Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice,
accompanied by Iraq's national security adviser, Mouwaffak al-Rubaie (to
Rice's left), arrives at the Prime Minister's office in the heavily
fortified Green Zone in Baghdad, August 21, 2008. (Xinhua/Reuters
Photo) Photo
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BAGHDAD, Aug. 21 (Xinhua) -- Visiting U.S. Secretary
of State Condoleezza Rice and Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari on Thursday
agreed that the two countries would set timetables for the withdrawal of U.S.
troops from Iraq.
In a joint news conference with her Iraqi
counterpart, Rice said that number and role of the U.S. troops in Iraq are based
on conditions on the ground and "we have agreed that some goals, some
aspirational timetables for how that might unfold, are well worth having in such
an agreement."
For his part, Zebari said "the agreement decides the
provisions that would arrange the temporal presence and the timetable for the
U.S. troops mission."
"So we are talking about a timetable and this refers
to the confidence in the Iraqi forces because they are taking more security
responsibilities and in fighting terrorism," Zebari said.
He said that the two sides are "very close" to sign
the agreement, while adding "I will not be able to give specific dates."
Rice also said "the Iraqi government still have to
revise the deal and we are waiting for them and will wait for the decision of
the (Iraqi) parliament."
Earlier in the day, Rice arrived in Baghdad in a
surprise visit and met with Iraqi leaders, including Prime Minister Nuri
al-Maliki.
The two countries were involved in negotiations since
March but have failed to meet their July 31 deadline of the security deal which
will set a framework for the U.S. troops' presence in Iraq after 2008.
Earlier, the U.S. embassy in Baghdad clarified that
the United States and Iraq are working on two kinds of agreements, one is the
Strategic Framework Agreement (SFA) and the other is Status of Forces Agreement
(SOFA).
The SOFA agreement deals with the U.S. troop levels,
the permission for the U.S. military to operate after a UN mandate expires at
the end of the year as well as the measure of immunity from Iraqi law to U.S.
soldiers in Iraq.
WASHINGTON, Aug. 21 (Xinhua) -- The
planned U.S.- Iraq military pact will need no approval by the Congress since it
is not treaty, the White House said on Thursday.
"It's not a treaty, so it would not require Senate
ratification or anything like that," White House spokesman Gordon Johndroe told
reporters at a ranch in Crawford, Texas, where President George W. Bush is
spending his holiday. Full story
BAGHDAD, Aug. 21 (Xinhua) -- U.S. Secretary of State
Condoleezza Rice arrived in Baghdad in a surprise visit on Thursday, al-Hurrah
satellite channel reported.
Rice is expected to meet with Iraqi leaders, including
Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, and U.S. officials in Iraq amid news that U.S.
and Iraqi negotiators have finished work on a draft security agreement that
would decide the status of the U.S. troops in Iraq. Full story
WASHINGTON, Aug. 20 (Xinhua) -- The United States and Iraq
remain finalizing their strategic agreement to replace the UN mandate for the
presence of American troops in Iraq, U.S. National Security Council spokesman
Gordon Johndroe said on Wednesday.
"Discussions are ongoing with the Iraqis to finalize a
bilateral agreement. We are working to complete the agreement, but it is not
final yet," Johndroe said in a brief statement. Full story
