BAGHDAD — Iraq's prime minister said in remarks aired Friday that the top U.S. commander in Iraq "risked his position" by alleging Iran was trying to bribe lawmakers to vote against the proposed security agreement with the United States.

Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki briefed top political leaders Friday about the draft agreement, which includes a timeline for U.S. withdrawal from Iraq by the end of 2011 and a compromise giving Iraq authority to try U.S. contractors and soldiers for major crimes committed off-duty and off-base.

A government statement said the same group — including President Jalal Talabani, the two vice presidents and leaders of parliament — would meet again in a few days, suggesting some people raised objections.

One lawmaker who attended the meeting said there were discussions for and against the draft and that two Shiite parties boycotted the session.

He spoke on condition of anonymity because the discussions were confidential.

In an interview published Monday in the Washington Post, Gen. Ray Odierno, who took command of the U.S.-led coalition last month, said U.S. intelligence reports indicated Iran has tried to bribe Iraqi lawmakers to derail the agreement, which must be approved by parliament before the U.N. mandate expires at the end of the year.

"The American commander has risked his position when he spoke in this tone and has regrettably complicated relations," al-Maliki told visiting Kuwaiti journalists Thursday. "How can he speak like this about a baseless allegation? What has been said is truly regrettable."

The unusually sharp tone of al-Maliki's remarks, aired Friday on Iraqi television, underlined the political sensitivities of both the draft agreement and Iraq's relations with Iran, which opposes the deal.

Many Shiite politicians lived in exile in Iran when Saddam Hussein was in power, returning home after the 2003 ouster of his Sunni-led regime.

They include many of the lawmakers al-Maliki needs to ratify the agreement.