Tensions are rising in the US between the White House and Congress as public support for the presence of US troops in Iraq slumps.
Since the implementation of President George W Bush's strategy of a so-called surge of US forces in Iraq on 15 June, there have been clashes between Senators who perceive a growing need for political results and the White House which argues it is imperative that the plan is given time.
 President Bush calls for more time to carry out his plan, which has increased US troops in Iraq since 15 June. |
Withdrawal of support
General Petraeus' support for the surge is not, however, echoed by much of the Senate. In recent days four Republican senators have withdrawn support for the president's strategy and have backed Democrat calls for the removal of US troops from Iraq.
Last month, influential Republican Senator Richard Lugar spoke of his belief that the likelihood of the surge strategy succeeding in the way envisaged by President Bush was "very limited". Senator Lugar then called for the implementation of a "Plan B" that would scale down the US military presence in Iraq and instead concentrate on "diplomatic and economic options".
"The costs and risks of continuing down the current path outweigh the potential benefits that might be achieved," he said during a speech made on 25 June.
Operation Phantom Thunder
Mario Loyola of the Foundation for the Defence of Democracy is one of the, perhaps increasing, minority in favour of President Bush's latest strategy. Speaking to Radio Netherlands Worldwide, he explained:
"I think it would look politically very much like desperation if the administration now at this late, crucial hour were to cave in to domestic political pressure being generated in Congress on this issue."Mr Loyola also believes the operational phase of the surge, known as Operation Phantom Thunder, can be successful and should be given time to yield results.
"The military has a timetable for withdrawal right now, and the important thing is to keep the political situation in the United States from imposing a different timetable." "What it [the surge] really is, is a counteroffensive, and by all accounts this looks to be a very effective response...What they have done is to start sweeping clear-and-hold operations and essentially hitting all of the major insurgent strongholds in Iraq simultaneously."
He argues that there has already been evidence of success:
"Just a few weeks into the operation it is clear that the pervasive security presence that we have been able to establish has led to a greatly increased confidence on the part of normal Iraqis. The safe havens that the insurgents and the al-Qaeda terrorists have had until now are disappearing very rapidly as we are detaining and killing lots of terrorists and insurgents right now."
Yet what Mr Loyola believes to be the "grand strategic purpose" of the surge is to set the conditions for the Iraqi security services to "carry on the fight alone".
 Iraqi interior ministry show that the level of violence in the country has not yet decreased in the last month. |
The Bush administration is due to report to Congress on progress in Iraq by 15 July. Information leaked to the media by unnamed officials has sparked speculation that the report will conclude that the Iraqi government has failed to meet any of the political and economic benchmarks that have been set.
However, according to Mr Loyola, this should not be considered a reason to withdraw US troops from Iraq:
"There is a difference between saying that progress isn't being made and saying that they have not met any of their benchmarks...even European legislatures and certainly the US Congress very rarely finish their legislative initiatives according to their own timetables." "In the meantime the important thing is that we are at the very beginning of a counteroffensive. Right now the troops are overwhelmingly in favour of the surge. They very much believe in the mission and they want to win; they think they can win."
Though whether or not they can remains to be seen. With the surge still in its first month only time will tell, but this week figures from the Iraqi interior ministry show that the level of violence in the country has not yet decreased. During the seven day period ending 4 July there were 617 violent deaths compared to 299 the previous week. The figure included the deaths of 365 civilians.
Tags: army, Bush, Congress, Iraq, Operation Phantom Thunder, reinforcements, senate, soldiers, surge, White House