Officials: Iraq, U.S. Finish Draft Agreement for Troop Withdrawal

BAGHDAD — Iraqi and American negotiators have finished work on a draft security agreement that would see all American troops leave Iraqi cities by June 30 and the rest of the country by the end of 2011, Iraqi officials said yesterday.

The deal still needs approval by both governments — and some members of Iraq's Cabinet oppose some of its provisions.

In Washington, the White House spokeswoman, Dana Perino, said talks with the Iraqis were ongoing and "we are trying to bring the agreement to a close. It is not done yet."

An Iraqi official who was involved in the protracted negotiations said the latest draft was completed last week and sent to the two governments.

The official said a compromise had been worked out on the contentious issue of immunity for American troops from prosecution under Iraqi law, but he did not give details.

He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not supposed to release the information.

While Iraqi negotiators signed off on the draft, another official close to Prime Minister al-Maliki said the country's political leadership objected to parts of the text, including the immunity provision.

He would not elaborate and spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the issue.

A third senior Iraqi official said Mr. Maliki himself had gone through the text and made annotated notes with objections to some undisclosed points. He also spoke on condition of anonymity.

American officials recently reported progress on the timeline for troop withdrawals but said the immunity issue was a snag.

The security deal is to govern the status of the more than 140,000-strong American military force after the U.N. Security Council mandate for its mission expires at the end of this year.

Iraq's Cabinet must sign off on the deal and then refer it to parliament for final approval. The Shiite-led government has been pressing for some sort of timeline for the departure of American troops, saying that is essential to win legislators' approval.

The decision to refer the agreement to parliament followed demands by the country's most powerful Shiite cleric, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, that any formula to keep American troops on Iraqi soil — even for a limited period — must have broad political support.