Newsgroup: it.cultura.militare
Titolo: generale Petraeus : stiamo vincendo in Iraq

generale Petraeus : stiamo vincendo in Iraq
The United States is winning the war in Iraq with the objectives of
President Bush’s military surge this year “largely being met”, General
David Petraeus told Congress yesterday. 
Speaking ahead of a desperate White House attempt this week to secure
extra time for the strategy before the patience of the American public
runs out, the US military commander in Iraq declared that uneven but
substantial progress had been made this year. 
He said that Iraqi forces were now able to “shoulder more of the load” and
al-Qaeda had been thrown “off-balance”, particularly in Anbar province. 
Citing US military figures that are disputed by some independent studies,
he claimed that the overall level of violence and killing had fallen
dramatically since the surge began. General Petraeus paid tribute to
advice provided by British commanders on counter-insurgency tactics that
were pioneered in Northern Ireland. 
Such improvements meant that he was able to recommend a gradual withdrawal
of 30,000 American troops by next summer, with about 2,000 Marines
departing from Iraq this month followed by an Army brigade of around 4,000
soldiers in December. By July 2008, troop numbers should have fallen to
the presurge level of around 130,000. 
But General Petraeus gave warning that the precipitous pull-out favoured
by many Democrats would allow al-Qaeda to regain ground, lead to the
disintegration of Iraqi forces and the prospect of a regional
conflagration possibly involving Iran. “A premature draw-down of our
forces would likely have devastating consequences,” he said. 
The US Ambassador to Baghdad, Ryan Crocker, gave Congress a “sober
assessment” of the faltering political progress this year. “I cannot
guarantee success in Iraq. I do believe that it is obtainable,” he said. 
“This process will not be quick; it will be uneven, punctuated by setbacks
as well as achievements, and it will require substantial US resolve and
commitment. There will be no single moment at which we can claim victory;
any turning point will likely only be recognised in retrospect.” 
Last week the Government Accountability Office reported to Congress that
Iraq had only fully achieved three of 18 political and military goals. The
Government of Nouri al-Maliki has been severely criticised for failing to
make more headway with reconciliation measures such as sharing oil
revenues between regions. 
But Mr Crocker said: “2006 was a bad year in Iraq. The country came close
to unravelling politically, economically and in security terms. 2007 has
brought some improvements. The changes to our strategy last January — the
surge — have helped to change the dynamics in Iraq for the better.” 
He admitted that “enormous challenges remain”, including difficulties
caused by Iran, which was accused by General Petraeus of fighting a “proxy
war” through Shia militias. But, echoing the general, the ambassador gave
warning that “abandoning or just drastically curtailing our efforts” would
probably lead to chaos or civil war with “massive human suffering well
beyond what has already occurred”. 
The testimony to the House of Representatives yesterday, which was
frequently interrupted by protesters, represented a pivotal moment for
both Mr Bush and Mr al-Maliki. 
The President, who is expected to address the nation about the war this
week, has been working to prevent wholesale Republican defections in
support of Democratic Bills blocking military funding or setting
withdrawal timetables this autumn. 
Mr al-Maliki yesterday acknowledged that his security forces were not yet
ready to take over responsibility from the US military. “There have been
tangible improvements in security in Baghdad and the provinces but it is
not enough,” he said. “We still need more efforts and time.” 
Opinion polls yesterday suggested that a majority of US voters favoured
setting a timetable for a 2008 withdrawal while retaining a military
presence to train Iraqi security forces and fight terrorists. But the
Democrats, who control both Houses of Congress, are under intense pressure
to end the war. Tom Lantos, the chairman of the House Foreign Relations
Committee, told General Petraeus and Mr Crocker: “It is time to go and to
go now.” 
He later dismissed the planned pull-outs as a “token withdrawal” and
highlighted reported splits between General Petraeus and Admiral William
Fallon, the US commander of the Middle East region, who is said to want a
bigger reduction in troop numbers. 
Today, the focus switches to the Senate, where the general and the
ambassador will present their report on the sixth anniversary of the 9/11
attacks on the US. Presidential candidates including Hillary Clinton,
Barack Obama, John McCain and Joe Biden are likely to restate their own
positions on a war that will provide the backdrop to the 2008 election. 
Last night, neither No 10 nor the Foreign Office would comment on the
reports to Congress. For the Conservatives, William Hague, said it was
clear that the surge had had “mixed results”. The Tories believed that
troops should stay in Iraq “only as long as they are needed”, he added. 
da
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/us_and_americas/article2426356.ece
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a me pare che le cose non siano cambiate di una virgola neppure 
militarmente, a giudicare dai bollettini gli attacchi sono sempre 
numerosi e le vittime anche. Mi pare che il congresso poi abbia bocciato 
il rapporto Petraeus puņ tornare a fare flessioni

 ..sergio. ha scritto:
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mi sa che siamo al "mission accomplished no.2" <g>
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