UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Wednesday called for efforts to break through the political stalemate in Iraq.
In his latest report on the UN Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI), Ban said although attacks in Iraq decreased, insecurity continues to severely limit the activities of the UN mission there, while the political situation has not improved as much as had been hoped.
Despite the reduction in the overall number of attacks from a daily average of 200 in July and August to about 90 in the past three months, he noted that continued improvement depends on the engagement of the Iraqi Security Forces, the U.S.-led multinational force, the extension of a cease-fire by the Shiite Mahdi Army and developments relating to the Sunni "awakening councils" fighting extremists.
Ban stressed the need for movement in the political arena in order to sustain recent improvements in security.
"To date, the political process has not shown the degree of progress that many had hoped for," Ban said, citing the continued stalemate in filling vacant Cabinet posts and lack of consensus in passing key legislation.
He pledged UNAMI's continued good office in encouraging Iraq's leaders to engage on core political disagreements, adding that "I remain hopeful that this will result in a successful conclusion to the constitutional review process."
Source: Xinhua
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