US: Iraq security pact is 'best offer'
Tue Oct 28, 2:24 pm ET

WASHINGTON (AFP) – The White House poured cold water Tuesday on Iraq's push to reopen talks on a controversial accord governing the US troop presence there beyond December, calling the existing pact its "best offer."

"Anything that they would want to change would have to clear a very high bar for us. We think that the door is pretty much shut on these negotiations," spokeswoman Dana Perino said as Baghdad planned to push for changes.

But Perino said Washington was not completely closing off prospects for new talks, stressing that doing so "would be irresponsible" until US officials see the proposed amendments to the agreement.

"It's a little premature for me to say what we would or would not accept. I would just say that it's going to be very hard for us to accept any changes. And I think that the Iraqis know that," said the spokeswoman.

She spoke after the Iraqi cabinet authorized Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki to negotiate changes in the security pact, which sets in motion a timeline for the withdrawal of US combat forces from Iraq by the end of 2011.

The accord, known as a States of Forces Agreement (SOFA), will lay out the rights and responsibilities of US forces in Iraq after the UN mandate that provides a legal underpinning for their presence expires in late 2008.

"We came their way on a few things and they came our way on a few things. So that's what you get in a negotiation," Perino said of the latest draft version. "We provided our best thinking on it, our best offer."

Asked whether Washington was considering a renewed UN mandate if the talks fall apart, Perino replied that was "certainly not our preference" and underlined that US officials were "confident" of getting a final agreement.

At the same time, the spokeswoman warned "there will be consequences" if there is no accord, warning that Iraq's security forces are not "ready to do this on their own."

"Even just yesterday, we saw two of our soldiers who were killed in a suicide bombing. So Iraq still has a lot of violence that they have to deal with. Our soldiers are the ones who are there to help them deal with it. And they're going to need our help for some time," she said.

The latest draft also offers powers to the Iraqis to prosecute American soldiers and civilians for "serious crimes" committed outside their bases and when off-duty.

Iraqi lawmaker Mahmud Othman said these powers were not enough and Iraqis must be able to prosecute US soldiers for crimes committed during operations.

"What happens if incidents like Haditha occur again?" he asked, referring to the massacre of 24 Iraqis in 2005 in Haditha in Iraq's Anbar province allegedly by US Marines who went on a rampage after a comrade was killed by a bomb.

US officials warn that failure to secure a pact by December 31 will leave US troops with no legal framework to operate in Iraq, and will force them to retrench themselves in their bases.

Ellie