WASHINGTON — President George Bush plans to capitalize on the killing of Al
Qaida network chief Abu Mussib Al Zarqawi to accelerate a U.S. military
withdrawal from Iraq.
Officials said Bush has scheduled a series of meetings over the next
week to renew the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq. They said the
president believes that Al Zarqawi's death could galvanize the new Iraqi
government as well as the nation's military and security forces.
"The president has been waiting for such a break for a long time," an
official said. "He plans to capitalize on the death of Iraq's leading
terrorist."
Hours after Iraq reported the death of Al Zarqawi, Bush announced he
would convene a series of meeting that would include leading U.S. and Iraqi
officials. The president said the meetings would begin with a session of
Cabinet members as well as the National Security Council on June 12 at his
retreat in Camp David.
On the following day, Bush would discuss U.S. plans with Iraqi Prime
Minister Nuri Al Maliki and his Cabinet. The meeting would be conducted
through a teleconference that would link Baghdad and Washington.
"Together we will discuss how to best deploy America's resources in
Iraq, and achieve our shared goal of an Iraq that can govern itself, defend
itself and defend itself," Bush said.
Over the last month, Bush has pressed Baghdad to form a government and
take greater responsibility for security in Iraq. On Thursday, the Iraqi
National Assembly approved
appointments for defense minister, interior minister and national security
minister.
"The new ministers cannot be successful overnight, but simply appointing
them is an important first step and following up with real action would have
a lasting value," Anthony Cordesman, a senior fellow at the Washington-based
Center for Security and International Studies, said.
Iraqi Army Gen. Abdul Qader Mohammed Jassim Al Mifarji, a Sunni, was
named defense minister. Jawad Al Bolani, a Shi'ite, became interior minister
while Sherwan Al Waili, also a Shi'ite, received parliamentary approval as
national security minister.
"He [Al Maliki] made a decision that those posts would not be part of
the spoils system of the electoral process," Defense Secretary Donald
Rumsfeld said. "But instead that they would be individuals who are highly
competent, who would govern from the center, who would manage those
critically important departments in a way that left no doubt in the minds of
the Iraqi people that they were being run in a fair and nonsectarian
manner."
