Iraq and Britain to negotiate security deal

Baghdad: Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri Al Maliki said on Sunday that Baghdad and London would begin negotiating a security deal on the future of British troops in Iraq.

"Iraq will appoint a negotiating team to discuss the future of British forces in Iraq," Al Maliki said in a statement.

Al Maliki met visiting British Defence Secretary John Hutton on Sunday.

A UN mandate that allows foreign troops to stay in Iraq expires by the end of the year.

Earlier this month Al Maliki told a British newspaper that British troops are no longer necessary for the security of Iraq and should go home.

"We thank them for the role they have played, but I think that their stay is not necessary for maintaining security and control," he was quoted as saying in The Times.