Troops to leave Iraq after 2011

IRAQI Premier Nuri al-Maliki last night said Washington and Baghdad have agreed there will be no foreign forces in Iraq after 2011, setting a timeline for a US withdrawal from the war-torn country.

Maliki stressed, however, that despite “significant progress”, there are “still points of disagreement crucial to both sides” in the proposed security pact that will decide the future of US forces in Iraq.

The White House, too, stressed there was no final accord with Baghdad on the controversial issue.

“These discussions continue, as we have not yet finalised an agreement,” spokesman Tony Fratto said.

A statement issued by Maliki’s office quoted the prime minister as telling a gathering of tribal leaders in Baghdad’s fortified Green Zone that accord had been reached on a timeline.

“There is an agreement between the two sides that there will be no foreign soldiers in Iraq after 2011,” the statement said.

Among sticking points still to be resolved, however, is a demand that foreign troops stationed in the country cannot enjoy open-ended immunity.

Iraqi and US officials have for months been negotiating the controversial military security pact governing the presence of foreign troops that will come into force once a UN mandate expires in December.

Iraqi parliament speaker Mahmud Mashhadani poured further cold water on the pact, saying lawmakers would never endorse it in its present form. The parliamentary stamp is a crucial legal requirement. “What I understand is that the Iraqi parliament will not pass this agreement,” he said.