Gen. Petraeus Under Pressure

HILLA, Iraq, June 28, 2007 — -- It is well over 110 degrees in the southern Iraqi town of Hilla. But the heat Gen. David Petraeus feels is coming from Washington.

The top American commander in Iraq is under rising pressure to turn out enough Iraqi police and soldiers to make an American troop drawdown possible.

"We're keenly aware of the situation in Washington, again the clock moving back there at a high rate of speed," Petraeus said. "We share frankly some of the emotions that are obvious back there -- the impatience, the frustration, occasionally disappointment."

Petraeus came to Hilla to review 1,000 of the latest police academy graduates who demonstrated SWAT insurgent takedown maneuvers and martial arts, which included a blindfolded instructor slicing a cucumber on a young recruit's neck with a sword.

Still, U.S. commanders say tens of thousands more Iraqi police need to stand up so that the United States can stand down.

Just last week seven officers were among the eight people killed by a car bomb at a checkpoint outside the governor's office.

When asked about pressure to show progress in Iraq before he gives his report to Congress on the status of the U.S. troop surge in September, Petraeus said it was not his role to showcase success stories.

"Well we're not going back to present examples of success, we're going back to present the truth," Petraeus said, "to provide a forthright and comprehensive assessment of the situation at the time … We're certainly trying to produce examples of success in [the] security arena, political arena, economic arena and all the rest of that."

Strained Relations With Iraqi Leader

As U.S. commanders wait for more Iraqi troops to join the ranks, Petraeus defended the practice of American commanders supplying ammunition to some Sunni tribesmen in the fight against al Qaeda on what he said were rare occasions.

"I stand by that, I think that's a pretty rational decision because these folks are trying to fight a common enemy," he said.

But none of the military progress does much long-term good without political progress.

Petraeus acknowledged that the slow pace of reform has strained his relationship with Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki.

"There's an inevitable amount of tension or friction or what have you between individuals in our positions," he said. "I think that type of situation is very understandable and to be expected."

With Petraeus preparing a report card on the surge that is likely to face a critical reception by a war-weary Congress in September, the tension is unlikely to ease anytime soon without major changes.