a unilateral move which was not coordinated with us,” said one Shiite leader, who requested anonymity because of the fear of political repercussions.

The London-based Al Hayat newspaper reported Sunday that Talabani had received proposals from insurgent groups and that their “conditions” were being reviewed in coordination with the Pentagon and American officials at the Cairo conference. Talabani did not comment on the report.

“Those who carry guns should come back to their senses, there is no reason to hold arms,” he said.

The three-day meeting in Cairo opened Saturday under the auspices of the Arab League in an attempt to patch over ethnic and religious fault lines and address the contentious issue of who would participate in the larger reconciliation conference.

Leaders of Iraq’s Sunni, Shiite and Kurdish communities are struggling with serious differences over power sharing, the insurgency and the future of the U.S. troops in Iraq.

Sunni leaders, who were dominant under the Saddam regime, are pressing ahead with demands that the Shiite-majority government should agree to a timetable for withdrawing all foreign troops and broad amendments to the constitution ratified Oct. 15.

Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld said Sunday on ABC’s “This Week” that commanders’ assessments will determine the pace of any military drawdown. About 160,000 U.S. troops are in Iraq as the country approaches elections Dec. 15.