Bushco adopts realism in Iraq...?

In a new indication that the balance of power within the administration of President George W. Bush has tilted strongly in favour of the realists, Washington's influential ambassador to Iraq, Zalmay Khalilzad, has disclosed that Bush has authorised him to open direct talks with Iran about stabilising Iraq.

well, yeah, that IS a significant shift but, listening to rumsfeld today and then reading what bush is continuing to say, you wouldn't think that reality had any bearing whatsoever on this administration's thought processes... besides, wasn't the white house just beating the war drums over iran a few weeks ago...? but, as juan cole notes, it may explain a few things...

This opening may help explain why Ahmad Chalabi went to Tehran before he went to Washington, and why he was given such a high-level (if unphotographed) reception in Washington.

Likewise, it helps explain the Cairo Conference sponsored by the Arab League, the results of which were an effort to reach out to the Sunni Arab guerrillas.

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