WASHINGTON, March 15 (Xinhuanet) -- U.S. lawmakers unveiled on Wednesday a 10-member panel aimed at reviewing the administration's policy on Iraq and offering an alternative, amid unabated sectarian violence in the Middle East country and growing public opposition to the war in the United States.

    The independent panel, consisting of five Republicans and five Democrats, would be chaired by former Secretary of State James Baker and former Representative Lee Hamilton.

    "I am hopeful that this panel, comprised of honest, ethical and experienced patriots, will offer a realistic and frank assessment of the situation in Iraq and will ultimately lead us to common ground from which we can move forward as a nation," Republican Representative Frank Wolf, who played a key role in setting up thepanel, said at a news conference.

    "This is not an easy task. With the recent sectarian violence and carnage in Iraq, its mandate has never been more timely," he said.

    Baker, who served as secretary of state under former President George H. W. Bush, said the study group was created at the urging of members of the Congress who felt a need for "an honest assessment of where we are and how we go forward and take this out of politics."

    He said there was no set time frame for the effort, but the panel would work "as expeditiously as we can."

    Panel members were expected to make periodic trips to Iraq, and Baker said the White House would facilitate their travels.

    Senate Armed Services Committee chairman John Warner, a Republican of Virginia, and Senator Joseph Biden, a Democrat of Delaware, among other members of Congress, attended the launch of the group, which also included former New York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani and former Defense Secretary William Perry. Enditem