Iraq deal 'very, very close'

2008-08-21 15:20

Sylvie Lanteaume

Baghdad - Washington and Baghdad are "very, very close" to an agreement on the future of US forces in Iraq, US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said on a surprise visit to the war-torn country on Thursday.

Rice cautioned however that the controversial deal had not yet been clinched as she arrived in the Iraqi capital for meetings with senior Iraqi officials, including Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, and Baghdad-based US officials.

"We are very, very close to an agreement. But it's not done," Rice said referring to the Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA).

"Undoubtedly it's true that the negotiators have taken this very, very far towards an end-agreement but there is no reason to believe that there is an agreement," Rice told reporters travelling with her.

"There are still issues concerning exactly how our forces will operate. I think that is only natural at this point."

During the meeting the two sides exchanged their respective views of the SOFA agreement that is to govern troop levels, allow the US military to operate after a UN mandate expires at the end of the year and offer a measure of immunity from Iraqi law to US soldiers in Iraq.

Discussions included "points of agreement and difference" as well as latest developments in talks between Iraqi and American negotiators concerning the pact, a statement from Maliki's office said.

Asked earlier if the delicate question of immunity was the main sticking point, Rice told reporters: "I am not going into the details now, where we are on in specific issues except to say, I think, all issues have moved forward in a positive way."

'We are continuing to work...'

She did not, however, expect that the deal would be signed on Thursday.

"We are continuing to work to make sure that any timeline, aspirational timelines, that are in the agreement really do reflect what we believe and ... what is reasonable," she said, adding that she would also discuss a stalled provincial election law that Washington believes is key to national stability.

US President George W Bush and Maliki agreed in principle last November to sign a Status of Forces Agreement in Iraq by the end of July, but controversy has delayed the arrangement.

The proposed pact has drawn sharp criticism from Iraq's various political factions, especially from the deeply anti-American group of Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr.

Iraqi politicians have bristled at the idea of a continuing defence pact with the United States, but have also said they are on track to concluding an arrangement.

The original target date was July 31, but the White House said on Wednesday that some details had still to be finalised. Any deal would have to first ratified by the parliament and the veto-wielding presidency council.

Baghdad has expressed reservations about how many bases Washington should retain, what powers the US military should continue to hold to detain Iraqi civilians, and what immunity US troops should have.

The White House has so far refused to be locked into a fixed date for withdrawing US combat troops, but has suggested a series of target dates for giving Iraqis control over security in different parts of the war-torn country.

With 142 500 American troops still in Iraq, the issue is politically sensitive in Washington as the November US presidential election draws nearer.

- AFP