Iraqi government accuses foreign diplomats of meeting with armed groups

The Iraqi government accused certain diplomats working in diplomatic missions in Iraq of meetings with certain armed groups. A matter which will endanger their life.

In another development, the Iraqi President Jalal al-Talibani strongly denied contacts between the Iraqi government and armed groups despite reports which said that American representatives met with gunmen leaders.

In a statement to the Qatari al-Jazeera TV, Talibani stressed that the government will only deal with groups which do not carry weapons, noting that "there are no negotiations between those who are called resistance and the Iraqi government. I am confident of that."

The issue of contacting gunmen came to the forefront after the US defense secretary Donald Rumsfled said that Washington held talks with certain gunmen leaders in what seemed to be a change in the American strategy to embark on political solutions to stop violence in Iraq.

On the other hand, Talibani discussed with the US congressional delegation currently visiting Iraq the question of the multi-national forces existence. The delegation considered that the existence of these forces should be limited but stressed he does not support specifying a schedule for the withdrawal of these forces.