reported here from McClatchey. Here at the end of the Bush term, and the fantasy third term of McCain, the very war they continue to say we are winning, the very place we will stay until we have won, may have other ideas. Most Americans have already picked up on the concept that Iraq is not going to be like Germany or Japan after WWII. They get that the best we can hope for is to set up an Iraqi government that is minimally stable, and then we should run for the exit. But NOOOOO!!!! McBush have other ideas...which I am sure they think are reasonable since they have completely cowed the MSM. Only one problem, they didn't consult the Iraqis.
Guess what...a minimally stable Iraq has arrived! Time to pack our bags and BOLT! When Nouri al Maliki raises the idea that Iraq MIGHT tell the U.S. to shove off, then you know your little one is all grown up, and blaming you like all teenagers do for all that is wrong in their lives (snark). Bush and co. have had a lot of trouble selling the Status of Forces Agreement. While they may have beat down our weak kneed Democrats here at home, the Iraqis, it turns out, are of sterner stuff. They would have to be, they survived Saddam, Clinton, then Bush, and after decades of getting screwed, they are telling us that there are limits to our arrogance (Cause hey, they know Saddam was a U.S. puppet before he wasn't a U.S. puppet).
The Status of Forces agreement has been fast tracked by this administration, in hopes of tying up both countries for a long time. Of course, McCain is all behind this idea, while Congressional Dems have been mainly AWOL. As is usual with all U.S. discussions on Iraq, no one bothered to really ask the Iraqis what they wanted. However, since the Iraqi government needs to actually sign the agreement, constructing an agreement that they, well, agree with is part of the game.
The Iraqi government, quite understandably, rejected the ideas that the U.S. should fully control Iraqi airspace, that U.S. personnel and contractors would be immune to Iraqi prosecution, and that the U.S. would have control over 58 military bases in Iraq. The U.S. diplomatic contingent is preparing a second draft that would ALLOW Iraq to prosecute U.S. contractors.
After all this, the unusually compliant Maliki broke, saying through a representative that the U.S. must respect the sovereignty of Iraq. However, the government has also indicated that all sides are looking for an agreement. Given recent statements by Muqtada al-Sadr regarding the Status of Forces agreement, one wonders whether U.S. control is unraveling, and whether the Iraqis are feeling they would be better off figuring things out on their own.