Gates arrives in Iraq, focus on troop levels

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates arrived in Iraq on Sunday for a visit likely to focus on U.S. troop levels and a pact that will define future relations between Washington and Baghdad.

Gates is visiting Baghdad a year after a U.S.-Iraqi security offensive was launched with the aid of an extra 30,000 U.S. troops to halt the country's slide into all-out sectarian war.

Security has improved in recent months, allowing the U.S. military to start withdrawing troops. Gates has said he hoped drawdowns could be carried out throughout the year.