Robert Blackwill, a top Bush adviser on Iraq, to resign: media

WASHINGTON, Nov 6 (AFP) - Robert Blackwill, one of President George W. Bush's top advisers on Iraq, soon will resign, US media reported Saturday.
Blackwill, 64, considered a seasoned diplomat with expertise in the Middle East and Asia, has worked with the National Security Council under Condoleezza Rice since mid-2003.
According to The Washington Post and The New York Times, Blackwill told Rice months ago that he did not plan to remain in the US administration after the November 2 presidential vote if Bush won re-election.
The White House did not immediately confirm the reports.
It would mark the second planned resignation in two days of a senior official in charge of Iraq or anti-terror policy in the Bush administration. The State Department announced Friday that its lead anti-terror official, Cofer Black, was resigning, saying it was time to do something else.
Blackwill, a former ambassador to India, informed his colleagues in an e-mail on Friday that he would be resigning, the two dailies reported.

11/06/2004 15:35 GMT - AFP