"That's why the stakes are high. That's why we need the contributions and help of many countries," he said, speaking to ambassadors from the military alliance's 26 members.

Zebari was speaking on the eve of a conference here, bringing together more than 80 foreign ministers and officials to show solidarity with violence-wracked Iraq, and to hear Baghdad's plans for the rebuilding of the country.

"We believe as we progress on the political track and process this will have an impact on the security situation", he said.

He called for "increased engagement" from NATO members, which he said would boost the self-reliance of the country's security forces.

"It isn't just a question of numbers for our forces but also the quality of leadership and the possibility for our forces to be self-reliant," he said. "These coming months are very critical for the success of this process in Iraq."

He said that Iraqi authorities were aiming to draft a constitution by August 15, which would be submitted to voters in a referendum in October, with new general elections to follow at the end of December.

Earlier Zebari held talks with NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer.

The alliance is making preparations to open a military "academy" near Baghdad to train high-level officers.

NATO has launched a mission to train Iraqi security forces outside of the country although the alliance also has some personnel in Baghdad's highly fortified "green zone".

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