During Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri Al-Maliki’s visit to Washington, D.C. last week, the prime minister left open the possibility of continuing the U.S. military presence in his country beyond 2011, when the current Status of Forces Agreement expires.   At an exclusive public engagement at the United States Institute of Peace, the prime minister also talked about the elections in 2010, the need to resolve tensions between Kurds and Iraqis and efforts to combat political and financial corruption. (Watch the prime minister’s remarks and answer questions from the audience at USIP.)

What does this mean for U.S.-Iraqi relations going forward, and how ready are the Iraqi forces to take on security by themselves?  How much improvement has Iraq made in terms of political reconciliation between Kurds and Iraqis, and Sunni and Shia ahead of the national elections?

USIP’s Sam Parker looks forward to answering your questions on Facebook about these and other topics!

For background, watch Sam Parker discuss the issues surrounding the U.S. military draw down from Iraq, the state of U.S.-Iraqi relations, the prime minister’s agenda and goals with this visit and USIP’s role in Iraq since 2004.