BAGHDAD, May 15: US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on Sunday flew to Baghdad to give the new Iraqi government a strong vote of confidence even as dozens of corpses turned up in a grizly sign of rampant insecurity. “We were impressed with your leadership of this democratically elected government and we know that you will be a strong leader,” Ms Rice told journalists after a meeting with the country’s new Prime Minister Ibrahim Jaafari.

Rice counselled the need for patience to resolve the problem of the battered country. “Iraq is emerging from a long national nightmare of tyranny into freedom,” said Ms Rice, the first senior US official to visit since Jaafari took office.

But she added: “I have great confidence in the leadership that the Iraqi leaders have shown and in the dedication of the Iraqi people”.

Iraq’s new cabinet was finally approved on May 8, amid much haggling, more than three months after landmark elections. They discussed a range of issues, including the need to boost Iraqi security forces and establish an “inclusive” government that respects the views of Shiites, Kurds and Sunnis.

She said there had been progress in building Iraq security forces but again refused to set a timetable for the withdrawal of the 138,000 US troops currently in Iraq battling insurgents.

“We will remain active in Iraq until Iraq is able to defend itself,” Ms Rice said.

“We talked about accelerating the process of building the security forces” and “raising the level of the services in the country,” Mr Jaafari told reporters.—AFP