[Carol Costello, Cnn Anchor:] Turning now to Iraq, U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan says the U.N. is committed to helping the Iraqi people get control of their country. But a U.N. report finds a lot of work needs to be done before that country is ready to hold elections. CNN's Brent Sadler joins us live from Baghdad to tell us more. What's the reaction from there Brent.
[Brent Sadler, Cnn Correspondent:] Good morning, Carol. So far so good, it seems. The report from Kofi Annan, the U.N. secretary general, outlined a number of key points, which really does now put in place a time frame for when elections are expected to be held. First and foremost, the U.N. is saying that the Iraqis should immediately set up their own independent electoral commission. They should spend the next three to four months putting in place a political and legal framework for elections to take place; after that, a further eight months for on the ground work to also be put into place because Iraq, after 30 years of Saddam Hussein, has no electoral base to work on. Now, the British top political representative here in Iraq, Sir Jeremy Greenstock, outlined some of the key points of the game plan ahead.
[Jeremy Greenstock, British Representative To Iraq:] Iraqis will be sovereign in their own land from July onwards. Second, that full national elections need time to prepare and therefore won't happen before the end of 2004 or early 2005, which gives us time to help the country settle down and prepare properly for those elections.
[Sadler:] That's not as soon as the Shia, thought to be the majority in Iraq, want elections. But at least it is a framework upon which parties can now work. The Iraqi Governing Council has met and so far they've been saying that they need to get on with the job of putting the structures in place. One thing that Kofi Annan did say must actually stand firm, and that is the June 30th hand over of sovereignty from the U.S.-led coalition to the Iraqis. That must stay in place, he said Carol.
[Costello:] Brent Sadler live from Baghdad this morning. Ready to Hold Elections