http://news.yam.com/afp/international/200804/20080411032339.html
布希將伊朗和蓋達組織列為美國兩大威脅
法新社╱簡長盛 2008-04-11 15:20
（法新社華盛頓十日電）美國總統布希今天將伊朗和蓋達恐怖組織並列為「新世紀對美國的兩大威脅」，並且說，這兩者都希望美國在伊拉克失敗。
布希在為伊拉克戰爭辯護的一場演說中提及此事，同時明確的嚴詞警告，如果伊朗在遭戰火蹂躪的伊拉克將美國利益列為攻擊目標，他將毫不猶豫的使用武力。
布希說：「伊拉克是新世紀對美國兩大威脅的集中點，這兩大威脅就是蓋達組織和伊朗。」他指責伊朗支持反美的伊拉克民兵，並且秘密尋求核子武器。
他說：「如果我們在蓋達組織和伊朗投注重大心力物力的伊拉克獲勝，對於這個全球性的恐怖組織將是歷史性的打擊，也是伊朗的嚴重挫折。」
為了鼓舞美國人民支持伊拉克戰爭，聲望低落的布希已非首度將伊拉克戲劇化描寫為「對抗伊朗和賓拉登恐怖組織的前線」。
距離卸任還有十個月的布希今天提到，他並沒有放棄在伊朗涉嫌介入伊拉克戰爭和發展核子武器計劃上和德黑蘭對抗的努力。伊朗已遭到聯合國三輪的制裁行動。
布希說，一旦美國在伊拉克被擊敗，「伊朗將會填補伊拉克的真空，而且我們的失敗將鼓勵伊朗的激進領袖，增添他們控制這個地區的野心」。
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20080411/pl_afp/usiraqpoliticsbush_080411075438
Bush: Iraq withdrawals to freeze in July
by Olivier Knox
1 hour, 31 minutes ago
WASHINGTON (AFP) - US President George W. Bush on Thursday ordered an indefinite halt to US troop withdrawals from Iraq come July, warning that the strife-torn country remains too fragile five years after Baghdad fell.
"Serious and complex challenges remain in Iraq, from the presence of Al-Qaeda to the destructive influence of Iran to hard compromises needed for further political progress," Bush said in a speech defending his strategy.
With his fellow Republicans worried about the vastly unpopular conflict's cost in November elections, Bush said he was also shortening troop deployments, and promised that "while this war is difficult, it is not endless."
Still, the president's remarks underlined that his successor in January 2009 will decide whether and how to end the war, which is now in its sixth year, after claiming the lives of more than 4,000 US troops and countless Iraqis.
US Defense Secretary Robert Gates said that, while he expected more drawdowns if the situation improves, he did not think that US force levels could drop to 100,000 by year's end as he had once hoped.
In his speech, Bush explained that he was accepting advice from the top US commander in Iraq, Army General David Petraeus, and the US ambassador in Baghdad, Ryan Crocker, who testified to US lawmakers for two days this week.
"I've accepted these recommendations," he said, underlining the central one of pursuing a limited drawdown from 20 brigades of combat troops to 15 brigades as scheduled by the end of July, but freezing further withdrawals.
"Beyond that, General Petraeus says he'll need time to consolidate his forces and assess how this reduced American presence will affect conditions on the ground before making measured recommendations on further reductions," he said.
"And I've told him he'll have all the time he needs," the president said, without setting a timeframe.
But Gates, choosing words that Petraeus had explicitly rejected in Senate testimony earlier this week, told the Senate Armed Services Committee there would be a "brief pause" for consolidation and evaluation after July.
"I do not anticipate this period of review to be an extended one, and I would emphasize that the hope, depending on conditions on the ground, is to reduce our presence further this fall," Gates said.
He said Petraeus should make a recommendation on further troop cuts at the end of a 45-day review period in mid-September. The general indicated this week that he might, or might not, do that, depending on the circumstances.
His testimony and that of Admiral William Mullen, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, reflect underlying tensions within the military and the administration over the pace and scope of the drawdown at a time when Afghanistan poses a growing challenge.
Facing warnings from top military commanders that the war is putting a heavy strain on US forces and their families, Bush also said he was cutting tours of duty for troops deployed after August 1, from 15 months to one year.
"We'll also ensure that our Army units will have at least a year home for every year in the field," he said.
Democrats, including White House hopefuls Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama, have stepped up calls to bring more US troops home, and said Bush's only strategy is to hand off the conflict to his successor.
"We cannot press Iraq's leaders to resolve their differences and spend their money if our plan is to stay in Iraq indefinitely," said Obama.
"As president, I will do what this president has failed to do: recognize reality and end the war responsibly," Clinton said.
Bush, who brushed off such criticisms as "simply wrong," also said he was launching an all-out diplomatic offensive to rally Arab support for Iraq and warned arch-foe Iran that it faced "a choice" on how to treat its neighbor.
Bush lumped Tehran and Al-Qaeda together as "two of the greatest threats to America in this new century" and left little doubt that he was threatening Iran with military action if it threatens US interests in Iraq.
"If Iran makes the right choice, America will encourage a peaceful relationship between Iran and Iraq. If Iran makes the wrong choice, America will act to protect our interests and our troops and our Iraqi partners," he said.
His speech came as two US air strikes in Baghdad's embattled Sadr City district killed six people as fighting flared for a fifth straight day between Shiite militiamen and security forces hunting mortar and rocket teams.
Separately, Petraeus called for a "very, very sensitive" approach in dealing with militias allied with radical cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, warning that overly harsh measures could lead them to abandon a unilateral ceasefire Sadr imposed in August.
On the diplomatic front, Bush said he was ordering Petraeus and Crocker to Saudi Arabia and sending top US diplomats to Jordan, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, and Egypt to convince them to reopen their embassies in Baghdad.
US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice will also travel to an April 22 regional conference on Iraq in Kuwait and an international meeting on Iraq in Stockholm, officials said.
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