Region | Iraq
Iraq panel co-chairmen face uphill battle
A long-awaited 100 page report on America's presence in Iraq will be released on Wednesday.
- Agencies
- Published: 00:00 December 2, 2006
Washington: A long-awaited 100 page report on America's presence in Iraq will be released on Wednesday.
The report is being led by Republican Former Secretary of State James A. Baker III and Democratic former Congressman Lee Hamilton, who are co-chairmen of a 10-member bipartisan panel who aim to extricate the US from the war in Iraq, which is facing increased criticism.
Initial details of the report, which calls for a gradual troop removal without setting strict timetables and more regional diplomacy, are already being criticised by some Democrats in Congress, with President George W. Bush dismissing the notion of a graceful exit as having "no realism to it whatsoever".
Hamilton said of the report, "This war has split the American people very badly. What has to happen here, no matter what you do, is a lot of things have to go right. And I don't know if a lot of things can go right."
Baker, a long-time friend of President Bush who has criticised his current military strategy, said, "We're not going to wring our hands over the past. We're here, what do we do now?"
The Iraq Study Group, whose formation was spurred last year by Republican Congressman Frank Wolf, began with little notice in March. Wolf said the goal was to provide a "fresh look" at US policies in Iraq. The members include five Republicans and five Democrats.
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