Bayh: Next 6 months critical in Iraq

U.S. Sen. Evan Bayh, D-Ind., making his second trip to Iraq, said Saturday that the next six months are crucial to Iraq's stability, and hinge largely on relations between its divided religious and ethnic groups.\nThe Indiana Democrat, who is on a fact-finding trip through the Middle East with three other federal lawmakers, arrived in Baghdad on Saturday. He spoke to reporters by telephone after meeting with U.S. Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad, U.S. intelligence officials and having lunch with troops.\nBased on those discussions, he said he believes the next six months "are going to be critically important to future developments in Iraq" -- particularly relations between the turbulent nation's majority Shiites, Kurds and minority Sunni Arabs who were allied with Saddam Hussein's toppled government.\n"Basically we're going to find out whether the Iraqis want to live together in the same country or not, whether they're willing to make the difficult political compromises necessary to bring that about," Bayh said.\nBayh, who is eyeing a possible 2008 Democratic presidential bid, arrived in Baghdad shortly after a two-day spree of insurgent attacks killed nearly 200 people, including 11 U.S. troops, and threatened to provoke a backlash from Shiite militias.\nHe is traveling with U.S. Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., Sen. Christopher "Kit" Bond, R-Mo., and Rep. Harold Ford, D-Tenn. Their week-long trip includes a stop in Israel for meetings with Israeli and Palestinian officials. Other stops included Kuwait, Qatar, Afghanistan and Pakistan.\nDuring his first visit to Iraq in December 2004, Bayh said too few U.S. troops were on the ground after Saddam's regime collapsed, a situation he said contributed to looting, lawlessness and aided the insurgency.\nBayh said Baghdad's security situation appears to have improved somewhat in the past year and that a growing number of American-trained Iraqi troops are helping take over some of the work of securing Iraq, particularly in its restive Sunni regions.\nHe said training and equipping ever-more Iraqi troops is the key "to fulfill this mission."\nBayh said the Sunnis, Shia and Kurds must work together to secure Iraq's cities and towns. Otherwise, it won't matter how many American troops are on the ground.\n"Without that, it doesn't matter what the troop levels are. It's not going to work," said Bayh, who is a member of the Senate Intelligence and Armed Services committees.\nIraqi President Jalal Talabani, who Bayh planned to dine with Saturday night, predicted Saturday that a new government could be formed within weeks. He said the country's main political groups had agreed in principle on a national unity coalition that would include Shiites, Kurds and Sunni Arabs.