A long-brewed report by a US bipartisan commission on Iraq war, which was made public on Wednesday, has drawn people's great attention. But will it definitely play any effective role in curbing the deteriorating situation in the war-torn country? That is another pair of shoes.     

Withdrawal, diplomacy urged

"The situation in Iraq is grave and deteriorating," the commission's co-chairman and former Secretary of State James A. Baker told a news briefing soon after the report was delivered to President George W. Bush at the White House.

While stressing "violence is increasing in scope and lethality," the high-level Iraq Study Group put forward in its 160-page document 79 recommendations for a policy shift on Iraq.

Of all the recommendations, two suggestions are believed to be the most challenging to Bush and his administration. One is to shift US military combat role by 2008, the other is to launch diplomatic initiatives.

The bipartisan panel suggested that the United States should move most of its troops out of combat roles in Iraq by early 2008, and that there needs to be a renewed and sustained commitment by Washington to a comprehensive Arab-Israeli peace on all fronts: Lebanon, Syria, and a two-state solution for Israel and Palestine.

As one of concrete efforts for the latter, the commission called for direct talks with Iran and Syria, both rivals to the United States, to stabilize their neighboring Iraq. 
   
Key refusals

"If they are effectively implemented, and if the Iraqi government moves forward with national reconciliation, Iraqis will have an opportunity for a better future, terrorism will be dealt a blow, stability will be enhanced in an important part of the world, and American's credibility, interests and values will be protected," the commission said in its report.

However, to people's no surprise, President Bush has not by far given in either in his insistence on the deployment of US troops in Iraq or resistance to direct talks with Iran.
Hours after the panel's report was made public, the White House said that it has ruled out one-to-one talks with Iran about Iraq "unless Iran verifiably suspends its enrichment and reprocessing activities."

"The president believes that Iran has to change its behavior," White House spokesman Tony Snow told reporters.

Looking back on what he said about Iraq, Bush has never shaken his resolve to realize what he called democracy in Iraq either. He said days ago that he would not be persuaded by any calls to withdraw American troops before the country is stabilized.

"There's one thing I'm not going to do, I'm not going to pull our troops off the battlefield before the mission is complete," he said in Riga, Latvia when he was attending the NATO summit last week.  
  
Mideast peace push

Although Bush rebuffed key recommendations from the Iraq Study Group, he remains positive to the report, calling it "worthy of serious study," and stressing "We need a new approach" to achieve the objective.

The visit by British Prime Minister Tony Blair on Thursday has apparently offered Bush a chance to confirm the need to revive the stalled Middle East peace process while dealing with Iraq issues.     

Speaking to reporters after meeting with Blair at the White House, Bush acknowledged the need for "concerted efforts" to solve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

"Prime Minister Blair informed me that he will be heading to the Middle East soon to talk to both the Israelis and the Palestinians," Bush said. "And I support that mission."

However, analysts have noticed that the US top leader has not gone as far as accepting the direct linkage between the deteriorating Iraqi sectarian war and the half-century-old Israeli-Palestinian conflicts.

The US State Department announced Thursday that Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, who returned from Jordan, Israel and the Palestinian territories last week, will be back to the Middle East early in the new year.

Is Rice's scheduled visit to the Mideast has anything to do with the bipartisan panel's recommendation of an intense US-led peace effort? People have to wait and see.

(Xinhua News Agency December 8, 2006)