A senior United States official for Iraq said on Sunday he fully supported Iraqi President Fouad Masoum after Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, who the United States has blamed for stoking Iraq's security crisis, accused Masoum of violating the constitution, according to The Associated Press.
"Fully support President of Iraq Fouad Masoum as guarantor of the Constitution and a (prime minister) nominee who can build a national consensus," Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Brett McGurk said on his Twitter feed, the AP reported.
In a tough televised speech likely to deepen political tensions as a Sunni insurgency rages, Maliki indicated that he will not drop his bid for a third term and accused the president of violating the constitution, according to the AP.
State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said the U.S. rejects any effort to use coercion or manipulation in the process of choosing a new Iraqi leader, the AP reported.
Psaki said the U.S. supports the process to select a prime minister "by building a national consensus and governing in an inclusive manner," according to the AP.
Al-Maliki's surprise speech late Sunday plunged the government into a political crisis at a time it is battling advances by Islamic State militants, the AP reported. It was his first speech on Iraqi TV since U.S. forces launched airstrikes and humanitarian airdrops in Iraq last week.
Al-Maliki is seeking a third term as prime minister, but the latest crisis has prompted even his closest allies to call for his resignation, according to the AP. A parliament session scheduled for Monday to discuss the election and who might lead the next Iraqi government was postponed until Aug. 19.
U.S. officials said the dispute between al-Maliki and Massoum centers on the specifics of the deadline for nominees to replace the prime minister, the AP reported. While al-Maliki believes the deadline was Sunday, other Iraqi leaders believe the deadline is Monday afternoon.
