BAGHDAD (AFX) - US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and her British counterpart Jack Straw made a surprise visit to Iraq Sunday to urge the country's leaders to speed up the formation of a new government.
Rice and Straw flew in secretly from Britain under tight security in a rainstorm for an unprecedented joint effort to move forward a political process that has dragged on since December's legislative elections.
The weather forced the two diplomats to take overland transport under high security on the dangerous road between the airport and the heavily guarded Green Zone where they immediately plunged into non-stop meetings with Iraqi officials.
Rice told reporters she had 'very direct' discussions with leaders of Iraq's Shiite, Kurdish and Sunni communities, including President Jalal Talabani and Prime Minister Ibrahim Jaafari, on the stalled political talks.
'It should be very clear to everyone that the time has come for these negotiations to produce a government of national unity,' Rice told reporters accompanying her and Straw from Britain.
Straw, making his ninth visit to Iraq, said there was 'significant international concern' about delays in the formation of the battered country's first permanent government since Saddam Hussein was chased from power three years ago.
Iraqis have been arguing over Jaafari's bid to stay on as prime minister as the candidate of the Shiite United Iraqi Alliance, which controls nearly half the seats in the 275-member parliament.
The discontent has now spread to Jaafari's own alliance, with several members openly calling for the prime minister to step down to help smooth the arduous negotiations among the fractious communal groups. newsdesk@afxnews.com afp/bam COPYRIGHT Copyright AFX News Limited 2005. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of AFX News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of AFX News. AFX News and AFX Financial News Logo are registered trademarks of AFX News Limited