BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki said on Saturday his government would buy 36 F-16 fighters from the United States, doubling the number it had initially planned to purchase to strengthen its weak air defenses.

The announcement of the deal came as Iraq and the U.S. government discuss whether to keep some U.S. troops or military trainers in the OPEC country after the planned withdrawal of the last American soldiers at the end of the year.
""A delegation from the Iraqi Air Force along with advisers will travel to revive the contract to include a larger number than the contract had agreed before... We will make it 36 instead of 18,"" Maliki told reporters.
""We have to provide Iraq with airplanes to safeguard its sovereignty,"" he said.
Iraq this year delayed the initial purchase of the F-16s from Lockheed Martin after putting $900 million of allocated funds into its national food program to ease pressure from Iraqis protesting against poor basic services.
Maliki's government is discussing whether to ask for civilian contractors rather than keep U.S. troops on the ground after the withdrawal deadline, according to Iraqi sources. Keeping American soldiers on Iraqi soil is a sensitive issue for the fragile power-sharing coalition.