Wednesday, October 6, 2010
Will Congress sabotage Iraq's transition to a new government?
JUST AS Iraq's political impasse looked to be unending, a breakthrough came. On the day it surpassed the record -- 207 days -- for the time between a parliamentary election and the formation of a government, the country learned that its next administration will almost certainly be led by the prime minister now in office, Nouri al-Maliki. Mr. Maliki finally won the endorsement of the radical Shiite Sadrist movement, with which he went to war -- literally -- just two years ago. That unlocked a frenzy of maneuvering that most likely will lead, in a few weeks or months, to a government encompassing all of the country's major factions, including Sunnis and Kurds.
Iraqis have a penchant for rescuing their fragile democratic political system just when it appears doomed. The result has been a painful but steady crawl away from war and toward greater prosperity and stability. Dire predictions -- of a plunge into sectarian civil war, of a resurgence by al-Qaeda, of a military coup -- have yet to come true. Nor has Iran, or any other of Iraq's neighbors, managed to impose its will on the country. The Sadrist party is close to Tehran; but Mr. Maliki has demonstrated his independence, as have other parties likely to be brought into the government.
The long delay has had costs, and those will mount until a final deal is struck. Key development projects are delayed; important legislation is on hold; foreign investors -- including a U.S. trade mission that visited Baghdad this week -- remain cautious. But Iraq has continued to function during the interregnum. Mr. Maliki, who has been in office since 2006, oversees a functioning government. Oil production has remained steady, and the security forces continue to fight al-Qaeda and the lingering insurgency. Economic growth in 2010 is expected to be more than 6 percent. Though violence rose over the summer, it tapered off last month. Only 174 Iraqi fatalities were reported across the country by the Web site icasualties.org -- one of the lowest figures of the war.
Iraq has held together even as U.S. forces have been drawn down below 50,000 this year, and despite sporadic engagement by the Obama administration. But the United States still has the capacity to push the country in the right, or wrong, direction.
Led by Vice President Biden, the administration has pressed for a government including all parties; it must use its leverage in that cause in the coming weeks. Congress, meanwhile, should reconsider its foolish moves to slash funding for the training of Iraqi security forces and State Department operations. Several times, the United States has made the mistake of abandoning allies at a critical moment due to congressional weariness. Iraq would be a terrible place to repeat the error.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/10/05/AR2010100504911.html
Will Congress sabotage Iraq's transition to a new government?
JUST AS Iraq's political impasse looked to be unending, a breakthrough came. On the day it surpassed the record -- 207 days -- for the time between a parliamentary election and the formation of a government, the country learned that its next administration will almost certainly be led by the prime minister now in office, Nouri al-Maliki. Mr. Maliki finally won the endorsement of the radical Shiite Sadrist movement, with which he went to war -- literally -- just two years ago. That unlocked a frenzy of maneuvering that most likely will lead, in a few weeks or months, to a government encompassing all of the country's major factions, including Sunnis and Kurds.
Iraqis have a penchant for rescuing their fragile democratic political system just when it appears doomed. The result has been a painful but steady crawl away from war and toward greater prosperity and stability. Dire predictions -- of a plunge into sectarian civil war, of a resurgence by al-Qaeda, of a military coup -- have yet to come true. Nor has Iran, or any other of Iraq's neighbors, managed to impose its will on the country. The Sadrist party is close to Tehran; but Mr. Maliki has demonstrated his independence, as have other parties likely to be brought into the government.
The long delay has had costs, and those will mount until a final deal is struck. Key development projects are delayed; important legislation is on hold; foreign investors -- including a U.S. trade mission that visited Baghdad this week -- remain cautious. But Iraq has continued to function during the interregnum. Mr. Maliki, who has been in office since 2006, oversees a functioning government. Oil production has remained steady, and the security forces continue to fight al-Qaeda and the lingering insurgency. Economic growth in 2010 is expected to be more than 6 percent. Though violence rose over the summer, it tapered off last month. Only 174 Iraqi fatalities were reported across the country by the Web site icasualties.org -- one of the lowest figures of the war.
Iraq has held together even as U.S. forces have been drawn down below 50,000 this year, and despite sporadic engagement by the Obama administration. But the United States still has the capacity to push the country in the right, or wrong, direction.
Led by Vice President Biden, the administration has pressed for a government including all parties; it must use its leverage in that cause in the coming weeks. Congress, meanwhile, should reconsider its foolish moves to slash funding for the training of Iraqi security forces and State Department operations. Several times, the United States has made the mistake of abandoning allies at a critical moment due to congressional weariness. Iraq would be a terrible place to repeat the error.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/10/05/AR2010100504911.html
