Gareth Porter

Recent reports in the Turkish and German press of the U.S. asking the Turkish government to support a possible attack on Iran and alerting allied countries of preparations for such an attack appear to be part of a strategy to pressure the Iranian regime rather than the result of a new policy to strike Iran. … Continue reading “US Tries to Pressure Iran with Attack Stories”

To avoid the failure of its mission in Iraq, the George W. Bush administration has been driven to seek the help of two major enemies – the Sunni insurgents and the government of Iran – but both initiatives have failed to make progress because officials were not given any real negotiating authority. U.S. officials in … Continue reading “Bush Seeks His Enemies’ Help in Iraq”

In escalating their conflict with the United States over its efforts to weaken the Iraqi insurgency by co-opting Sunni political figures, Shi’ite party leaders may have delivered a fatal blow to that strategy. U.S. Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad has been trying to convince the Sunni population that a share of political power will protect their interests. … Continue reading “Shi’ites Escalate Conflict with US Over Sunni Strategy”

The controversy over “cooking the books” on Iraq intelligence to promote an aggressive war might make one think that Dick Cheney and his minions were somehow breaking new ground. But the precedent for fabricating a threat to justify the use of military force was set by the high-ranking national security officials who brought us the … Continue reading “Cooking the Books:
A Requirement for Aggressive War”

Despite the U.S. command’s announcement last week that it would seek to curb abuses by Iraqi commando units, the U.S. military has been extremely tolerant of the most abusive unit of all – the notorious Wolf Brigade – because it regards it as highly effective against the insurgents. As reported in a front-page New York … Continue reading “US Military Still Runs With Dreaded Wolf Brigade”

The George W. Bush administration has embarked on a new effort to pressure Iraq’s militant Shi’ite party leaders to give up their control over internal security affairs that could lead the Shi’ites to reconsider their reliance on U.S. troops. The looming confrontation is the result of U.S. concerns about the takeover of the Interior Ministry … Continue reading “US-Shi’ite Struggle Could Spin Out of Control”

The Bush administration has just provided a textbook demonstration of the successful manipulation of public opinion. By repeating the theme that the United States is winning the war in Iraq for weeks, George W. Bush has now convinced 60 percent of Americans that the United States will win, and nearly as many that it is … Continue reading “Why the War Has Already Been Lost”

Leading Sunni clerics and insurgent organizations are unofficially encouraging voting by Sunnis in Thursday’s parliamentary elections for a slate of candidates who are calling for a timetable for U.S. troop withdrawal. The decision to support participation in the election is the latest step in an evolving Sunni strategy that now combines armed struggle, participation in … Continue reading “Sunnis Opt for Ballots – and Bullets”

U.S. President George W. Bush’s adamant rejection of a timetable for withdrawal from Iraq effectively slams the door on a recent reported offer from Sunni resistance groups to eliminate the al-Qaeda terrorist haven in Iraq as part of a negotiated peace agreement. At the recent Iraqi reconciliation meeting in Cairo, leaders of three Sunni armed … Continue reading “No-Timetable Policy Rules Out a Deal on Zarqawi”

The final communiqué of the Cairo Conference of Iraqi political groups last week appears to be a tentative first step in a process that could eventually lead to a peace settlement in Iraq. The Shi’ite leadership of Iraq may not be ready to negotiate with the Sunni insurgents yet, but its behavior at the conference … Continue reading “Was Cairo Meet First Step Toward Peace Talks?”