Bush Makes Surprise Iraq Visit for Talks With Maliki (Update3)
June 13 (Bloomberg) -- President George W. Bush landed in Baghdad this morning on a surprise visit to meet with Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki and bolster his newly formed government amid continuing sectarian violence.
Air Force One touched down at 4:11 pm local time after a swift, spiraling descent to Baghdad International Airport meant to avoid anti-aircraft fire. Bush then traveled in an armed Black Hawk helicopter for the six-minute journey to the heavily fortified Green Zone of Baghdad for his discussions with Maliki at the U.S. embassy.
While in Baghdad, Bush also will participate in a video teleconference with his own advisers back in the U.S. and visit with U.S. troops. It was his second such visit to Iraq, and his departure from the U.S. was kept under wraps for security.
Bush made the trip as he and his advisers are trying to capitalize on two positive developments for his strategy: Maliki's completion of his cabinet with the appointments of ministers for defense, security and interior, and the U.S. air strike last week that killed Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, al-Qaeda's leader in Iraq.
The events have brought mixed results for the president, according to two recent polls.
Public Reaction
A USA Today/Gallup Organization poll taken in the days following Zarqawi's death showed Bush's approval rating at 38 percent, two percentage points higher than a month ago. A separate survey by CBS News found that half of Americans say the level of violence in Iraq will be unchanged by Zarqawi's demise and 30 percent believe his death will provoke more attacks. Bush's approval rating in the CBS poll fell to 33 percent, a 2 percentage point decline. Both results for approval ratings are within the margins of error for the polls.
``People who are opposed to the war already and think it has cost too much in blood and treasure are unlikely to change their minds,'' John Mueller, an Ohio State University professor who has written about how wars affect presidencies, said in an interview yesterday. ``The war, and his response to terrorism, are the defining events of this presidency.''
Bush's arrival in Iraq's capital recalls his trip to Baghdad on Nov. 27, 2003, where he addressed U.S. soldiers on the U.S. Thanksgiving holiday. As was the case for that visit, Bush traveled to Iraq under a cloak of secrecy, departing the presidential retreat at Camp David, Maryland, for Andrews Air Force Base Monday evening.
Under Wraps
White House Counselor Dan Bartlett said that among the president's Cabinet only Vice President Dick Cheney, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld knew of Bush's trip.
A group of no more than six people -- none of whom Bartlett would identify -- were involved in the early stages of planning.
Maliki himself did not know Bush was coming; Bartlett said that U.S. Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad planned on telling him as the two drove together to the embassy.
``Good to see you,'' Maliki said when Bush walked into the Republican Palace, which serves as the temporary U.S. embassy. ``Thanks for having me,'' the president responded.
Bartlett said the trip has substantive as well as symbolic value, and that Bush was eager to meet Maliki so he can forge more of a relationship ``than you can get over the telephone.''
``We are committed to the success of this new government,'' Bartlett said.
Iraq Debate
The meetings were part of a two-day focus on Iraq by the administration. Bush convened Cabinet members and military officials yesterday at Camp David to get their assessments and recommendations.
A driving force in the U.S. debate on Iraq is the question of how soon the administration can begin drawing down its forces there, which now number about 133,000. Other nations contribute 16,000 troops to the coalition.
Republicans in Congress were planning several debates and votes on Iraq, including a House resolution intended to turn back efforts by some Democrats to set a date for the U.S. to withdraw its forces.
Three years and three months into the war, Iraq is still too unstable for the U.S. to contemplate a significant drawdown, according to experts such as Judith Yaphe, an Iraq expert at the Institute for National Strategic Studies at the National Defense University in Washington.
``We're going to continue to have a force there, certainly through the next year and beyond,'' Yaphe said yesterday. ``We're never going to be completely out of Iraq.''
Insurgents and Economy
Other indicators illustrate how far Iraq has yet to go. Iraqi deaths average roughly 50 per day and almost 4,800 Iraqi police and military personnel have been killed in the past three years, according to the Brookings Institution's compilation of Iraq statistics. There were 90 attacks by insurgents each day on average in May.
Getting the economy jump started also has proven difficult because of the insurgency. There were 313 attacks on Iraqi oil and gas installations from the invasion through May 20.
Crude oil production was 1.935 million barrels per day in May, according to Bloomberg estimates, short of the pre-war peak of 2.5 million barrels per day. Crude oil exports average between 1.7 and 2.5 million barrels per day pre-war; in May they were 1.48 million according to the Brookings Index.
The shortage in oil revenue and the soaring costs have forced the administration to request $65.8 billion in supplemental funding this year for Iraq operations.
To contact the reporters on this story:
Richard Keil in Baghdad at dkeil@bloomberg.net;
Janine Zacharia in Washington at jzacharia@bloomberg.net
Last Updated: June 13, 2006 10:19 EDT |
