In America, where the 2008 presidential race is increasingly getting hot, the security pact is also facing hurdles. Republican White House hopeful John McCain vowed to continue Bush's Iraq policy and said American forces would stay in Iraq for many more years.

But Democratic candidate Barack Obama has been opposed to the Iraq War and promised to withdraw American forces once he won the race.

Their conflicting views on the issue have complicated the legality of the US-Iraq security pact. Even if the pact were reached now, it would also face close scrutiny by the Democrats-controlled Congress. Under such circumstances, the Bush administration is encumbered on the issue by the various domestic political forces.

On the other side, the security pact, which is of vital importance to Iraqi's national interests in the future, must be agreed upon in the first place between Iraq's various parties; otherwise the Iraqi government and its parliament would not ratify it. If the Maliki government wants to use the agreement to end the Iraq War or regulate American forces in the country, he has the leverage to do it.

But it is expected that it will take time for both sides to hammer out the final draft.

The author is assistant president of China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations

(China Daily July 17, 2008)