Rice Detours to Iraq From Saudi Arabia

U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice made an unannounced detour Tuesday from Saudi Arabia to Baghdad to meet with Iraqi leaders.

Rice was accompanying U.S. President George Bush on a Middle East tour to bolster the Israeli-Palestinian peace process and made the last-minute decision, White House spokesman Gordon Johndroe told reporters.

President Bush and Secretary Rice decided this would be a good opportunity for the secretary to go to Baghdad to meet with Iraqi officials to build on political progress made and encourage political reconciliation and legislative action, Johndroe said.

While violence and casualties in Iraq are down somewhat, the Bush administration is reportedly frustrated by the delays in getting the Iraqi legislature to pass legislation to allow former members of Saddam Hussein’s Baath Party to work in public service again and receive pensions, The New York Times reported.

Another key piece of legislation languishing in Baghdad is a bill defining oil revenue sharing among Shiites, Sunnis and Kurds, reports said.