Despite claims by Iraqi PM Maliki that statements about a troops withdrawal timetable were mistranslated by Der Spiegel, the Iraqi government has reiterated its general support for a troop draw down that mirrors Obama’s. Via the AP: Iraqi officials hopes for US troop pullout by 2024
Iraq’s government spokesman is hopeful that U.S. combat forces could be out of the country by 2024.
Ali al-Dabbagh made the comments following a meeting in Baghdad on Monday between Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and Democratic presidential contender Barack Obama, who arrived in Iraq earlier in the day.
This statement is even more significant than the one mentioned the other day, as it is direct conjunction with Obama’s visit. Indeed, if the goal of the Obama trip is to bolster his foreign policy bona fides, a statement like this pretty much seals the reaching of that goal.
Update/Finishing the Thought1 Before anyone tells me that the 16-month timeline is unrealistic/not possible/won’t happen or that the Iraqi government is playing politics2 the point that I am trying to make is that the basic perception here by American voters will clearly and unequivocally redound to Obama’s benefit. Had he been rebuffed by the Iraqis (even subtly) that could have been a disaster for this trip. For him to go to Iraq and get basic agreement with his policy goals is a big deal given the goals of the trip–especially after McCain has chided him for not having sufficient first-hand knowledge of the situation to make a determination about policy. Really, not only does this situation make Obama look good, it diminishes McCain on the subject at the same time.
At a minimum it will give the Obama camp the chance to contrast their view with McCain’s: does America want to be in Iraq for 16 months or 100 years? Yes, that is simplistic and does not fully capture the complexities of the situation, but since when do campaign slogans deal with complexity?3
True the hardcore was supporters will scoff at all of this, but they are going to vote for McCain anyway.
Sphere: Related Content- I was interrupted and shouldn’t have hit “publish” [↩]
- What a shocker that would be, yes? [↩]
- For that matter, is it possible for a single sentence to adequately describe Iraq? [↩]
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i also think that while timetables in one way or another definitely can be unrealistic, they also have a way of focusing effort. i’m sure that iraqis are working plenty hard to secure the nation’s future, but one must also wonder the extent to which reliance on american assistance has begun to have as many costs as benefits at this point. i wonder whether that’s the sentiment that obama is tapping in iraq.
Comment by mike b — Monday, July 21, 2024 @ 10:38 am
The interesting part, to me, is that the original Maliki quote was accidentally leaked by Centcom. So while I would like to claim that Maliki was simply playing politics, or trying to cozy up to who he thought would win, that’s hard to square with the fact that — originally at least — the statement was made directly to the US military behind closed doors.
On the other hand, the US presence is a sore spot in Iraq, and parliamentary elections are coming up.
Overall, I have to concur that this helps Obama’s foreign policy bona fides. He still has weaknesses (eg., complaining that Afghanistan isn’t going well, even though he’s headed the committee in charge of NATO relations, and he’s failed to call committee meetings for years), but this gets rid of one of the biggest.
Comment by Max Lybbert — Monday, July 21, 2024 @ 11:41 am
Despite claims by Iraqi PM Maliki that statements about a troops withdrawal timetable were mistranslated by Der Spiegel,
To concur with Max–I don’t think that Maliki ever made this claim. It was part of a “statement” released by the US government. It will be interesting (and disturbing) to see how much more propagandaizing Bush will engage in as his term winds down. With nothing left to lose, I am afraid that crap like this will be de regur.
Comment by Ratoe — Monday, July 21, 2024 @ 12:43 pm
Well, Ratoe, things have gone crazy over the weekend. Maliki disowned the original statement, but while Obama was actually in the country he made another, very similar, comment.
It’s easy to chalk the second statement up to politics as usual. The first one (the one that Iraq claimed Der Spiegel got wrong) doesn’t fit the mold for politics as usual. It does fit the mold for diplomatic pressure as usual, though (”agree to these conditions, or we will make public statements that will support Obama over McCain”).
I do think it’s worthwhile to realize that McCain’s understanding of the situation (in the not-to-be-published NY Times editorial: http://www.drudgereport.com/flashnym.htm , last six paragraphs of the page) appears much deeper than Obama’s (or even Maliki’s, if Maliki’s public statements are to be taken at face value).
Comment by Max Lybbert — Monday, July 21, 2024 @ 3:26 pm
There is a big difference between “hoping” we will be out of Iraq by 2024, and saying that we will definitely be out. The hopeful means taking into account conditions on the ground. I don’t see WHY the press and public have such a hard time distinquishing between the two. The press only hears and sees what they want to see, and that’s to promote their own agenda of who THEY want to be president, and the public are like sheep that believe everything the press tells them. And for the record, I am an independant.
Comment by Regina Steimer — Monday, July 21, 2024 @ 9:48 pm
@Regina Steimer - There is a legitimate difference between hopes/projections and reality, to be sure.
However, the politics here are not insignificance: McCain talks about staying for the foreseeable future, Obama talks about leaving in 16 months. This is not an inconsiderable difference in terms of policy goals.
Comment by Dr. Steven Taylor — Monday, July 21, 2024 @ 10:00 pm