Washington  - The United States regrets the decision by Iraq's parliament to adjourn for a month without completing work on a provincial election law, a shortcoming the could delay balloting previously scheduled for October.

"We regret that the Iraqi parliament adjourned yesterday without finishing its work on a local elections law," State Department acting deputy spokesman Gonzalo Gallegos said Thursday.

Iraqi lawmakers could not agree on the law because of disagreements over how to hold elections in multi-ethnic Kirkuk, a city in northern Iraq with a heavy Kurdish population.

Gallegos said the United States appreciates the complexities with regard to Kirkuk, but that it should to be an obstacle to pressing forward on the election law.

"The election law should not be held hostage to that problem," he said.

The elections had been tentatively set for October 1. (dpa)