Pelosi urges Maliki to further ties in all fields

BAGHDAD / IraqiNews.com: U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi Sunday called on Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki to further relations between Baghdad and Washington in all fields, according to a release by the cabinet after Maliki received Pelosi and her accompanying delegation. “We’re looking forward to more developed relations between the two countries as far as the issue of troops withdrawal from the cities is concerned and also to backing efforts aimed at stabilizing security conditions and preserving Iraqi funds,” Pelosi was quoted by the cabinet statement as received by IraqiNews.com news agency. Pelosi had arrived in Baghdad for a surprise visit to meet with senior Iraqi officials. She paid the visit as a date fixed for the U.S. withdrawal from Iraqi cities, late June, is drawing near. Pelosi’s visit to Iraq is her third. The two previous ones were on January 26, 2007 and May 17, 2008. Pelosi, the first woman ever to occupy the post of U.S. House speaker, was one of 126 Democrats inside the House to vote against the use of force in Iraq in 2002. However, she later voted in favor of financing the war. For his part, Maliki said the security conditions have become good. “We do not need large number of troops inside the cities because we managed to wield control over the cities. Now our efforts are focused on improving our intelligence agencies,” he said. “A responsible withdrawal would not have a negative impact on the security situation,” the Iraqi premier added. Maliki expressed the Iraqi government’s keenness to “develop ties with the United States in all fields, hoping the U.S. Congress would contribute to the efforts to enhance bilateral relations within the framework of the agreement between the two countries on the economic and scientific domains. Earlier in the day, Pelosi called for fighting corruption and stretching a helping hand to the Iraqi government to make further progress. The Iraqi parliament speaker is looking forward to cooperation and we will discuss the details of eliminating corruption, Pelosi said in a press conference she held with her Iraqi counterpart Iyad al-Samarraie. For his part, Samarraie said that joint cooperation between Iraq and the United States is still ticking despite all the obstacles. AmR (S) 1