Condi Rice Make Surprise Visit to Iraq
 |
James Joyner | Sunday, May 15, 2005 |
Rice Make Surprise Visit to Iraq (AP)
Secretary of State of Condoleezza Rice, on a heavily guarded surprise trip to Iraq on Sunday, urged patience for the country’s fragile new government and said Iraqis have made remarkable political progress that can overcome a recent surge of violence. “Obviously there is a security situation ⦠I want and have wanted to go to Iraq at the right time, and the right time is when they had a new government,” Rice said en route to this town in Kurdish northern Iraq.
Rice flew immediately to the mountain stronghold of Kurdish Democratic Party leader Massoud Barzani. She rode in an Apache military helicopter under extremely heavy security.
The one-day trip was Rice’s first visit to Iraq as the nation’s top diplomat. Rice was a chief architect of the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq as White House national security adviser during President Bush’s first term and she accompanied Bush on his own surprise visit to Iraq on Thanksgiving Day 2003.
Rice said she wanted to discuss the new government’s upcoming tasks including writing a constitution, as well as addressing the country’s security and infrastructure needs. Rice told reporters the August deadline to write a federal constitution was imposed by the Iraqis, not the United States. The continuing political situation and security challenges in Baghdad have complicated the process and some in the Iraqi government now say that deadline may not be realistic.
The same was said about the elections, too.
About the Author: James Joyner is the publisher of Outside the Beltway and the managing editor of the Atlantic Council. He's a former Army officer, Desert Storm vet, and college professor with a PhD in political science from The University of Alabama. He lives just outside the Beltway in Alexandria, Virginia with his wife and infant daughter.
Follow James on FriendFeed | Twitter | Digg
- None Found
- Paradox of Choice Paradoxically Untrue
- Private Forecasters Support Claim That Stimulus Worked
- Entertaining Kids During the Holidays
- How Much Will Escalation Cost?
- No Party of No
- Thought of the Day
- Queer International Studies
- OTB Latenight – r.e.m.
- Krugman on the Debt and Deficits
- A Question About Bonuses and Bailouts
- PAXALLES linked with High-Heeled Boots on the Ground - Chic Rice Visits Iraq
Another meaningless photo op for the bush crime family-
Next they will claim to have seen the face of jesus
on condi rice's ass
Comments are Closed
