U.S. envoy to Iraq likely quitting post

Associated Press ^ | 11/06/06 | ANNE GEARAN,

[TexKat]

WASHINGTON - Zalmay Khalilzad, the plainspoken dealmaker and Republican insider who has won praise and criticism for attempts to broker Sunni political participation in Iraq's fragile government, is likely to quit his post as U.S. ambassador in Baghdad in the coming months, a senior Bush administration official said Monday.

As the midterm elections approached in the United States, Khalilzad has been a public face of Bush administration attempts to project both willingness to change strategy or tactics in an unpopular war and solidarity with the increasingly fractious Shiite-led government of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki.

Khalilzad's departure has been rumored for months, but he has not turned in his resignation, the State Department official said. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because neither the White House nor Khalilzad has announced any personnel changes. Khalilzad could leave as soon as the end of this year, but is more likely to remain in his post through the spring, the official said.

"He doesn't want to stay there forever and there are ongoing discussions about when he will finish his time, but there is no definite date," the official said.

Other U.S. officials have said Khalilzad will probably return to an academic or private sector job in the United States. His replacement in Baghdad may be Ryan Crocker, a senior career diplomat who is currently U.S. ambassador to Pakistan, those officials said. Crocker was a top U.S. representative in Baghdad for several months in 2003, shortly after the U.S.-led invasion that toppled Saddam Hussein.

Khalilzad is an Afghan-born Sunni Muslim who was seen as a go-between among Iraq's political and sectarian factions when named to the Baghdad post in April 2005. Initially criticized by some Shiites for showing what they called favoritism to the Sunni minority, Khalilzad has more recently been a target of Sunni criticism that the United States is not doing enough to protect Sunnis from Shiite reprisals and death squads.

[TexKat]

U.S. Ambassador to Iraq Zalmay Khalilzad speaks with The Associated Press at the U.S. Embassy in the heavily fortified Green Zone in Baghdad, Iraq in this May 21, 2006 file photo. Khalilzad, the plainspoken dealmaker and Republican insider who has won praise and criticism for attempts to broker Sunni political participation in Iraq's fragile government, is likely to quit his post as U.S. ambassador in Baghdad in the coming months, a senior Bush administration official said Monday. (AP Photo/Hadi Mizban)

[TexKat]

U.S. envoy to Iraq likely quitting post ping

[CottShop]

Meh great- more bad news for the war on terror-- how lovely

Christian news and commentary at: sacredscoop.com ...

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

A good man,...but probably time for a fresh face and energy.

[SunkenCiv]

This is what's known as "building a fire under the Sunnis".

[Prost1]

Former National Security Counsel Staff member.

He does not need to be there to get things done. Phone calls, video, occasional travel.

There is only so much time one can spend in Paradise (Tigris/Euphrates) and even that gets boring.

[roses of sharon]

FYI, Tony Snow denied this report today.