Iraqi Vice President Abdul-Mahdi visits Ankara

Ankara hosted yet another senior Iraqi leader yesterday, as Iraqi politicians work to build a new coalition government in the aftermath of last month's national parliamentary elections. Iraqi Vice President Adel Abdul-Mahdi, a member of the Shiite-led Iraqi National Alliance (INA), had talks with President Abdullah Gul, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu. Afterwards, Davutoglu said that he and Abdul-Mahdi had discussed the elections, praising Iraq's stable and transparent polling process. Davutoglu reiterated Ankara's expectation that Iraq form a representative government which embraces all sectors of Iraqi society.