Irbil, Iraq (CNN) -- Vice President Tariq al-Hashimi has lashed out at Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, predicting that Iraq could soon return to widespread sectarian violence that could require the return of U.S. forces. "Al-Maliki is pushing my country to reach a turning point with deeply sectarian dimension," the Sunni vice president told CNN on Sunday during an interview in the semiautonomous Kurdish region in the north, where he has fled so that government forces loyal to the Shiite prime minister cannot execute an arrest warrant for him on charges of running a death squad. He expressed concern that Americans "will face the same problem as they faced in 2003," when a U.S.-led coalition invaded Iraq, toppling the regime of Saddam Hussein and unleashing a wave of sectarian violence.
@highlight
He accuses al-Maliki of "pushing my country to reach a turning point"
@highlight
The violence could require the return of U.S. forces, he says
@highlight
"The future of Iraq is grim," he adds
Asked whether @placeholder is becoming a dictator, al-Hashimi was blunt: "What sort of explanation could I give for a real and serious power consolidation?"