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Bush meets members of group on Iraq
13.11.2006
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WASHINGTON,
November 13, -- President George W. Bush cautioned
Democrats wanting to reduce the U.S. troop presence
in Iraq to consider conditions on the ground as he
met on Monday with a bipartisan group expected to
offer a plan for changing course in Iraq.
Under pressure from Democrats to shift strategy in
Iraq, Bush sat down with members of the independent
Iraq Study Group, which is led by former Secretary
of State James Baker, a Republican with close ties
to the Bush family, and former Democratic Rep. Lee
Hamilton of Indiana.
The independent panel is writing a report for
handing to Bush and the U.S. Congress next month
that experts believe may offer the president a way
for a change of tactics in Iraq.
"I'm not sure what the report is going to say," Bush
told reporters after meeting the group for more than
the allotted hour and 15 minutes. "I'm looking
forward to seeing it."
The group's work has attracted great interest from
both parties after the opposition Democrats'
sweeping victory last week that gave them control of
the House of Representatives and the Senate.
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U.S. President George W. Bush jr.
Photo: AP |
Injecting a note of caution into the possibility of
a major shift in strategy, Bush said: "I believe
that it's important for us to succeed in Iraq, not
only for our security but for the security of the
Middle East, and that I'm looking forward to
interesting ideas."
Democrats are already vowing to use their newfound
majority power to press for U.S. troop reductions in
Iraq in a matter of months, an option Bush adamantly
opposed during the just-ended congressional campaign
season.
"We've got to put greater responsibility on the
Iraqis and that the way to do that -- probably the
only way to do that -- is to let the Iraqis know
that within four to six months of the president
notifying them, that we're going to begin a phased
redeployment of our troops out of Iraq," Michigan
Democratic Sen. Carl Levin said.
Asked about the Democratic move, Bush said he
believed it was important "for people making
suggestions to recognize that the best military
options depend upon the conditions on the ground."
White House spokesman Tony Snow offered few details
of the talks with the Iraq Study Group except to say
the commission was not yet presenting its
alternatives to the president.
"That would be inappropriate. The one thing that the
commission has been very clear about is its
independence, and we've also been respecting that
independence. So, no, there is not going to be the
presentation of alternatives," he said.
Commission members also planned to sit down with
Gen. George Casey, commander of U.S. forces in Iraq,
CIA Director Michael Hayden, national intelligence
director John Negroponte, Secretary of State
Condoleezza Rice, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld,
and Zalmay Khalilzad, U.S. ambassador to Iraq.
On Tuesday, the commission is to meet Democratic
leaders and will have a video conference with
British Prime Minister Tony Blair.
One approach reportedly being considered by the
panel was for Washington to open a dialogue with
Iran and Syria, accused by the Bush administration
of supporting terrorism and fanning instability in
neighboring Iraq.
Bush's biggest ally on Iraq, British Prime Minister
Tony Blair, was calling on Monday for Syria and Iran
to be engaged in efforts to stem violence in Iraq
and to secure a broader Middle East peace
settlement.
Bush was cool to such a move, saying Syria needed to
get out of Lebanon and Iran needed to abandon its
nuclear ambitions.
He pointed out that the United States had offered
direct talks with Iran about its nuclear ambitions
if Tehran would agree to stop uranium enrichment,
which Iran has refused.
"If the Iranians want to have a dialogue with us, we
have shown them a way forward, and that is for them
to verifiably suspend their enrichment activities,"
he said.
Reuters
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