[International
Herald Tribune, France]
Azzaman, Iraq
The Iraq War
Five Years On … FRAGILE!
"As we
approach the completion of five years of the Iraqi War, a Pentagon report has
been released that reinforces the words of President George Bush - that 'all
that has been achieved in Iraq is fragile and could be lost.' … The recognition
that all is not well is no innocent one.”
By Fatih Abdulsalam
Translated By James Jacobson and Nicolas Dagher
March
12, 2008
Iraq
- Azzaman - Original Article (Arabic)
As we approach
the completion of five years of the Iraqi War, a Pentagon report [Measuring Security
and Stability in Iraq ] has been released
that reinforces the words of President George Bush - that “all that has been
achieved in Iraq is fragile and could be lost.” This is a concern that has been
addressed in this column repeatedly over the past three years. As the
snowballing of strategic mistakes sped our plunge into the abyss of bloodshed,
it was inevitable that the "will" of America (and I don’t mean its
administration) would be subject to the whims of Iraqi political parties who
echo the voice of Iran, which appears and then disappears depending on the
maneuvering of the Americans and Iranians on Iraqi land.
[Editor's Note:
The last sentence included a play on words: “iraada” means will
and “idaara” means administration. The author is trying to say
that the issue is out of the Bush Administration's hands].
The recognition
that all is not well is no innocent one. The sudden appearance of the voice of
“truth” came riding in on important changes that the Bush Administration
appears determined to make, especially after the resignation of American
commander William Fallon was announced. Fallon was responsible for the Iraq and
Afghanistan war dossiers - and his departure comes at a moment when talks in
Baghdad to conclude an American strategic agreement with the Al-Maliki
government are taking place.
[Editor's Note: Fallon
is thought to have resigned in part due to disagreements about the White
House's "surge" and the success of its Iraq strategy].
Posted by WORLDMEETS.US
Without
exaggerating the case, it seems that although American negotiations with Iran
have been suspended, the two sides persist in pursuing their respective goals
... particularly in Iraq. This makes a joke of Iraqi “national sovereignty,” to
whose defense rose Jassem Al-Kharafi - a Deputy of Kuwait's Parliament, at a
recent conference of Arab Parliaments in Arbil [Northern Iraq]. Al-Kharafi was
joined in his “extremist” denial of Iraq's occupation by the Vice President of
Iraq's Parliament.
Meanwhile, the
number of attacks against American and government forces remain terribly high,
especially when put in the context of the increasing number of troops, the new
security measures, and the disbursement of funds.
Did anyone expect
Bush to say that the “Awakening Councils,” which restored security to some
sections of Baghdad and Iraq, are the reason for the fragility of the current
situation and the possibility that all could be lost?
And one wonders
whether Bush’s talk of collapse also intended to include Iraq's governing
elite. Perhaps we'll have to wait for Bush to be "free" of the White
House before he tells us what he intended.
Posted by WORLDMEETS.US
That moment will
not be long in coming.
CLICK HERE FOR ARABIC
VERSION
[Posted by WORLDMEETS.US March 20,
12:09am]