UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan last night welcomed the handover of sovereignty to an interim Iraqi government but was cautious in committing the return of UN staff to Baghdad.
UN Security Council members also greeted the official transfer of power from the US-led occupation, and, at the insistence of Russia, noted the possibility of an international meeting.
"We think that such a meeting will be very useful in the political process in Iraq and will contribute very much to the settlement of problems the Iraqi people are facing now," Russia's deputy UN ambassador, Mr Alexander Konuzin, said.
The council reaffirmed "the independence, sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity of Iraq", called on nations to give economic assistance to the new government, and condemned "in the strongest terms" the continuing violence.
Mr Annan issued a statement welcoming "Iraq back into the family of independent and sovereign nations."
He said the first duty of all Iraqis was to help the government "establish security for the population so that the difficult process of return toward normalcy can commence."
Mr Annan intends to name a new special representative this week, based in Baghdad but is cautious about fielding a large permanent staff.