Bush, “We Will Stay”

On May 15, during his weekly radio address, President George W. Bush disclosed that “the major duties of U.S. forces in Iraq that help the security of Iraq even after the takeover of sovereignty on June 30 will continue.”

The statement of Bush on this day is contradictory with the statement from the Secretary of State Collin Powell and the supreme administrator of the U.S military government, Paul Brimmer, who have expressed the possibility of troop evacuation.

“The coalition forces currently stationed in Iraq are disciplining thousands of Iraqi people to defend themselves from attacks and on the trial of overthrow. Our forces will stay and help in Iraq until the Iraqi people can protect their own country by themselves.”

Also, on May 14, Secretary Powell expressed his intentions with foreign ministers from the U.K, Italy, and Japan, countries that participated in the G8 conference, remarking, “If the newly organized Iraqi provisional government requires our evacuation, we will comply with it.” Brimmer has alluded to the possibility of conditional troop evacuation, stating that “we will not stay where we are not welcomed.”

But, Powell did not center on the evacuation measure, and also stated, “I don’t think that the newly organized government wants us to leave during this transitional period when rehabilitation work is under way.”

He added that “in order to stay in Iraq even after the handover of sovereignty to Iraq, the U.N. Security Council’s resolution and Iraqi administrational law should grant the authority needed for stationing.”

The statements of Secretary Powell and Administrator Brimmer are thought to be intended to soothe public opinion against the coalition forces’ stationed in Iraq, and accelerate the procedure of issuing the U.N. resolution.

Soon-Taek Kwon maypole@donga.com