Iraq wants explanation on reported U.S. spying on PM

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraq will seek an explanation from U.S. officials about a report asserting the United States spied on Iraqi officials, including Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, the Iraqi government spokesman said on Friday.

The Washington Post said on Friday that a new book by U.S. journalist Bob Woodward, presented as a critical inside look at the Bush administration's decision-making on Iraq, reported that the United States spied on Maliki and other Iraqi leaders.

"If it is true ... it reflects that there is no trust," Iraqi government spokesman Ali al-Dabbagh said in a statement.

Iraq will ask the United States for an explanation, he said.

"If it is true, it casts a shadow on the future relations with such institutions," he added, referring to the CIA and other U.S. agencies.

White House spokeswoman Dana Perino declined to comment on the report, detailed in Woodward's fourth book on U.S. President George W. Bush, entitled "The War Within: A Secret White House History 2006-2008." Debate over the unpopular war has figured prominently in the 2008 U.S. presidential race.

"We have extensive cooperation with Prime Minister Maliki. Our ambassador sees him almost daily," Perino told reporters. "To the extent that they (the Iraqi government) have any concerns, because we have the good relationship that we have with them. ... I'm sure that they'll be talking about it."

Stephen Hadley, Bush's national security adviser, later issued a statement insisting the picture of Iraq policy presented in the Post story was "at least incomplete," but he did not directly address the spying allegation in the book.

Woodward writes that the surveillance of the Iraqi prime minister caused concern among several senior U.S. officials, who questioned whether it was worth the risk given Bush's efforts to earn Maliki's trust, the Post reported.