A new US draft UN Security Council resolution calls on Iraq's Governing Council to lay out a plan by 15 December for the eventual transfer of power to Iraqis.
However, a firm deadline for the handover is not given.
A previous version of the resolution set no deadline for developing a timeline for elections or a new constitution essential for a return to self-government for Iraq.
Iraq has been under US and British control since London and Washington invaded seven months ago, accusing Baghdad of concealing weapons of mass destruction.
Despite pressure from France, Germany and Russia, the Bush administration has been reluctant to cede authority rapidly to Iraqi politicians or the United Nations.
US soldier dies in grenade attack
A US soldier was killed in a rocket-propelled grenade attack in the Iraqi town of Tikrit today.
Earlier, an Iraqi was killed and three others wounded in a firefight with US troops this morning. The injured included a policeman.
The shootout occurred after US troops arrested 20 people during a house-to-house search in the village of Zagenia, ten miles north of Baqubah, a police officer said.
Last night, a US soldier was killed and a second was wounded in the north of the country. The two were in a vehicle that struck a landmine near the town of Baiji.
Tension high after blast yesterday
Several people have been arrested in connection with yesterday's bomb blast at a central Baghdad hotel in which six people died.
US officials are uncertain whether the toll included the suicide bomber who drove the car just past a checkpoint outside the Baghdad Hotel.
The hotel houses US security staff and members of the US-backed interim Iraqi Governing Council.
Doctors said 38 people were treated at nearby hospitals and US forces reported ten serious injuries in the blast.
Police said the car driven by a suicide bomber and another parked outside the hotel blew up simultaneously.
