Article 11 of the new constitution declares that “All that is not written in the exclusive powers of the federal authorities is in the authority of the regions.” That formulation all but pits the central government and regions against one another in a battle for political supremacy.
但是，较长期地看，这些对联邦政权的限制将把伊拉克推入宗派主义的权力和利益争夺。新宪法的第11节宣布，“所有没有写入联邦政权专属权力的都属于地方政权”。这样的表述基本上是把中央政府和地方推入了对政治至高权的争夺战。