By Xinhua
Baghdad : U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice Tuesday hailed the political progress in Iraq during her surprise visit, citing the latest approval of a law that reinstates thousands of Saddam’s former Baath party members to government jobs.
“I have seen a progress on the political front, particularly in the reconciliation that the Iraqi people themselves are carrying out at the grassroots front,” Rice told reporters in a joint news conference with her Iraqi counterpart Hoshyar Zebari in Baghdad.
Earlier in the day, Rice arrived surprisingly in Baghdad coming from Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia, where she was accompanying U.S. President George W. Bush in his Middle East tour.
Her trip aimed at meeting with Iraqi leaders to build up what Bush’s administration sees a progress on national reconciliation efforts.
Upon her arrival, Rice held a meeting with Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki and briefed him on Bush’s Middle East tour.
Rice also passed Bush’s congratulations on the passage of the Accountability and Justice law, saying that passing the vital law “is a good step on the road to reconciliation.”
“I have had discussions with the national leadership, and there seems to be a spirit of cooperation to move forward at the national front as well,” she said.
But Rice underlined that “Iraq is moving forward in a way that is promising but still fragile,” referring to the need that the Iraqi government should do more to make a breakthrough in reuniting the polarized nation over other issues, including the control of oil wealth, constitution amendments and provincial elections.
On Saturday, the Iraqi parliament passed a controversial law on reinstatement of former Saddam’s Baath Party members to government jobs.
The parliament passed the Accountability and Justice bill to replace the de-Baathification law, which banned Saddam’s supporters from participating in the public life in the country after the collapse of Saddam’s regime by a U.S.-led coalition in 2003.