“We need a grand bargain among Iraqis to establish a sustainable and balanced power sharing arrangement. We thought that the Constitution would do it, but it did not. … There is no way that Iraq’s predicament will be fixed by August, but I think it’s fair for the people of Iraq and for our allies in the United States to expect some demonstrable progress by then,” Barham Salih, a deputy Iraqi prime minister from Kurdistan, tells the New York Times, which reports that a trip to Baghdad by U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates highlighted how the American and Iraqi governments seem almost to be talking past each other. The American timetable is being driven in part by U.S. politics and a presidential election campaign set to accelerate after Labor Day, while the Iraqi government’s agenda is being driven by internal divisive ethnic and sectarian forces as well as the insurgency. Mr. Gates said he is sympathetic to the challenges faced by his hosts, but that “the clock is ticking.” (Source: WSJ)
The Defence Equipment Minister confirmed that it was not usual for Naval personnel to carry iPods when actively engaged as members of a boarding party. (Lords Hansard, 17 Apr 07, Column 120.) Copyright © 2007 Defence Research & Analysis (DR&A)(Source: DNA DEFENCE NEWS ANALYSIS, Issue 0716, 23 Apr 07)
“Don’t ever be the first, don’t ever be the last, and don’t ever volunteer to do anything.” – U.S. Navy Swabbie. (Source: Mike Gormley)