United States President George Bush, under fire from voters over his policies in Iraq, declared on Wednesday that patience had its limits but said he would not put unbearable pressure on Iraq’s leaders to end the bloodshed.
Speaking at the White House ahead of mid-term elections on November 7 that could cost his Republican control of Congress, Bush said the US was determined to stay the course in Iraq but with adjusted tactics to confront a changing enemy.
He said he would not leave US troops caught in the crossfire of mounting sectarian violence and would bring them home tomorrow ”if I did not think our mission in Iraq was vital to American security”.
Bush, echoing comments in Baghdad on Tuesday by his top military and civilians officials in Iraq, said Iraq’s government had agreed to a ”schedule” of political and security steps aimed at forging a united, stable democracy.
The United States was pressing Iraqi leaders to take ”bold steps” but ”we are making it clear that American patience is not unlimited”, Bush told a news conference.
Even so, he added, ”We will not put more pressure on the Iraqi government than it can bear.”
Bush voiced qualified confidence in Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki. ”We’re with him as long as he continues to make tough decisions,” Bush said.
Al-Maliki earlier distanced himself from the US-announced ”timeline” to end sectarian violence and criticised a raid on a Shi’ite militia stronghold aimed at a death squad leader.
”The Americans have the right to review their policies but we do not believe in a timetable and no one will impose one on us,” al-Maliki, himself a Shi’ite, told a news conference.
He also contradicted a US military statement that said Wednesday’s Iraqi-US ground and air assault on the crowded Sadr City slum district of Baghdad, in which four people were killed, had been authorised by his government.
”We will be seeking an explanation from the multinational forces to avoid a repetition of what happened without our cooperation in advance,” Maliki said. — Reuters