Amb. Crocker 'Frustrated' With Slow Progress in Iraq

Sept. 10, 2007 — -- When President Bush announced his new strategy for Iraq in January, surging 30,000 U.S. troops to Iraq, administration officials said the new plan would buy the Iraqi government time to make progress on critical political issues that are seen as the key to Iraq's long-term progress.

Today, two and a half months after the surge was fully deployed, U.S. Ambassador to Iraq Ryan Crocker told Congress the improved security afforded by the surge has indeed created the conditions to facilitate political progress. He warned, however, the fragile gains could be wiped away if the United States downgraded its presence in the country.

"It is possible for the United States to see its goals realized in Iraq, and that Iraqis are capable of tackling and addressing the problems confronting them today," Crocker testified to Congress Monday.

Crocker suggested the troop escalation has stemmed terror attacks, allowing the Iraqi government some breathing room to address political reconciliation.

"Our population and security measures have made it much harder for terrorists to conduct attacks," Crocker told a joint session of the House Foreign Affairs and House Armed Services Committees. "We have given Iraqis the time and space to reflect on what sort of country they want."

"In my judgment, the cumulative trajectory of political, economic and diplomatic developments in Iraq is upwards, although the slope of that line is not steep," he said. "The seeds of reconciliation are being planted," he added, though he admitted to being "frustrated" with the slow pace of political progress by the Iraqis.

Crocker: Marginal Progress by Iraqi Government

Though his testimony has been overshadowed by that of the commanding general in Iraq David Petraeus, who testified alongside Crocker on lightning rod issues such as U.S. force levels and casualties, Crocker testified on issues that are likely to determine the long-term prospects for Iraq.

Crocker was only able to tell Congress that the Iraqi government has been able to make marginal progress during the improved security climate provided by Petraeus' forces, though he said this was happening under "some of the most profound political, economic and security challenges imaginable."

A report released last week by the independent, nonpartisan Government Accountability Office found that Iraq's government met only three of 18 benchmarks for political progress. Crocker did not provide his own assessment of those benchmarks, but he did take indirect aim at the report and was only cautiously optimistic about Iraq's political future.

"Some of the more promising political developments at the national level are neither measured in benchmarks nor visible to those far from Baghdad," he said.

Crocker cited progress in a recent political deal among various Iraqi political groups. "This agreement by no means solves all of Iraq's problems," he said. "But the commitment of its leaders to work together on hard issues is encouraging."

"At the provincial level, political gains have been more pronounced," he said. "In these areas, there is abundant evidence that security gains have opened the door for meaningful politics."

In recent weeks several U.S. politicians have criticized Iraq's Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki for the lack of political progress, accusing him of only supporting his own Shiite factions.

Maliki 'Utterly Squandered' Troop Surge

House Foreign Affairs Committee chairman Tom Lantos, D-Calif., said at today's hearing that Maliki had "utterly squandered" the opportunity bought for him by the surge to make political progress.

"Prime Minister Maliki has not shown the slightest inclination to move in the direction of compromise. Instead of working to build national institutions -- a truly Iraqi army, a competent bureaucracy, a nonsectarian police force -- Maliki has moved in the opposite direction," Lantos said.

Crocker, however, provided a more positive assessment of Maliki's intentions and abilities.

"I do believe that Iraq's leaders have the will to tackle the country's pressing problems, although it will take longer than we originally anticipated because of the environment and the gravity of the issues before them," he told the committees. "Prime Minister al-Maliki and the other Iraqi leaders face enormous obstacles in their efforts to govern effectively."

Crocker: Abandoning Effort in Iraq Will Bring Failure

Despite calls from many in Congress to pull out more troops from Iraq, Petraeus only said that the surged troops could come out by next summer. Crocker appeared to agree with Petraeus' call when he warned against a drastic change in U.S. strategy, saying a large-scale reduction in U.S. presence would bring failure that would bring repercussions throughout the region.

"I am certain that abandoning or drastically curtailing our efforts will bring failure, and the consequences of such a failure must be clearly understood," Crocker said.

"An Iraq that falls into chaos or civil war will mean massive human suffering – well beyond what has already occurred within Iraq's borders. It could well invite the intervention of regional states, all of which see their future connected to Iraq's in some fundamental way. Undoubtedly, Iran would be a winner in this scenario," he said.