Iraqi official agrees to meet Annan for talks in January on future UN role - spokesman

Adnan Pachachi, President of the Iraqi Governing Council for January, has agreed to come to New York next month to meet with Secretary-General Kofi Annan for talks on the future role of the United Nations in the country, a UN spokesman said today.

The meeting will likely take place on the morning of 19 January, spokesman Fred Eckhard announced at a press briefing in New York. Mr. Pachachi is expected to be accompanied by Abdel Aziz al-Hakim, the President of the Governing Council for December, and Massoud Barzani of the Kurdistan Democratic Party, the expected President for February, he added.

"We are in regular contact with the United States mission to the United Nations regarding possible participation by members of the [US-led] Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA), but we have nothing definite to announce at this time," Mr. Eckhard added.

Asked if the United States had given a response to the Secretary-General, Mr. Eckhard replied that the initial reaction from two very senior US officials had been positive, but added that he nothing firm to answer at this time.

Meanwhile earlier this week in Washington, the International Advisory and Monitoring Board (IAMB) for Iraq - entrusted by the UN Security Council with monitoring the US-led management of funding and revenues in the country - met for a second time to continue its talks on organizational matters.

According to a communiqué issued after its meeting, the IAMB reviewed the scope of work for the external auditors to be appointed by the CPA to audit the export sales of Iraqi oil, petroleum products and natural gas, and the operations of the Development Fund for Iraq, in accordance with UN Security Council Resolution 1483 of 22 May 2003.

"IAMB attaches the highest priority to this scope of work, and to this end IAMB will provide its comments to the Coalition Provisional Authority before the end of the year," the communiqué said.