Erdogan, Biden concerned over chaos in post-US Iraq

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and US Vice President Joe Biden discussed on the phone latest developments in Iraq after pullout of US troops last year, where the Turkish prime minister and Biden agreed that they are concerned over the chaos in Iraq Today`s Zaman reported State-run Anatolia news agency reported on Thursday that Erdogan and Biden expressed concerns over deepening chaos in Iraq following the pullout of US troops from the war-torn country last year. An apparently coordinated wave of bombings targeting Shiite Muslims killed at least 78 people in Iraq on Thursday, the second large-scale assault by militants since US forces pulled out last month. The attacks, which bore the hallmarks of Sunni insurgents, come ahead of a Shiite holy day that draws hundreds of thousands of pilgrims from across Iraq, raising fears of a deepening of sectarian bloodshed. Rifts along the country's Sunni-Shiite faultline just a few years ago pushed Iraq to the brink of civil war. The bombings in Baghdad and outside the southern city of Nasiriyah appeared to be the deadliest in Iraq in more than a year. Thursday's blasts occurred at a particularly unstable time for Iraq's fledgling democracy. A broad-based unity government designed to include the country's main factions is mired in a political crisis pitting politicians from the Shiite majority now in power against the Sunni minority, which reigned supreme under the dictatorship of Saddam Hussein. Some Iraqis blame that political discord for the lethal strikes. Sources said Erdoğan told Biden that previous efforts for peace and stability will be wasted if Iraq distances itself from the culture of democracy. Both officials also agreed that authoritarian and sectarian policies will never benefit Iraq. Sources added that Erdogan and Biden agreed that Turkey and the US sees benefit in holding dialogue and consulations regarding the developments in Iraq.