US Secretary of State Colin Powell said Thursday that the return of sovereignty to Iraqis will take some time and a hasty process could result in a "failed state."

The United States "is anxious to return full authority to the Iraqi people as quickly as possible, but at the same time recognizing that much work has to be done before one can do that," Powell said at a press conference in Washington.

"As much as we would all like to see it happen tomorrow, it will take time," he said. "We will take the time necessary to make sure that the Iraqi people, when they do assume full control of their country again, do it in a way that will make sure that the country is stable, living in peace with its neighbors," he added.

The secretary indicated that the pace to transfer full authority to Iraqis should be determined by Iraqis themselves, especially the US-installed Iraqi Governing Council.

"It seems to us that the Iraqi Governing Council is the appropriate institution to determine what the program should be. ...They are in the best position to tell us what that program should look like, what the timetable should be," Powell said.

Powell made the remarks one day after US officials, including Powell himself, began consultations with other members of the UN Security Council over a new text of a draft UN resolution aimed at authorizing a multinational force in Iraq.

The new draft resolution reportedly failed to convince skeptics in the UN Security Council on Thursday. France complained that the draft resolution did not fully address its concern while UN Secretary General Kofi Annan described it as moving in the wrong direction.

France, together with Russia and Germany, favors a quicker transfer of power to Iraqis.
 
(Xinhua News Agency October 3, 2003)