The odds of building a stable Iraqi government by September are slim, even with the addition of 30,000 U.S. troops to give lawmakers in Baghdad security, said the top U.S. general in the Middle East country.
The ``aggregate level'' of violence has not diminished since the troop increase began five months ago, General David Petraeus said in an interview on ``Fox News Sunday.'' Asked whether he thought the strategy could succeed by early September when he's due to report to Congress, Petraeus was negative.
"I do not, no. I think we have a lot of heavy lifting to do,'' he said. "This is a tough effort.''
Lawmakers in Congress, including the top Republican in the U.S. Senate, said they won't tolerate the lack of progress. "The Iraqi government has been a pretty big disappointment,'' Mitch McConnell, Kentucky Republican and minority leader, said on CBS's ``Face the Nation'' show. "We've given them an enormous opportunity here, over the last four years, to have a normal country. And our commitment will not be there forever.''
Iraqi politicians have failed to deliver on promises to craft laws that would share Iraq's oil revenue, hold local elections, disarm sectarian militias and settle political differences that are paralyzing government.
From Bloomberg.com
No comments:
Post a Comment