Team Infidel
Forum Spin Doctor
Wall Street Journal (wsj.com)
October 22, 2008
WASHINGTON (AFP) -- Iran is trying to "undermine" and "derail" an almost completed U.S.-Iraqi agreement governing the presence of U.S. troops in Iraq beyond 2008, Pentagon spokesman Geoff Morrell said Wednesday.
Morrell told a Pentagon press briefing that "Iranian meddling in Iraq takes on all forms."
"In its most destructive, devious and deadly ways, it has to do with the flow of arms and weapons into Iraq," Morrell said, adding that officials had seen a recent decline in that flow.
"But there are, of course, counterbalancing negatives, one of which is clearly an attempt by the Iranians to undermine, undercut, derail the SOFA [status of forces] agreement," he said.
The Iranians "have made their displeasure with this agreement known, and have tried to influence Iraqis in all manner of ways."
General Ray Odierno "talked about intelligence pointing to attempted bribes," Morrell said. Morrell was referring to recent remarks by the commanding U.S. general in Iraq that Iraqi leaders criticized as "inappropriate."
Odierno "never said or suggested that Iraqis, Iraqi politicians, would ever take such bribes. But there is nothing too low for some of these Iranian operatives to try," Morrell said.
The White House said Wednesday that the SOFA agreement, which has been the subject of months of tough negotiations, was more or less done, and any changes now would be merely fine-tuning.
The draft calls for a withdrawal of U.S. combat forces by the end of 2011, and includes U.S. concessions on jurisdiction over its troops accused of "serious crimes" while off duty or off-base.
To the apparent frustration of the U.S., the Iraqi cabinet decided on Tuesday to seek certain revisions, triggering warnings from top U.S. military and political figures about the risks of not having a deal.
But Iraq warned it would not be bullied into signing the security pact.
"It is not correct to force Iraqis into making a choice and it is not appropriate to talk with the Iraqis in this way," Iraqi government spokesman Ali al-Dabbagh said.
October 22, 2008
WASHINGTON (AFP) -- Iran is trying to "undermine" and "derail" an almost completed U.S.-Iraqi agreement governing the presence of U.S. troops in Iraq beyond 2008, Pentagon spokesman Geoff Morrell said Wednesday.
Morrell told a Pentagon press briefing that "Iranian meddling in Iraq takes on all forms."
"In its most destructive, devious and deadly ways, it has to do with the flow of arms and weapons into Iraq," Morrell said, adding that officials had seen a recent decline in that flow.
"But there are, of course, counterbalancing negatives, one of which is clearly an attempt by the Iranians to undermine, undercut, derail the SOFA [status of forces] agreement," he said.
The Iranians "have made their displeasure with this agreement known, and have tried to influence Iraqis in all manner of ways."
General Ray Odierno "talked about intelligence pointing to attempted bribes," Morrell said. Morrell was referring to recent remarks by the commanding U.S. general in Iraq that Iraqi leaders criticized as "inappropriate."
Odierno "never said or suggested that Iraqis, Iraqi politicians, would ever take such bribes. But there is nothing too low for some of these Iranian operatives to try," Morrell said.
The White House said Wednesday that the SOFA agreement, which has been the subject of months of tough negotiations, was more or less done, and any changes now would be merely fine-tuning.
The draft calls for a withdrawal of U.S. combat forces by the end of 2011, and includes U.S. concessions on jurisdiction over its troops accused of "serious crimes" while off duty or off-base.
To the apparent frustration of the U.S., the Iraqi cabinet decided on Tuesday to seek certain revisions, triggering warnings from top U.S. military and political figures about the risks of not having a deal.
But Iraq warned it would not be bullied into signing the security pact.
"It is not correct to force Iraqis into making a choice and it is not appropriate to talk with the Iraqis in this way," Iraqi government spokesman Ali al-Dabbagh said.