Iraq PM admits US troops may stay

The Iraqi prime minister has admitted US troops could stay in the country beyond 2011. Under the US-Iraq Status of Forces agreement, which sets out a timetable for the withdrawal of US forces from Iraq, American troops must exit the country by December 31, 2011. But Nuri al-Maliki said at the US Institute of Peace in Washington on Thursday: "The security relations between the Americans and the Iraqis ... is a relationship based on co-operation and all the foundations and rules that were put forth in the agreements. "Nevertheless, if the Iraqis require further training and support we shall examine this at that time, based on the needs of Iraq." His comments mark a shift in his position and come less than a month after US troops pulled out of Iraq's towns and cities, handing sole control of security in the areas to domestic security forces.