U.S. responds to Iraqi changes in proposals on American troops

The U.S. responded Thursday to Iraqi proposals for changes in the draft security pact that would keep American troops here for three more years, saying it now considers the text final and it is up to Iraq’s government to push the process to approval.

U.S. and Iraqi officials would not release details of Washington’s response, which was contained in a letter from President Bush to Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki.

But a senior Iraqi official familiar with the negotiations said Washington accepted some proposals and rejected others, presumably an Iraqi demand for expanded legal authority over American troops and Defense Department contractors.

Iraqi lawmakers have said the demanded changes are essential to winning parliament’s approval before the Dec. 31 deadline, when the U.N. mandate for the U.S.-led coalition expires. Without an agreement or a new mandate, the U.S. would have to suspend all military operations in Iraq.

During talks this year, U.S. and Iraqi negotiators worked out an initial agreement calling for all American soldiers to withdraw from Iraq’s cities by next June 30, with the last U.S. troops leaving the country by 2012.