Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD)

DATE=11/18/03

TYPE=U-S OPINION ROUNDUP

NAME=SHIFT IN IRAQ POLICY

NUMBER=6-130148

BYLINE=ANDREW GUTHRIE

DATELINE=WASHINGTON

EDITOR=ASSIGNMENTS

TELEPHONE=619-3335

CONTENT=

INTRO: U-S officials in Iraq say they are speeding up the turnover of more authority to the Iraqi people. The move is being greeted in the U-S press with wide approval, as we learn now from V-O-A's ____________ in today's U-S Opinion Roundup.

TEXT: With attacks against U-S and coalition troops continuing, the U-S press is pleased at the planned change in U-S policy in Iraq. We begin in California, where The Los Angeles Times says "Pace of Iraq Change Is [the] Key."

VOICE: White House officials hoping to speed the transfer of political power to Iraqis worry that Iraqis are falling behind on writing their interim constitution that would lead to local and national elections. ... The return of sovereignty, while necessary, should not serve as a smokescreen for pulling out U-S troops before an internally divided Iraqi leadership can stand on its own.

TEXT: The views of The Los Angeles Times. In Maryland, The Sun in Baltimore sees what is happening now as a race against time.

VOICE: The violence is ratcheting up in Iraq. Time does not appear to be on the Americans' side. What happens now is a race -- a race by the U-S Army to achieve victory in Iraq before it is overtaken by such spreading disaffection and resentment among the Iraqi population that the victory isn't worth having.

TEXT: Views of the [Baltimore] Sun. For its part, The New York Times, after decrying the bombing of the Italian police headquarters in southern Iraq last week, notes:

VOICE: Administration officials, from President Bush on down, have been pressing [Paul Bremer, the top U-S official in Iraq] to speed the transfer of sovereignty to appointed Iraqi officials and to compress, radically, the one-to-two year timetable he drew up for holding elections. There is some merit in these suggestions. . What is troubling, however, is the notion of short-circuiting the time necessary to draw up a workable constitution and conduct fair elections in a country as torn and troubled as Iraq.

TEXT: In Boston, The Christian Science Monitor refers to the old adage about which came first, the chicken or the egg, as a way to describe the U-S administration's problem.

VOICE: Creating an Iraqi democracy from scratch while Americans are in charge was bound to be a chicken-and-egg dilemma. The egg: Establish a legitimately elected government before handing over sovereignty to Iraqis. The chicken: Hand over sovereignty first so Iraqis feel they can then legitimately elect a government without U-S influence.

Last week, the chicken argument (sovereignty first) won, but only after six months of United States efforts to incubate a group of Iraqis so they could write a constitution and hold full elections. . Mr. Bush's reversal was . very democratic of him, although he had no choice. . The U-S will now hand over sovereignty by July 1 [2004] while keeping charge of security until then and negotiating to stay longer with a new Iraqi government.

TEXT: Portions of a Christian Science Monitor editorial.

On New York's Long Island, Newsday is among the more skeptical newspapers.

VOICE: Critics and supporters alike of President . Bush's Iraq policy have been clamoring for an exit strategy. Now he has produced one, at least on paper. But its timing is questionable, its success is highly problematic and, in any case, it's . less an exit strategy than a gamble.

TEXT: In Florida, The Orlando Sentinel says that "President Bush's new outlook on Iraq strategy needs to be followed by action."

VOICE: The goals of a new strategy need to include not only speeding up the transition to Iraqi control, as Mr. Bush has vowed, but also attracting more international help to oversee the process. U-S-led forces are struggling to secure and stabilize Iraq, despite their progress in restoring public services and reopening schools, hospitals and courts.

Guerrilla attacks have killed at least 40 U-S soldiers this month alone, raising the death toll to more than 150 since Mr. Bush declared major combat over on May 1. . A provisional Iraqi government with more authority, like the one the [U-N] helped create in Afghanistan, would enjoy more legitimacy until the country is ready for elections and a constitution.

TEXT: With that comment from the Orlando Sentinel, we conclude this editorial sampling on the U-S decision to speed up the transfer of political power in Iraq from U-S officials to Iraqis.

NEB/ANG/KL