Report notes gains, issues in Iraq

WASHINGTON, March 31 (UPI) -- The political and security situation in Iraq still improves, but remains hindered by sectarian and ethnic conflicts, a U.S. Defense Department report said.

The congressionally mandated report, released Tuesday, focused on the situation in Iraq from December through February, a period during which key security arrangements between Baghdad and Washington occurred, the Pentagon said in a news release. A status-of-forces agreement, which went into effect Jan. 1, calls for U.S. troops to begin transferring power to Iraqi security forces, and provides a time frame for withdrawal of U.S. combat forces from Iraq.

"With the signing and implementation of the strategic framework agreement, the relationship with Iraq has become more mature and what we would consider a more normalized U.S.-Iraqi relationship through economic, diplomatic, cultural and security ties," Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman said.

The report notes that President Barack Obama in February announced a plan to begin a phased drawdown of U.S. combat troops from Iraq by Aug. 31, 2010, and defines U.S. goals before that deadline.

Concerning security, the report said improvements were seen with incidents at low levels that were experienced in early 2004. During the reporting period, there were 35 percent fewer civilian deaths than during the last reporting period.

The report notes that although these security achievements are increasingly positive, they were still delicate in some places.

"Despite some of these positive developments, national reconciliation continues to be hindered by the pursuit of ethno-sectarian agendas and disagreement over the distribution of power and resources at all levels," the report said. "As security has improved, underlying political disputes have risen to the forefront, and political tension remains a problem."