ANALYSIS: Plans for Iraqi forces vague By SALLY BUZBEE, Associated Press Writer
1 hour, 28 minutes ago
CAIRO, Egypt - President Bush and Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki both told an anxious world Thursday that they want to speed the handover of security responsibility to Iraqi forces as a way to calm the country.
But neither gave a clue as to how they might accomplish that difficult task. The problem is that more guns, military training or even more U.S. troops are unlikely to result in a strong, capable Iraqi force without Baghdad solving the underlying problem — sectarian militias infiltrating Iraq's government and police and engaging in reprisal killings that are tearing the country apart.
Even in his private talks with Bush, al-Maliki was noncommittal when probed on his plans to deal with the Mahdi Army militia blamed for much of the sectarian violence, according to a top al-Maliki aide at the meeting.
The Iraqi prime minister said only that it would not be a "big problem" to handle the group, the aide said, speaking on condition of anonymity because the meeting was private.Yet so far, despite continued vague promises, al-Maliki has done very little to curb such militias. That has become a key frustration of the Bush administration, according to an internal memo by a top Bush aide.
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