US President George W. Bush said in Paris on June 5 that US-led coalition troops would stay in Iraq after the June 30 power transfer at the request of the new Iraqi interim government.

"Multinational forces will remain in Iraq to help this new government succeed in its vital work...at the request of the new government," Bush said at a joint news conference with French President Jacques Chirac after their talks.

The coalition forces in Iraq and the new interim Iraqi government have exchanged letters detailing the conditions under which foreign forces would remain in the country after the transfer of power to the Iraqi people on June 30.

The United States has been trying to obtain from the United Nations Security Council a resolution previewing this power transfer, but some members of the Security Council, especially France and Russia are waiting for some supplementary provisions on conditions under which the coalition forces continue their presence in Iraq after June 30.

Bush said there existed a kind of security agreement in the past recognizing the sovereignty of the host government.

Iraqi Prime Minister Iyad Allawi and the coalition have exchanged some letters to set the cooperation parameters in terms of security in Iraq, according to Bush.

US Secretary of State Colin Powell said earlier Saturday that an agreement would soon be reached within the Security Council on a new Iraq resolution.

Powell told a news conference aboard the plane taking Bush from Rome to Paris that Allawi has explained in a letter the conditions under which US-led coalition troops would remain in Iraq after the handover of power.

The letter was expected to be included as an annex to the resolution, he said, adding that "the coalition forces are there at the invitation of that sovereign government."

"When the French see that, I think they will realize that the Iraqis are satisfied with our presence, will be satisfied to see that we are ready to attend the coordination and consultation process," he said.

"If the new sovereign government is satisfied, it seems to me that it would also satisfy all our colleagues of the (UN) Security Council," he added.

Some 140,000 American soldiers are currently stationed in Iraq.

Source: Xinhua