Washington ? Rep. Jerry Moran said Friday he is optimistic that 2006 will be a turning point in efforts to form a stable government in Iraq, which could lead to the withdrawal of more U.S. troops.

“Political and military leaders on the ground here are convinced there’s been enough progress that success is achievable,” Moran, R-Kan., told reporters in a telephone interview from Iraq, where he is traveling with a congressional delegation. “But there’s still a number of uncertainties.”

Those include clashes between Sunni Arabs and majority Shiites over control of the country’s new government.

For security reasons, Moran said he couldn’t reveal where he was calling from or the delegation’s travel schedule, which included Pakistan, Afghanistan and Iraq.

In Afghanistan, Moran met with President Hamid Karzai and U.S. embassy officials. He also spoke to Gen. George Casey, the top U.S. commander in Iraq, met Iraq’s minister of agriculture and visited Kansas troops.

Overall, 22 Kansans have died in Iraq. The latest was Spc. Clinton R. Upchurch, 31, of Garden City, who was killed Jan. 7 by a roadside bomb.

Moran said security in Iraq appeared much tighter than when he visited the country more than two years ago, before the insurgency took root. But he is convinced that progress is being made.

“The most important progress is the increased level of involvement of Iraqi security forces in protection of their country,” he said.