John Kerry Begins Two Day Assessment of Iraq

[kerrygoddess]

Not a lot of details yet, mostly some photos...


John Kerry Begins Two Day Assessment of Iraq
January 18, 2006

John Kerry arrived in Baghdad today for a two-day assessment of post-war Iraq. Kerry met with Iraqi President Jalal Talabani at the Presidential Palace, in the secure ‘green zone’ area of Baghdad, Iraq.





MORE - http://blog.thedemocraticdaily.com/?p=1683

[wisteria]

1. Nice pictures, it looks like they "hit it off" very well. n/t

[ProSense]

2. Nice happy pics. Thanks. n/t

[karynnj]

3. They do look happy

Even with his few "friends", I've never seen a picture as relaxed as this with Bush and foreign leaders. It will be interesting to hear what he said at the press conference.

[kerrygoddess]

4. I keep checking for more news

Nothing yet. Great photos. I hope there will be some with the troops, too!

[ginnyinWI]

6. yeah--why is that, I wonder?

Is it a Republican thing? Are they always at war with each other and super competitive? Are they preoccupied with being tough guys to mask their insecurities? Are they Republicans because they are so insecure and uncomfortable in their own skins that they need a "daddy party"? Did they have enough love as children, or did they get held to impossible standards? Lol--I've got my pop-psychology hat on today. :dunce:

[karynnj]

7. Well, with W, we know the parents

I never understood how the media ever thought it could sell her as America's "grnadmother with pearls". She really seems to be a nasty woman.

[ginnyinWI]

8. nasty, elitist snob of a woman.

Have you heard Al Franken's story about meeting her on a plane? I can't remember ever hearing anything nice about her, come to think of it.

[kerrygoddess]

5. Press Release

http://blog.thedemocraticdaily.com/?p=1685

[ProSense]

9. Found this.

Baghdad: John Kerry meets Iraqi President
Wednesday, January 18 2006 @ 10:01 PM Eastern Standard Time

US Democrat Senator and former presidential candidate John Kerry, accompanied by US Ambassador to Iraq Zalmay Khalilzad, met Iraqi President Jalal Talabani in the Iraqi capital of Baghdad on Wednesday.

Speaking at the joint press conference after the meeting, President Talabani said, "We are happy to meet John Kerry, an important personality. He is always a friend of Iraqi people. He was the opponent of the current US administration, not the opponent of Iraq and its people. We used to visit him at the Congress frequently. I thank him with all my sincerity for his support to the Iraqi people. We emphasies a government of unity at our meeting. We discussed the training of the Iraqi armed forces. I thank the United States at the presence of Kerry for saving us from a regime of dictatorship."

Senator John Kerry said, "It's my privilege to be here in Iraq in a time of an enormously important transition. All of us in the Congress and the United States have great respect for President Talabani and what he's trying to achieve here. It's a difficult task. Iraqi people, three times in a year, have gone to the polls to vote for an opportunity to have a different future. This afternoon, I met with the election commission. They will announcing their results probably in a matter of days. I heard from (Talabani) today a very deep commitment and clear determination to put together a government of unity for Iraq. President Talabani understands and made it very clear to me that the need to bring together Shia, Sunni, Kurd, all parties within Iraq is absolutely critical to the success of this government. We support that effort to have a national unity government."

http://www.turks.us/article.php?story=20060118220119632

[wisteria]

10. I appreciate you posting this. I haven't seen anything news on this

at all.

[ProSense]

11. You're welcome.

It seems even the foreign news slowed, but then again he's venturing into some extremely volatile areas.

[TayTay]

12. Story about Iraq Visit

Kerry says 2006 is "crunch time" for Iraqi government

By NICK WADHAMS
Associated Press Writer

Source: AP WorldStream English (all)
Date: January 19, 2006

BAGHDAD_U.S. Senator John Kerry, on a visit to Baghdad, said Thursday that 2006
will be "crunch time" for Iraq's new government, which must show it is capable
of running an ethnically divided and violence-wracked country.

Kerry said that if the yet to be announced government elected in a Dec. 15 vote
can bridge deep sectarian divides and put competent officials in its key
ministries, significant numbers of U.S. troops will begin to return by the end
of the year.

"This is crunch time for everything we've invested and for everything they've
invested," Kerry told reporters in Baghdad's Green Zone, adding later: "I'm
confident that, providing the government makes the choices that are available to
it, provided we continue to leverage that, that we will be in a position to see
very significant numbers of forces return over the course of this year."

Kerry spent the day meeting with top Iraqi officials, including President Jalal
Talabani and Prime Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari. He had dinner the night before
with more Iraqi officials and U.S. Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad.

He said the results of the vote were expected to be released on Friday and that
the parties elected must form a national unity government that includes
representatives of its three main groups, the Shiite Muslims, Kurds and Sunni
Arabs. He stressed that the responsibility belonged to the Iraqis themselves and
the U.S.-led coalition could only do so much.

"This will not be resolved by our military," Kerry said. "It will be resolved by
the Iraqi political process and by their ability to put this democracy, which
they've now been given an opportunity to exercise, in place."

Kerry, the junior senator from Massachusetts and former Democratic presidential
candidate, said he believed that if the government can accomplish the task
before it, "there will ultimately be no place in Iraq for jihadists," and the
insurgency would weaken.

Kerry made clear that the withdrawal of U.S. troops would only happen if Iraq's
government functions effectively and Iraqi police and army units are trained
properly. Yet he said that in a meeting with Talabani on Wednesday, the
president had told him his expectation was that "tens of thousands" of U.S.
troops would leave Iraq by the end of the year.

[Mass]

13. Duh?

Kerry made clear that the withdrawal of U.S. troops would only happen if Iraq's
government functions effectively and Iraqi police and army units are trained
properly. Yet he said that in a meeting with Talabani on Wednesday, the
president had told him his expectation was that "tens of thousands" of U.S.
troops would leave Iraq by the end of the year.

I hate AP translations of what Kerry says. He has always said that we have to diminish the number of the troops in order for the Iraqi government to function. Expect some noise about that.

[ProSense]

14. Whatever, it doesn't even make sense (Thanks for posting TayTay)

if I understand it: they are attributing withdrawal to Bush? Did I read this correctly? Who is going to believe that?

edited to add the important statement:

"This will not be resolved by our military," Kerry said. "It will be resolved by
the Iraqi political process and by their ability to put this democracy, which
they've now been given an opportunity to exercise, in place."

[Mass]

15. I did not see the thing about Bush.

I agree with what you quote, and no surprise, this is a direct quote from Kerry.

However, it seems that AP has decided to report on Kerry by insisting he agrees with Bush (same thing as they did two days ago for Iran). If we wait for the Iraqi govt to be ready without doing anything significative (as * wants), we will be there in 10 years and this is not what Kerry suggested.

[ProSense]

17. Mass, I write as I read.

Have to clarify: the whatever was to AP. Thanks for pointing out the flawed statement.

[wisteria]

16. I love that quote! n/t