UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said in Baghdad Friday that the United Nations is considering scrapping sanctions imposed on Iraq during Saddam Hussein's regime before the 2003 US-led invasion. Ban, on a surprise visit to Iraq, met with senior Iraqi officials including Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki to discuss the issue one day after the Shiite premier's allies swept to victory in provincial elections. "The UN is in the process of reviewing all the resolutions and on my return I will discuss this issue with the Security Council," Ban said at a joint press conference with the premier. Maliki said: "We discussed the ending of UN sanctions on Iraq, which were (imposed) after the aggression of the previous regime. We asked for a review of all the resolutions imposed on Iraq so we can return to the rank of normal nations."