Returning yesterday from an official visit to Iraq and Afghanistan, U.S. Rep. Mazie Hirono was in high spirits about the military's progress there.

"The Iraqi military is much more able to lead missions on their own, and the violence is going down. That says to me that we should be able to bring our troops home safely," said Hirono, D-Hawai'i.

She hopes that improvements in Iraq's security forces will set the pace for a phased withdrawal of U.S. troops.

Hirono, who has opposed the Iraq war and criticized President Bush's decisions, traveled with a delegation that included four other members of Congress. The group left for Baghdad from Washington, D.C., last Friday.

Hirono described U.S. troops as committed and competent soldiers who are "doing an outstanding job."

"They are doing what they were meant to do there," she said.

The group of representatives was the first congressional delegation to leave the Green Zone by car, passing three security checkpoints and wearing protective gear weighing about 25 pounds.

Hirono noted that the representatives traveled in relative comfort, since most U.S. soldiers carry 60 to 70 pounds of gear.

The delegation received briefings from military leaders, including Army Gen. David Petraeus, commanding general of the multinational force in Iraq. They also talked with local police and visited the Iraqi military's counterinsurgency training areas.

Hirono lunched with soldiers from Hawai'i, including her second cousin, Navy Lt. Cmdr. Michael Itakura. "Their morale was very high," Hirono said of the Hawai'i soldiers.

She described the week-long trip, which included one day in Afghanistan, as a "very intense journey."

The delegation traveled in convoys alongside troops. "We were able to get close to rank and file soldiers, and I came away with a great respect for them," she said.

Although Congress receives quarterly reports on Iraq, Hirono said being in war-torn areas gave her "a much better appreciation of what's going on over there."

"What the environment is like, the constant sandstorms, how hot it is — these are things you can't get from government reports and documents," Hirono said.