Smooth move! My congratulations to all Iraqis!
IRAQ POWER HANDOVER 'TODAY'
The handover of power in Iraq is to be brought forward to today.
A formal announcement will be made later today, Tony Blair said.
The informal announcement was made by Iraq's foreign minister Hoshyar Zebari.
The handover of power to an interim Iraqi government was supposed to take place on June 30.
Mr Zebari said the deteriorating security situation in the country was one of the reasons why the date had been brought forward.
"We will challenge these elements in Iraq, the anti-democratic elements, by even bringing the handover of sovereignty before June 30 as a sign we are ready for it," he said.
(Via FR.)
UPDATE:
More here.
The Bush administration was pleased with the decision to move up the transfer date and was confident in the new government, a senior administration official said. The president marked the transfer with a whispered comment and a handshake with Blair, his closest ally in the war, as they gathered with world leaders around a table at a NATO summit in Istanbul.
Stealing a glance at his watch to make sure the transfer had occurred, Bush put his hand over his mouth to guard his remarks, leaned toward Blair and then reached out to shake hands. Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld, a row behind the president, beamed.
Sneaks! Good job, guys.
