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Analysis: Seeking Momentum in Iraq

Council on Foreign Relations

Updated: June 15, 2006
Prepared by: CFR.org Staff

A sense of momentum was growing among U.S. Republican leaders about Iraq as the House of Representatives was set to hold a debate on Iraq policy. The discussion Thursday was preceded by a partisan skirmish (The Hill). Republicans are invigorated by the killing of terrorist leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi and encouraged by signals from new Iraqi leaders. They seek a vote on a resolution that affirms Bush administration strategy in Iraq, recognizing the campaign as a key part in the U.S.-led "global war on terror."(pdf) Democrats object to that language, saying the campaigns are separate. But outright opposition to the resolution could tarnish Democrats in a key election year.

Ivo Daalder, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, tells CFR.org's Bernard Gwertzman that Democrats are split between those who think the United States can still play a positive role and those who advocate an early withdrawal. The BBC's Adam Brookes says, "if the Bush administration can capitalize on this moment, it may, just perhaps, be able to dispel some of the gloom that has taken hold in the U.S. surrounding the war."

Meanwhile, Baghdad residents, for the moment, seem challenged more by the mundane annoyances of traffic jams than terrorist strikes as a security crackdown by the new government continues (MSNBC). But security conditions in some places outside of Baghdad remained precarious (AlertNet).

Read the rest of this article on the cfr.org website.

Copyright 2006 by the Council on Foreign Relations. This material is republished on GlobalSecurity.org with specific permission from the cfr.org. Reprint and republication queries for this article should be directed to cfr.org.