US, Iraq set for talks on future relations

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. and Iraqi officials will start talks on Saturday on agreements to govern future relations between the two countries, the Pentagon said on Friday.

The Bush administration's intention to negotiate documents on the status of U.S. military forces in Iraq and a framework for diplomatic relations has prompted protests by members of Congress, who say they should be consulted.

Democrats say the agreement on U.S. forces could lock the United States into a long-term military presence in Iraq. Bush's Republican administration says it is a routine measure to govern the legal status of U.S. troops.

Ryan Crocker, the U.S. ambassador to Iraq, will lead the American negotiating team in the talks in Baghdad, Pentagon press secretary Geoff Morrell said.

The United States expects the talks to be the start of a "long process" to normalize relations between the two countries, Morrell said.

"That begins in earnest tomorrow," he said.

Until this week, attention had focused on the "status of forces" agreement.

But David Satterfield, the State Department's coordinator for Iraq, told Congress on Tuesday the administration also planned to negotiate a "strategic framework" document on U.S.-Iraqi relations.

Satterfield did not offer much detail on the document but said the administration did not see it as "legally binding."