WASHINGTON -- Lt. Gen. David Petraeus, the expected new top commander in Iraq, Tuesday gave Congress a stark preview of the challenge ahead, saying sectarian violence has reduced Baghdad's population to a daily struggle for survival, undermined the U.S. strategy of handing responsibility to Iraqi forces and created the prospect of a "failed state."
Petraeus voiced confidence, however, in a new approach that would shift the focus to protecting the population by pushing tens of thousands of additional U.S. and Iraqi troops deep into Baghdad neighborhoods, one aimed at allowing Iraq's government to "come to grips with" what he called an "exceedingly difficult situation."
"The way ahead will be neither quick nor easy, and undoubtedly there will be tough days. We face a determined, adaptable, barbaric enemy. He will try to wait us out," Petraeus told the Senate Armed Services Committee at a nomination hearing. "Any such endeavor is a test of wills, and there are no guarantees."
Indeed, Petraeus promised simply to provide "the best leadership and direction I can muster" and "forthright" military advice, even if he concludes the mission is lost. "Should I determine that the new strategy cannot succeed, I will provide such an assessment," he said, reassuring senator after senator that he would speak up if he believed U.S. civilian leaders were mischaracterizing the war.
Petraeus said he had asked Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Marine Gen. Peter Pace, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, to execute the surge of 21,500 U.S. troops into Iraq "as quickly as possible," saying the five additional brigades should be in place in Baghdad by May, providing a new "critical mass" to clear and hold districts of the city of 6 million people.
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Asked by Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., whether he could carry out his mission without the additional troops, Petraeus said no. He said the Pentagon is planning options for continuing the surge, and said Gates told him it was his job to request additional forces if needed. He applauded Gates' recent decision to increase the permanent size of the Army and Marine Corps by 92,000, acknowledging the stress that has depleted the readiness of U.S. ground forces.
Under questioning from senators opposed to the surge, Petraeus allowed for the possibility that the troop flow could be aborted if the Iraqi government fails to provide three more Iraqi army brigades for Baghdad or fulfill other pledges. He said Iraqi commanders told him Tuesday that three or four additional Iraqi battalions already had arrived in Baghdad, and that some of them, with predominantly Kurdish troops, were being welcomed by the citizens.
He rejected the concern raised by Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., that the addition of more U.S. troops would inflame the insurgency. "I think that at this point in Baghdad, the population just wants to be secure, and truthfully, they don't care who does it," he said.
