U.S. will leave Iraq if asked

[indigobusiness]

***BELIEVE THIS?****
-----------------------------------------------

WASHINGTON, May 13 (UPI) -- U.S. and coalition forces will leave Iraq if asked to do so by an interim Iraqi government, a State Department official told the House Thursday.

During occasionally combative questioning by bipartisan members of the International Relations Committee, the Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs Marc Grossman said that the United States would respect the wishes of a newly sovereign Iraq even if it meant withdrawing troops before Iraqi general elections are held in 2005. The sovereignty handover is scheduled for June 30.

Grossman repeatedly insisted that he did not believe such a request would be made by the new Iraqi body.

The notion that coalition forces would take marching orders from Iraqis was challenged by a military representative testifying before the committee. Lt. General Walter L. Sharp of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said that U.S.-led multinational forces were authorized under U.N. resolutions to operate in Iraq at least until a permanent constitutional government was elected.




Copyright 2004 by United Press International.

[elperromagico]

1. Why would a government we install ask us to leave?

The interim government will be beholden to us, and as good as deposed the second we leave - it makes no sense for them to ask for our departure.

[rogerashton]

2. Not so sure.

Some of our appointees have already been pretty critical of us. It will depend on whether they think they can keep control of the country if/when we leave. If they figure we will be out in a few years anyway, they may figure that their best chance of establishing their dictatorship is to try to get out in front of anti-American sentiment.

I think that may happen. They will fail, and Iraq will become Afghanistan with oil.

[indigobusiness]

3. more like Israel with oil

http://www.cafeshops.com/indigobusiness

[rogerashton]

11. I think that's overoptimistic.

An Arab colleague of mine who has an Iraqi master's degree says that the country is a civil war waiting to happen.

[charlie]

4. Uh-huh. A fine Catch-22

They're free to ask us to leave. But Bushco has decreed that the interim government will have no authority in matters of security, law, or budgets. A government with no realm of governance. Can't wait to see what happens if they DO ask.

Just more evidence that everything Bushco does is completely ad hoc and crafted more for PR on the homefront than for Iraqi interests.

[carpediem]

5. same guy contradicted himself later

-snip-
When first asked by House International Relations Committee members whether an interim Iraqi government could force U.S. troops to leave, Grossman stressed that Iraqi leaders wanted them to remain. He also said that the Iraqi interim constitution and a U.N. resolution gave them authority to do so.

Rep. Dana Rohrabacher, R-Calif., kept asking Grossman, "If they ask us to leave, we will leave, will we not?" Pressed for a yes-or-no answer, Grossman eventually said yes.

But he later agreed with another panelist, Lt. Gen. Walter L. Sharp, that the interim constitution and U.N. resolution gave U.S.-led forces responsibility for Iraqi security for the immediate future. Sharp is strategic plans and policy director for the military Joint Chiefs of Staff.

After the hearing, Grossman was asked if that meant U.S. forces would not leave if asked by the interim government. "That is correct," he said.

-snip-

http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20040513/ap_on_go_ca_st_pe/us_iraq_transition_1

talk about flip-flopping

[friendofbenn]

6. nope

although i hear baathists are already being trained at the school of americas to overthrow the u.s appointed puppet government

[LittleApple81]

7. I think I saw in the news last night that after the hearing the Bushies

said they had "misspoken". That the "new government" will not have the "authority" to ask the US to leave.

[koopie57]

8. who gave us the authority

to go into Iraq?

[Disturbed]

10. Amerika

The Twilight Zone.

[WildClarySage]

9. We ain't goin' nowhere.

We worked hard and killed a lot of people for those military bases and we are not leaving without them. And all that oil. Besides, if we leave it will only encourage the ter'ists to attack amurika, cause they hate our freedoms.

[indigobusiness]

13. who

knows?

[ProfessorGAC]

12. An Outright Lie

The system is being designed to prevent the Iraqi gov't from being able to field and fund a military for the forseeable future, just like in Germany. So, the defense presence for the puppet gov't will be U.S. troops in "permanent" bases in that country.

I expect we will have troops deployed there until at least 2030.
The Professor

[BabsSong]

14. ahh, they have been showing clips all day of Bremmer saying

exactly the same thing in a meeting in Baghdad. So I would say that Mr. Bush may be looking for a way to run out the back door before Nov. (now that the people are spitting at him on this issue) and declare that the mission is accomplished and we have given them their own government. And if that happens I sure hope all hell breaks lose from Dem ranks about his cut and run and why the hell 700 plus GI's died, thousands injured and thousands of Iraqis killed??--for what?? If they try this I hope they are driven out of power by the biggest sweep in history (hey, their Limbaugh type followers aren't going to like the looks of that). I've already heard Woodward guess that we could pull out by December and Al Hunt said we have already cut and the run won't be far behind. Stay tuned.

[LittleApple81]

15. Key part: IF ASKED. I don't think anybody is going to be "crowned"

as part of the "Iraqi" government if they are the type that would ask.