US house speaker in Iraq

[Ron Burgundy]

AFP - Nancy Pelosi (news, bio, voting record), the speaker of the US House of Representatives, met with Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki during an unannounced visit to Iraq by the head of the newly Democrat-controlled chamber, Maliki's office said.

Maliki assured Pelosi, who was accompanied on the visit by six other senior members of the House, of Iraq's intention "to assume security missions currently handled by US-led forces in Iraq," while Pelosi expressed support for the transfer of responsibility to Iraqi forces, a statement said.

Pelosi said she did not oppose efforts by the administration of US President George W. Bush to accelerate the transfer of all responsibilities to Iraq, it added.

The California Democrat is third in line to assume the US presidency, behind Vice President Dick Cheney.

"The prime minister underscored his government's determination to deal with terrorist groups. This confrontation will not be based solely on military force however, but also on political means," the statement said.

But Maliki asked that the training and equipping of Iraqi forces with modern weapons be speeded up.

"The objective of the security plan for Baghdad is to provide security for all in the capital and to target those who break the law, regardless of their confession," the statement said.

He referred to a plan to deploy up to eight more US and Iraqi brigades in Baghdad, which has been wracked by raging sectarian violence for almost a year.

In a statement after meeting Maliki and US officials, Pelosi and her fellow legislators said they remained convinced only a political solution would solve iraq's problems.

"The sooner Iraqi leaders make necessary political accommodations, including amending their constitution to resolve outstanding differences among all Iraqi communities, the better the chances for ending the sectarian violence," they said.

They said that in their meetings they stressed their belief that Iraqis must take "primary responsibility" for the country's security.

"The delegation's view is that American forces should quickly begin to transition from a combat role to one focused on training, counter-terrorism, force protection, and controlling Iraq's borders."

source: http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20070126/pl_afp/iraquspoliticspelosi [link]