US President George W Bush and his Iraqi
counterpart, President Jalal Talabani, met Wednesday to discuss negotiations on
an agreement for the stationing of US forces in Iraq.
The US and Iraqi governments are in talks to forge an agreement for the
US military presence before a UN mandate expires at the end of this year.
"We talked about a strategic framework agreement that suits the Iraqi
government," Bush said.
The Status of Forces Agreement, or SOFA, would cover the full range of issues
associated with a long term US contingency, including whether the troops are
subject to Iraqi criminal courts.
Other contentious issues are whether the Iraqi government must be informed in
advance of US military operations. The Bush administration is negotiating with
Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's government.
The United States has SOFA pacts with more than a dozen countries.
Meanwhile, Talabani pledged that the Iraqi government will pass two laws this
year seen as vital to the reconciliation of the country's ethnic and religious
groups.
Talabani said a law will be passed this year to ensure oil
revenue is fairly shared among Shiites, Sunnis and Kurds, and that work would
be finished on a law for the country's next elections, dpa reported.
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