IRAQ: The U.S. Surge... More of a Fizzle?

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POLITICS-US: Anbar "Turnaround" Undercuts War Rationale
Analysis by Gareth Porter*
WASHINGTON - In hailing what he has called an "almost breathtaking" turnaround in Anbar Province that has weakened al Qaeda as a triumph for his new military strategy in Iraq, Gen. David Petraeus has put a favourable spin on a development which actually challenges the central rationale for continued U.S. military occupation of Iraq.
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POLITICS-US: Neo-Cons Try to Rally, Bully Republicans
By Jim Lobe
WASHINGTON - In the face of a critical Senate debate on future U.S. strategy in Iraq, neo-conservatives and other hawks are trying to rally increasingly sceptical - and worried - Republicans behind continued support for President George W. Bush's five-month-old "surge" strategy.
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POLITICS-US: Bush Suffers More Defections on Iraq
By Jim Lobe
WASHINGTON - In a potentially significant setback to U.S. President George W. Bush's efforts to sustain Republican support for his "surge" in Iraq, three key senators this week have called on the White House to revise U.S. strategy there before September.
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IRAQ: From Worse to Worst?
By Mohammed A. Salih
ARBIL, Iraq - More than four months after the launch of the U.S. government's new Iraq strategy aimed at curbing violence in this war-torn country, the situation here shows no clear signs of improvement. Indeed, a recent report by a British think tank warns that Iraq is a "failure" on the verge of "collapse and fragmentation."
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IRAQ: Troop Surge Touted as Success, But Casualty Stats Incomplete
By Eli Clifton
WASHINGTON - The George W. Bush administration and proponents of the U.S. troop surge in Iraq have claimed that the increased military presence in Baghdad and al-Anbar province has reduced sectarian violence between Sunni and Shiite Muslims and lowered civilian casualties. But not all of the numbers are being included.
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IRAQ: U.S. Surge Strategy Successful - in Shifting the Violence
By Jim Lobe
WASHINGTON - Halfway through the implementation of U.S. President George W. Bush's "surge" strategy to enhance security in Baghdad and Iraq's predominantly Sunni Muslim al-Anbar province, evidence that it is turning the tide nationwide is hard to come by.
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DEVELOPMENT: EU Presses On With Subsidies
By David Cronin
BRUSSELS - This year the European Union will spend more than 35 percent of its 115 billion euro (156 billion dollars) budget on supporting farmers, even though agriculture accounts for less than 5 percent of the EU workforce.
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CUBA-VENEZUELA: Making Biofuels Without Wasting Food
By Patricia Grogg
HAVANA - The governments of Cuba and Venezuela are planning to move forward together on biofuels production, but they will rely on producing alcohol from sugarcane, in order to spare food crops.
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POLITICS: Will Surge Hurt US More Than Sanctions Hurt Iran?
Analysis by Trita Parsi*
WASHINGTON - The winds of fortune in the Iranian nuclear stand-off seem to have shifted, judging by the U.S.'s new confidence. But in Washington's apparent quest to get an upper hand, misreading the causes of the backlash against President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in Iran may cause the U.S. to lose rather than gain leverage.
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POLITICS-US: Bush Suffers First Iraq Defeat in Congress
By Jim Lobe
WASHINGTON - In a significant defeat for President George W. Bush, the House of Representatives Friday voted 246 to 182 to "disapprove" his plan to add an estimated 30,000 U.S. troops to the 140,000 marines and soldiers already deployed in Iraq. Seventeen Republicans voted with the majority Democrats to approve the non-binding resolution.
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IRAQ: More Troops, And More Violence
By Dahr Jamail and Ali al-Fadhily
BAGHDAD - Violence and bombings have only increased after the proposed "surge" of 21,500 U.S. troops in Iraq.
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POLITICS-US: Revolt Builds Against Bush's Iraq Policy
By Jim Lobe
WASHINGTON - In the first step toward what some believe could eventually lead to a constitutional crisis, a key Congressional committee approved a non-binding resolution here Wednesday formally dissenting from President George W. Bush's plan to send some 21,000 more troops to Iraq.
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POLITICS-US: Anti-War Groups Plan Surge on Washington
By Aaron Glantz
SAN FRANCISCO - Peace activists from around the United States will converge on Washington Saturday for what organisers hope will be the largest demonstration to date against the Iraq war.
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Surge [L. surgere, to rise.] v.i. To swell; to flow suddenly or powerfully; to rise and roll, as waves.

George W. Bush's policy of escalating troops in Iraq, announced on Jan. 10, 2007, generated a new vocabulary: surge-heavyweight, escalation, "new way forward", "no middle way"... Is there a post-surge strategy? So far, there is only low morale among the troops and increasing civilian casualties and strife. Extricating the United States from its bloodiest and most costly overseas adventure since the Vietnam War seems an impossible task.