A United Nations team sent to Iraq to study whether elections can be held before the handover of power to Iraqis by June 30 has arrived in Baghdad.
UN secretary general Kofi Annan said: "I am very pleased to announce that my fact-finding team has now arrived in Baghdad and is about to begin intensive consultations with Iraqi leaders and the coalition provisional authority."
He said the UN team hoped to listen to the views of all Iraqi constituencies.
"I hope the work of this team will help resolve the impasse over the transitional political process leading to the establishment of a provisional government for Iraq," Annan said.
Annan's announcement gave no details about the team for security reasons.
PA
