Iraqi Leader Says Flow of Arms Must Stop

Prime Minister of Iraq Nouri al-Maliki stands on stage before addressing the 62nd session of the United Nations General Assembly, Wednesday, Sept. 26, 2007, at the U.N. headquarters. (AP Photo/Ed Betz) (Ed Betz - AP)

UNITED NATIONS -- Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki told the U.N. General Assembly on Wednesday that terrorism is threatening to erase any gains made in reducing sectarian killings and establishing democratic principles in his country.

He also warned that Iraq's neighbors must stop the continued flow into his country of weapons, suicide bombers and funding for terrorism, saying there would be "disastrous consequences" for the region and the world if they failed.

"National reconciliation is stronger than the weapons of terrorism," al-Maliki said. But he said healing is "not the responsibility of the government alone."

"Today we feel optimistic that countries of the region realize the danger of the terrorist attacks against Iraq, that it is not in their interest for Iraq to be weak," he said.

Al-Maliki praised what he said were many recent successes in Iraq. He cited the calming of regions like Anbar province in the west, a recent drop in sectarian killings and the return of thousands of displaced families to their homes.

"Our armed forces have been adamant in establishing law and order, as well as instilling a sense of respect for the government in many provinces which have diverse religious, sectarian and ethnic affiliations," he said.

Although al-Maliki claimed Anbar as a success, the calming of the province was a result of the efforts of a coalition of Sunni sheiks encouraged by U.S. military officers. Al-Maliki's Shiite government has been cool to the effort, paying it lip service while at the same time only slowly allocating funds for the area _ under strong U.S. pressure.

Sectarian killings are believed to have dropped _ largely through a combination of stepped-up U.S. military activity and a decision by radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr to freeze his Mahdi militia for six months.

And while there has been some movement of displaced people back to their homes, as al-Maliki claimed, the International Organization of Migration says such moves are often only temporary to check on the status of property.

Nevertheless, al-Maliki championed the emergence of democratic institutions.

He said the country has hundreds of political parties active within 20 political alliances, more than 6,000 civil organizations, hundreds of newspapers and magazines and 40 local and satellite TV stations.

But terrorists are targeting this "new Iraq," he said.