Iraq Head, Top Cleric Back 2011 Exit by U.S.

Negotiators had finished a draft agreement last month. But Maliki, whose party has only 15 seats in the 275-seat parliament, thought he could not get it through the legislature, according to aides and politicians who have discussed the matter with him.

Iraq then asked for several changes. When the U.S. government agreed to some, Maliki decided to support the accord, Askari said.

"He knows many other parties have to be persuaded to accept it. He wanted some time and the support of the U.S.," Askari said. "So now he is feeling in a good position, he can go forward."

Maliki is expected to address the nation early in the week about the agreement, Askari said.

Iraq's foreign minister, Hoshyar Zebari, said in an interview that "it looks like the atmosphere is much better" for approving the accord. But he warned that Iraq's notoriously lethargic parliament must move quickly, before it takes its scheduled break at month's end for the period of the Muslim pilgrimage to Mecca, Saudi Arabia.

"From now until the end of November is very critical," he said.

Opposition to the agreement in parliament is expected to come from the party of anti-American cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, which controls 30 of the 275 seats and has held frequent demonstrations against the pact.

In addition, parliament Speaker Mahmoud al-Mashhadani, a member of a small Sunni party, "is not full-hearted behind the agreement," Askari said. However, a source in Mashhadani's office said Saturday that the speaker had decided to back the accord. He spoke on the condition of anonymity.

The last-minute concessions made by U.S. authorities appear to be mainly symbolic, according to officials from both sides. U.S. officials did not give in on the Iraqis' main demand, which was that Iraq be given greater jurisdiction over American troops who commit major crimes while off duty.

Still, Iraqi politicians got enough minor changes to claim victory on an agreement that the country's defense and interior ministers have called vital to maintaining stability.

For example, the U.S. side agreed to scrap the language that would have allowed the American troops to stay beyond 2011 if Iraq requested, according to one official close to the negotiations, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because of their sensitivity.

But nothing prevents the Iraqis from seeking such an extension, according to congressional staffers briefed by U.S. officials last week in Washington.