Word: petraeus
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Dates: during 2000-2009
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...whose testimony may be the most important may not be Petraeus, the anticipated star of the show, but the other guy, Crocker, a much admired diplomat who has spent his entire career in the region. If Petraeus has seen some victories, Crocker has known nothing but defeat in his dealings with the failed government of Nouri al-Maliki-dealings that mostly involve trying to get the Shi'ites to treat the Sunnis fairly and stop fighting among themselves. As a result, Crocker may have a better handle on the most important questions facing the U.S. effort in Iraq...
...months ago, after a sweltering day in the field surveying the progress his troops were making in turning Sunni tribes against al-Qaeda in Iraq (AQI) extremists, General David Petraeus squinted into the Baghdad sun and allowed himself a moment of astonishment. "It's just amazing how quickly some of these tribes are flipping," he said. Amazing, indeed. Petraeus has presided over a remarkable turn of events in Iraq. The most recalcitrant areas of the country-the heartland of the Sunni insurgency-have suddenly become the most placid. The safest place for President George W. Bush to land when...
...tale of how the Sunni tribes rejected the forced marriages, beheadings, smoking bans and strict fundamentalism imposed by the terrorists seems ready-made for Hollywood-and it will be front and center as Bush, Petraeus and Crocker try to sell more war to Congress and the public over the next few weeks. But it is not the only story in Iraq, perhaps not even the most important story. It is more about Iraq's recent past than about its future. It is almost irrelevant to the continuing political meltdown in Baghdad, the utter inability of Iraqis to figure...
...Petraeus and Crocker have been the best soldier and the best diplomat to serve the U.S. in Iraq. But they see the situation from different perspectives, and their ideas about what to do next may differ as well. The Petraeus testimony seems obvious. He will emphasize the Sunni success, the tamping down of violence in Baghdad, the need for political reconciliation. He will ask for more time, acknowledging that the natural rotation schedule will leave him with fewer troops, a reduction from 20 to 15 combat brigades over the next year. Bush may try to hold his Republicans in place...
...Bush also met Monday the two men who will make a key recommendation to Congress this month on the future of the mission in Iraq, Gen. David Petraeus and Ambassador Ryan Crocker. Bush said the two men told him that "If the security situation continues to improve the way it has we may be able to achieve the same objectives with fewer troops." Earlier, he told Marines, "When we begin to draw down troops in Iraq it will be from a position of strength and success, not from a position of fear and failure...