Gates: Iraq Situation Is A Mixed Picture

Defense Secretary Makes Surprise Visit To Baghdad; Says There Has Been Some Progress

(CBS/AP)  Military assessments that there has been progress in Iraq have been realistic, though the U.S. is unhappy improvements have not been faster, Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Friday as he landed in a city locked down due to the recent mosque bombing.

En route to the war zone, Gates said it "remains to be seen where we'll be in September" when he is to make an assessment of whether the Iraqi government is making the kind of progress demanded by the Bush administration and an increasingly impatient Congress.

His cautious tone reflected a growing sentiment among military leaders that they may not be ready to make a full review of the effects of the U.S. troop buildup that President Bush ordered early this year to try and stabilize Iraq.

"It may still be that there will be a lot of uncertainty, but I think we'll have some sense of direction and trends on where things are headed," Gates said.

His fourth visit to Iraq since becoming Pentagon chief last December comes as criticism of the U.S. military, including the top general in Iraq, is rising in Congress. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said Thursday he was concerned that Gen. David Petraeus "may not be in touch with what is really going on in Iraq."

Reid also criticized Gen. Peter Pace, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, for not doing a better job running the war.

Gates announced last week that he would not recommend Pace be renominated, and on Friday Pace disclosed for the first time that he had turned down an offer to voluntarily retire and save face. He said that to quit during wartime would be letting down the troops.

Reid said Petraeus' recent comments about some progress in Iraqi markets and neighborhoods may be "just trying to make the president feel good."

Gates lashed back, saying, "I think calling attention to the fact that in some areas things are actually a little better and looking pretty good, while they're very difficult in other areas is not unrealistic."

He said the situation in Iraq is a mixed picture, but one that shows pockets of improvement in some neighborhoods. He cited an open amusement park and bustling marketplaces and coffee shops as proof the situation is improving in some places.

And he added that he believes Petraeus "has not pulled his punches at all in terms of the difficulty of the struggle in front of us, in terms of the obstacles to both reconciliation and greater security in both the Baghdad area and Iraq as a whole."

He said he had "every confidence in General Petraeus, and also in his ability and willingness to call it like he sees it."

Still, as Gates landed there was a citywide clampdown in Baghdad, in an effort to hold off a backlash of Shiite attacks in retribution for the bombing of an important shrine north of the city.

The military also announced the deaths of five more U.S. troops and the crash of an Air Force fighter jet.

The additional five U.S. combat brigades that make up the recent U.S. troop buildup are now all in Iraq, as part of an increased effort to stabilize the violence in Baghdad.

Gates said he was meeting with military and political leaders to deliver the same message he did when he was here in April.

"That is our troops are buying them time to pursue reconciliation, that frankly we're disappointed with progress so far and hope that this most recent bombing by al Qaeda won't further disrupt or delay the process."

As he moves toward his September evaluation of the military buildup, Gates said he will look at progress in the smaller neighborhoods and tribal relationships, as well as how far the national government has moved on legislation, such as oil revenue sharing, and political reconciliation.

Military leaders have touted progress in the Anbar province since last fall when violence wracked the region. Now some tribal leaders have been working with troops to restore security.

Gates also said he thinks too much has been made of the administration's suggestion that the ongoing U.S. military presence in South Korea could be a model for the future in Iraq. He said the goal is to work with the Iraqis to establish a long-term relationship where the U.S. can continue to help them train and equip their forces.

[tbweb]

A mixed picture? How about a deadly mixture of bombs killing U.S. forces, thats the real mixed picture!

[downtowner97]

Reagan had an opportunity to get into a quagmire in Lebanon like the one we are in with Iraq. He cut and ran. The Lebanese did not follow us home and attack us.

We left Vietnam, Vietnam united and is now peaceful and prosperous. We stayed in Korea, and Korea is in a tense cease fire with the south prosperous, and the north preparing to arm anyone who has money with nuclear weapons.

There are so many examples in history of conflicts that were ended simply by the invading country leaving.

Iraq has no aircraft and no ships. They can't get here. They aren't a threat to us. We need to leave and let them fight. They might be so happy we're gone, they learn to like each other.

[searingtruth]

Ahhhh ...

Once again, Bush and his henchmen are simply claiming that it's "too soon" to tell if their plan is working. Long past the time it took to defeat Japan and Germany in World War II.

Sheesh.

Too soon? Too soon to tell if the surge is working?

No. It's too late. Too late for over 3,500 American soldiers, and hundreds of thousands of innocent dead. Too late for hundreds of thousands of the maimed and wounded. Too late to recall or recant our torture and injustice.

Too soon?

No.

Too late.

Far too late.
ST


"And his denial was death, for so many who deserved to live."
SearingTruth

A Future of the Brave - www.searingtruth.com

[j-whitman]

Radio,,, I don't speak Spanish, but it looks good.. I don't believe there is an accurate translition.

[radiob-2009]

J this is your statement translated.


All the horsemen and riders of the king, Went to raise it and they could not with il

[walt1944-2009]

I understand that Gates went to Bagdad because he had visited John McCain's place and saw the rugs that McCain bought when he was in Baghdad, so Gates decided to get some for himself. He believed McCain when "Bagdad John" told him that it was totally safe shopping in Bagdad, despite the fact that McCain had over 1,000 soldier "bodyguards" around him on the ground and in the air and that he wore body armour.

SIG HEIL, BUSH!!

[j-whitman]

Hey Mexico,,,, We will trade you 1 Bush and a an old bag of Condi Rice for 2 TJ Taxi's --- We would get more out of them

[j-whitman]

For Bush & his friends south of the border;

Todos los caballeros
Y jinetes del rey,
Fueron a levantarlo
Y no pudieron con il.

[j-whitman]

All the King's horses
And all the King's men
Couldn't put Humpty together again!

Thanks ENRON for giving us the "Decider" -- Heck of a job W.

[hmmagain]

' ... If there's 10 billion folk each w/ 317 new songs & dances a day, why can't i find the 100,000 s&ds nearest me?
if there's a tiny percentage of the world dancing get sick soon tax the world first strike on the trail songs on all the front pages, how are the get well soon feed the world first aid on the trail folk making their ends meet? if food & medicine volunteers are feeding the world by making everyone pay for lunch, are they really feeding the world, or just starving it in the names of peace & prosperity? (there's more food thrown away each day than is needed to feed the world)? if we closed vietnam & opened dare in the school houses, have we considered nuking the scools as we considered in vietnam? & why wage war against foreign drug lords in local schools, isn't that like spanking washington by roasting fish at the beach? if kid age five & less absorb 99 plus percent of all spankings, & that figure only comes more close to 100% during wartime (as children are more likely to die in war than are soldiers), then shouldn't we forgive those who wage wars instead of killing kids to punish them? ... '