Even as the official focus shifts to the war in Afghanistan, a debate has erupted over the endgame in Iraq. It is universally seen as an endgame; we are getting out. The issue is how quickly, how completely, and, if some troops are left behind, what they should and should not do. Full Story »
Posted by Derek Hawkins
The Reese memo’s key insight is that whatever the state of Iraq at the moment, it isn’t going to change, certainly not as a result of anything the United States says or does. We’ve lost nearly all our leverage over Iraqi politics—its tendency toward rule-by-strongman, its Stalinist military, its ethnic tensions, aggravated by the Kurds’ secessionist impulses—and there’s little we can do at this point to gain it back. Maliki recently gave a cold shoulder to Vice President Joe Biden during the latter’s visit to Baghdad. The Iraqi military is imposing restrictions on U.S. troop movements. We’re leaving ourselves vulnerable with little power to improve our position
The Iraqi PM’s snubbing of Joe Biden can be seen as a positive…just kidding, Joe.