Iraq, US at Odds Over Military Handover - New York Times

Embarrassing isn't the word for it, after over three years of nothing but screwups.

Iraq, US at Odds Over Military Handover - New York Times:

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - The United States and Iraq were at odds on Saturday over the transfer of operational control of Iraq's military to Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's government, forcing a delay of a handover ceremony.

Saturday's ceremony to transfer control of Iraq's army from U.S. commander General George Casey to the Iraqi Defense Ministry had been hailed by U.S. officials as a big step toward Iraq taking responsibility for security.

`There is a disagreement on the wording of the document that outlines the new relationship between Coalition Forces and Iraqis,'' U.S. military spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Barry Johnson told Reuters late on Saturday evening.

`It is embarrassing, but it was decided it was better not to sign the document,'' he said, adding that objections to the wording had been raised by Maliki's government.

The U.S. military, suffering almost daily casualties, has been training Iraq's fledgling military so that it can gradually extract itself from Iraq's increasingly sectarian violence more than three years after the 2003 invasion.

`They are not going to go ahead with the document until the language is agreed upon. It's not a matter of major substance, but they're not happy with the wording of the document,'' Johnson said, adding that it would be signed ``in a matter of days.''