British PM Blair on a previous visit to Iraq (file photo) (CTK)
22 December 2005 -- Restoring stability in Iraq will deal a "body blow" to global terrorists, British Prime Minister Tony Blair said in a surprise visit to Iraq today.
In an address to British troops in the southern city of Al-Basrah, Blair said that a stable Iraq would make the region and the whole world safer.
Blair was on his fourth trip to Iraq since the U.S.-led invasion in 2003 that ousted Saddam Hussein.
The British prime minister earlier held talks with top U.S. and British officials in Iraq.
(AFP/AP)
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Shortly after assuming his post as U.S. ambassador to Iraq, Zalmay Khalilzad laid out his vision for that country in a major policy address. His plan called for a national compact enshrined in the constitution; the isolation and defeat of terrorists and hardcore Ba'athists and encouraging the region's leaders to address problems in a cooperative spirit and to pressure those who continue to foment instability....(more)