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The World From Berlin

'The US Has Very Few Options, None of Them Good'

Gen. David Petraeus, the top US commander in Iraq, has provided President George W. Bush with sorely-needed backing by saying the objectives of the troop surge in Iraq are largely being met. German commentators Tuesday write that there's no hope of a turnaround in the country until Bush leaves office.

Gen. David Petraeus delivered his hotly anticipated progress report on Iraq to Congress on Monday and provided President George W. Bush with sorely-needed backing by saying the troop surge in the country is bearing fruit.

"As a bottom line up front, the military objectives of the surge are, in large measure, being met," he said, adding that "Iraq's problems will require a long-term effort." He said a rapid withdrawal of US troops from the country would produce "a number of dangerous results."

German media commentators writing on Tuesday -- the sixth anniversary of the 9/11 attacks -- say that despite some evidence of progress with the troop surge, the overall US policy in Iraq has failed, and there's no hope for any true improvement until Bush leaves office.

Centre-left Süddeutsche Zeitung writes:

"No security expert and no serious Democrat election campaigner can currently see any point in a complete withdrawal of US forces. That would yield no increase in security. Petraeus has provided military cover for the policy of a president who is responsible for the dilemma in Iraq and who can no longer solve it himself."

"George W. Bush is a prisoner of his own doctrine. Six years ago, when the dust of Manhattan began to settle (after the 9/11 attacks), a sense of determination which is irrevocably linked with this president hardened in the American government. This doctrine was focused on the Arab world and Islamist terror but in its wider interpretation addressed the lack of freedom and all anti-democratic forces in the world. It applies to this day and will prevent an actual reversal in strategy until the day this president leaves office."

"But America can't afford the luxury of waiting another 18 months for a changeover. That's why a new strategy should be prepared now and it should focus on two key elements: internationalization and dealing with Iran."

Business daily Financial Times Deutschland writes:

"The bitter truth is that the US has only very few options, none of them good. It has no alternative but to keep on muddling through."

"The impact of the surge shows how difficult it is to foresee and control developments in Iraq. Measured in terms of the original plan, the offensive has clearly failed: With additional troops and a changed military strategy, the Americans have managed to significantly reduce the number of attacks in Baghdad; but the expectation that this would pave the way for the big peace settlement among all important Iraqi players hasn't been fulfilled. The government of national unity has collapsed, and central issues such as the distribution of oil profits remain unsolved. The fighting between Sunnis and Shiites, but also between rival Shiite groups, continues."

"But there is one success that no one had expected. In Anbar province, which the US had already given up as lost, the Sunnis are turning against the al-Qaida fighters they had once welcomed as helpers. Al-Qaida has suffered heavy losses as a result of the new alliance between local tribes and the increased numbers of US troops. ... The alliance in Anbar now offers the chance to draw the Sunnis back into the political process."

"Given the fact that the US has so little room for manoeuver, it would be wise to seek a cross-party consensus on Iraq in Congress. But one year ahead of the next election, that is virtually impossible: In the showdown in Washington the focus is on domestic politics, not foreign."

The left-leaning Berliner Zeitung writes:

"The 9/11 attacks changed the world. But even a changed world finds its own normality. Osama bin Laden is still at large, apparently with a new beard, sending new video messages to mark the anniversary. Al-Qaida still carries out attacks, if not in the United States then in Europe and North Africa."

"From President Bush's point of view, establishing a real democracy in Iraq -- and letting the reformed nation serve as a beacon for the rest of the Arab world -- is no longer a topic for discussion. The debate is now about how American soldiers might prevent a murderous civil war in the unhappy new nation, and whether they should go on fighting tribal militias and terrorists, or pull out and let the Iraqis fend for themselves."

"The assessment laid before US Congress by Gen. David Petraeus is vital for President Bush. He can't possibly agree to a troop withdrawal in the near future because it would not only represent the complete failure of his policy in Iraq; it would also saddle him with the responsibility of having shifted, dangerously, the balance of power in the Middle East."

The business daily Handelsblatt writes:

"Politicians in Washington are bargaining and arguing over the interpretation of numbers and facts. How long will the peace in Anbar province last, which the Americans recently fought to achieve and which now relies on a coalition between the Americans and Sunni forces? How significant is the violence that has arisen lately because whole regions have been 'religiously or ethnically cleansed'? How proud can America and its allies be over a liberation that has sprung -- as in the south of Iraq -- only from the bayonets of Shiite militias?"

"Our picture of Iraq in 2007 is still unclear, complicated and in constant flux. But if there's even the hint of a chance that Iraq can be kept from total collapse, it will have to be used -- regardless of which political party in the US in the end profits from such a course."

-- David Crossland and Michael Scott Moore, 12:30 p.m. CET