The New Nation - Internet Edition

AFP, Baghdad

Washington and Baghdad are "very, very close" to an agreement on the future of US forces in Iraq, US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said on a surprise visit to the war-torn country Thursday.

Rice cautioned however that the controversial deal had not yet been clinched as she arrived in the Iraqi capital for meetings with senior Iraqi officials, including Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, and Baghdad-based US officials. "We are very, very close to an agreement. But it's not done," Rice said referring to the Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA). "Undoubtedly it's true that the negotiators have taken this very, very far towards an end-agreement but there is no reason to believe that there is an agreement," Rice told reporters travelling with her. "There are still issues concerning exactly how our forces will operate.