The United States has confirmed that Iyad Allawi, a Shiite Muslim and a member of the Iraqi Governing Council, will be prime minister of an interim Iraqi government slated to take over power from the US-led coalition by the end of June, agencies reports said Friday.

"He will be the prime minister when the interim government is set up in the next two or three days," the agencies reports quoted a senior US official as saying in Baghdad.

"We thought he (Allawi) would be an excellent prime minister. ... I think that this is going to work," the official added.

He said UN special envoy Lakhdar Brahimi has also recommended Allawi for the key position in the interim government after the Governing Council voted to endorse Allawi on Friday.

Speaking to reporters in Washington earlier Friday, US Secretary of State Colin Powell said he was pleased that Allawi has the support of the Governing Council. But he noted that the United States is waiting to hear from Brahimi about whom he will choose as prime minister.

"We are working with Ambassador Lakhdar Brahimi, the (UN) secretary-general's representative, and he is the one we are waiting to hear from not only with respect to the prime minister, but the president, the two vice presidents, as well as all of the cabinet ministers," the secretary said.

"So we have no position on any candidate at this moment because we are waiting to hear from Ambassador Brahimi," he added.

(Xinhua News Agency May 29, 2004)