The question of border security was also paramount with an Iraqi delegation on a five-day trip to neighbouring Iran and the US-led coalition rolling out a new plan to secure Iraq's porous edges.

Iraqi politicians and the US-led coalition have three months to agree on the make-up of a new body to lead the country until direct elections by the end of January 2005 -- a thorny issue that has already triggered much dispute.

"That is one of the main things that must be decided before June 30. We have to write an annex to explain how the caretaker government will be formed," said Hamid al-Kifaey, a spokesman for the US-picked interim Governing Council.

Talks with the United Nations on how to proceed appear to be on the cards.

"It is always good to consult with the United Nations and we want them to be involved," Kifaey told AFP on Sunday.

But he underlined that despite involving the international community, the question of how Iraq would function once it regains sovereignty from the occupying forces remained "an Iraqi affair."

Senior White House official Robert Blackwill touched down in Baghdad Saturday on a reported mission to help settle political rifts within the 25-member council, which set aside ethnic and religious differences to sign a temporary constitution last Monday but continues to bicker over the content.