SEC. 1535. SENSE OF CONGRESS ON FEDERALISM IN IRAQ

(a) Findings.–Congress makes the following findings:

(1) Iraq continues to experience a self-sustaining cycle of sectarian violence.

(2) The ongoing sectarian violence presents a threat to regional and
world peace, and the longterm 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.

(3) A central focus of al Qaeda in Iraq has been to turn sectarian
divisions in Iraq into sectarian violence through a concentrated
series of attacks, the most significant being the destruction of the
Golden Dome of the Shia al-Askariyah Mosque in Samarra in
February 2006.

(4) 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 violence in Iraq.

(5) Article One of the Constitution of Iraq declares Iraq to be a
“single, independent federal state’.

(6) 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.

(7) 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.

(8) The Constitution of Iraq recognizes the administrative role of
the Kurdistan Regional Government in 3 northern Iraqi provinces,
known also as the Kurdistan Region.

(9) The Kurdistan region, recognized by the Constitution of Iraq, is
largely stable and peaceful.

(10) 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.

(11) Iraqis recognize Baghdad as the capital of Iraq, and the
Constitution of Iraq stipulates that Baghdad may not merge with
any federal region.

(12) Despite their differences, Iraq’s sectarian and ethnic groups
support the unity and territorial integrity of Iraq.

(13) Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki stated on November 27,
2006, “[t]he crisis is political, and the ones who can stop the cycle
of aggravation and bloodletting of innocents are the politicians’.

(b) Sense of Congress.–It is the sense of Congress that—

(1) the United States should actively support a political settlement
in Iraq based on the final provisions of the Constitution of Iraq that
create a federal system of government and allow for the creation of
federal regions, consistent with the wishes of the Iraqi people and
their elected leaders;

(2) the active support referred to in paragraph (1) should include—

(A) 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—

(i) to support an Iraqi political settlement based on federalism;

(ii) to acknowledge the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Iraq;
and

(iii) 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;
(B) further calling on Iraq’s neighbors to pledge not to intervene in
or destabilize Iraq and to agree to related verification mechanisms;
and

(C) Convening a conference for Iraqis to reach an agreement on a
comprehensive political settlement based on the federalism law
approved by the Iraqi Parliament on October 11, 2006;

(3) 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;

(4) the steps described in paragraphs (1), (2), and (3) could lead to
an Iraq that is stable, not a haven for terrorists, and not a threat to
its neighbors; and

(5) nothing in this Act should be construed in any way to infringe
on the sovereign rights of the nation of Iraq.