BRITAIN:Relations between the UK and the White House over Iraq are under the spotlight after a leading American diplomat appeared to indicate policy splits.
The ministry of defence quickly denied any transatlantic "tension" in the wake of the remarks by US ambassador to Iraq Zalmay Khalilzad. But the Tories said the implications of his comments were "very serious for our troops and for the success of operations in Iraq".
The British government remains confident of returning Basra to full Iraqi control in the spring, allowing up to 7,000 troops to be brought home. And it insists publicly it is working "hand in glove" with the US, which is sending in thousands of extra troops to defeat insurgents in Baghdad. But Mr Khalilzad told the BBC that the US would prefer British forces to stay longer.
"We're talking about this. It's clear what our preference would be - the longer we stay together here, the better.
"We would like the British to co-ordinate and for us to have a joint plan," he said, adding that he was confident a "mutually acceptable" agreement would be reached. The MoD said there was "no tension between US and UK objectives and activities in Iraq".
"We are a major member of the coalition, with senior officers serving in it at every level; our plans are consistent with the coalition's long-term strategy and the Iraqi government's desire for increased Iraqi security responsibility," a spokeswoman said.
Shadow foreign secretary William Hague said the ambassador's comments raised serious questions over the co-ordination of policy. "I am not at all sure, particularly after the comments of Ambassador Khalilzad, that there is proper co-ordination of the military strategy," he added.
He told BBC2's Newsnight that he had seen no evidence that the UK perspective had been "fully put" in Washington, even behind the scenes.
And Labour MP Mike Gapes, who chairs the foreign affairs select committee, said the British government was privately concerned about the impact of the US strategy on Basra.
"Clearly we all hope the American strategy succeeds in pacifying Baghdad, but if it doesn't, then we're going to have a real problem in a few months' time," he said.