"WASHINGTON (AFP) - The US Senate is expected to vote as early as Tuesday on a Bosnia-style plan to subdivide Iraq on ethnic lines, touted by backers as the sole hope of forging a federal state out of sectarian strife.
"Though the measure is non-binding, and would not force a change in President George W. Bush's war strategy even if it passes, the vote will provide a key test of an idea drawing rising interest in Washington.
"Advocates say the plan, championed by Democratic senator and presidential hopeful Joseph Biden, offers a route to a political solution in Iraq that could allow US troops to eventually go home without leaving chaos behind.
"A loose autonomous federation of Kurdish, Shiite and Sunni entities might look good on paper, but critics charge it ignores Iraq's ethnic stew, such as cities where ethnic groups live side-by-side and inter-marry, and are not divided by lines on a map."
The issue, of course, isn't where you stand on the question of the subdivision of Iraq but that this decision is being made in Washington rather than Baghdad. Does this bring back visions of the Roman Senate deciding the fate of the occupied territories?
No comments:
Post a Comment