AMMAN, Jordan – The push by Democrats to set a timetable for U.S. withdrawal from Iraq has been helpful in showing the Iraqis that American patience is limited, Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Tuesday.
At the same time, Gates renewed his opposition to Congress actually approving any such timetable. Both the House and Senate have passed bills calling for an end to the war, and President Bush has said he will veto either version if it is given final approval.
“I’ve been pretty clear that I think the enactment of specific deadlines would be a bad mistake,” Gates said.
“But I think the debate itself, and I think the strong feelings expressed in the Congress about the timetable … probably has had a positive impact – at least I hope it has in terms of communicating to the Iraqis that this is not an open-ended commitment,” he said.
Gates spoke one day after six Iraqi cabinet members loyal to anti-American cleric Muqtada al-Sadr resigned because no U.S. withdrawal deadline had been set. He said he did not know whether their departure would lead to increased violence by Sadr’s Mahdi Army militia.
“I think the impact … that these resignations have will depend, in some measure on who is selected to replace these ministers and their capabilities, and whether those vacancies are used in a way that can perhaps further advance the reconciliation process,” said Gates.
“There is the opportunity to turn what might seem like a negative potentially into a positive development,” he said.
Gates spoke to reporters Tuesday after he met with Jordan’s King Abdullah II during the first stop of a Middle East trip. He had been expected to travel to Egypt later Tuesday, but was forced to delay for a day because of a severe sandstorm that engulfed Cairo, closing the airport for several hours.
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