An Alliance for Iraq

When questioned Monday about the mass Shiite uprising Sunday that killed eight U.S. soldiers and was inspired by the fiery 30-year-old cleric Muqtader Sadr, White House press spokesman Scott McClellan responded, “I think that what you’re talking about is one individual who is seeking to derail democracy and freedom for the Iraqi people.” President Bush also denounced this “one person.”

If only Iraq’s problems boiled down to one malcontent.

The Bush administration, which recklessly failed to plan for the occupation of Iraq, is still trying to evade realities. U.S. military operations in Fallouja -- where four private security employees were murdered and their bodies desecrated -- may help tamp down violence for now. But time is running short for preventing the situation from blossoming into Iraqi civil war.

The world increasingly has a vital interest in preventing that. The United States, the United Nations and NATO must, together, safeguard Iraq’s transition to limited sovereignty June 30.

The U.N. envoy for Iraq, Lakhdar Brahimi, is a Sunni Muslim with long-standing ties to the Arab world. He is visiting the country this week to assess support for an interim constitution and elections. A skillful but rather cautious diplomat, Brahimi needs the overt, enthusiastic backing of the U.S. to help bring together Kurds, Shiites and Sunnis who continue to bicker over how power will be apportioned after June 30.

If the administration resists handing over political power by trying to control the country through the Iraqi Governing Council, the multinational forces that could help defuse anger at the United States will not materialize, and the factional struggles inside Iraq will probably intensify.

No matter how much political power is transferred, U.S. troops will be stuck in Iraq for a long time. Iraqi police and paramilitary troops often lack bullets, armor and guns. Only a few thousand troops and police have been properly trained for conflict.

President Bush correctly rejected a call Sunday by the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Richard Lugar (R-Ind.), for delaying the June 30 deadline altogether until Iraq is more secure. Shoving off the deadline would hand a propaganda victory to militants like Sadr who already are depicting the United States as a permanent occupier little different from Saddam Hussein.

Patient and sustained American diplomacy still might bring NATO into Iraq to help legitimize any peacekeeping force after the June 30 handover of power. The United States needs “Old Europe” allies like France and Germany more than ever, as well as the United Nations.

As time runs short, the difficulty of assembling a larger coalition intensifies. Fuming about “one individual seeking to derail democracy” is simply a denial of reality.

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In stories after April 9, 2004, Shiite cleric Muqtader Sadr is correctly referred to as Muqtada Sadr.

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