Bush-Anbar Is a Success by Delia Cruceru

In one surprise visit at the Al-Asad air base from Anbar province, President Bush noted that progress where the insurgency level is kept away. He met there with politicians from Baghdad as well with Sunni Arab sheiks who have led a local movement opposing al-Qaida in Iraq. His suite was formed by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, Defense Secretary Robert Gates and other key advisers, including the U.S. ambassador in Baghdad, Ryan Crocker, and Gen. David Petraeus. "If progress can happen here in Anbar province, where the insurgency once held sway, it can happen anywhere, provided the surge strategy is given one more time. And U.S. troops could then begin heading home," said President Bush. He said that now Sunnis who once fought side by side with al-Qaida against coalition troops now fighting side by side with coalition troops against al-Qaida, being a dramatic difference as Iraq starts to be more secure as it was before. But the Defense Secretary Robert Gates said that the progress in Anbar was initiated by the Iraqis themselves deciding to fight against al-Qaida and retake control of the region, many months before Bush sent 4.000 Marine troops as part of his troop buildup. "We have seen the fruit of that effort become more apparent in the last few months," Gates said. "The presence of the additional U.S. forces - the Marines that came in - that helped cement the gains they felt they had made but were at risk."

related story: http://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2007/09/03/ap4076962.html

by Delia Cruceru for PocketNews (http://pocketnews.tv)

PocketNews is a new real-time news broadcaster delivering the latest and hottest news right to your pocket ! With global clients who want to be kept up to date, PocketNews is everyone's way of keeping in touch with the World.