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NOVEMBER 2009
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Just Visiting

Biden Does Baghdad

CS - Biden in Baghdad

Usually when high-level American officials visit Iraq, they're in and out of the country as soon as possible. Joe Biden has a two-day stay-over in the country where he made a surprise appearance today. His trip comes on the heels of America’s troop pullback and on the same day that the Iraq government reached a tentative agreement to purchase armaments from France, a renewal of strong relations that existed between Iraq and France prior to the American invasion. It is, in the words of The New York Times, a "pivotal moment" for Iraqi-American relations, not least of all which Americans lead the White House’s contact with the wartorn nation: Whereas President Bush took a “deeply personal interest in Iraq,” the Times notes that Obama has ceded day-to-day Iraqi relations to proxies such as ambassador Christopher Hill, Gen. Ray Odierno, and Biden. Biden's son, Beau, is stationed in Iraq with the Army National Guard. Aides say they will probably see each other during the visit.

Posted at 6:07 PM, Jul 2, 2009
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7:18 pm, Jul 2, 2009
JDK-JDK

What?

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8:33 pm, Jul 2, 2009
Carole65

What, exactly, were you trying to say, because nothing in your comment makes any sense..........

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8:40 pm, Jul 2, 2009
rapierwits

satire?

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10:44 pm, Jul 2, 2009
rapierwits

oh, wait, it was pure provocation. (glad to see no one really bit).

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1:54 am, Jul 3, 2009
ndulik

Which of the three states in Iraq is he visiting?

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9:57 pm, Jul 2, 2009
SlaveRevolt

The New York Times article down near the bottom says that
"Mr. Biden is to meet with leaders, including Mr. Maliki, on Friday and celebrate the Fourth of July with troops. His son Beau is a captain in the Army National Guard in Iraq, and aides said the two would probably see each other at some point during the visit. Like all high-level trips to Iraq, Mr. Biden's journey was planned in secrecy."

So probably the Green Zone and at least one military base in Iraq though I would doubt he'd travel from the Green Zone to whatever base(s) overland but instead I'd imagine he would be flown either by helicopter or fixed-wing aircraft from place to place.

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10:15 pm, Jul 2, 2009
dana64

SECRECY is NECESSARY...............and it is not EVIL all the time.
Many good things have happened in History BECAUSE of SECRECY.
GROW UP

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11:17 pm, Jul 2, 2009
dana64

VP BIDEN has a good plan for IRAQ...........I am so glad he was given this oversight . He has the understanding and temperament to make the 3 factions do the right thing . The IRAQIS should really try to help America because although we made huge and costly mistakes.............we have given 4320 soldiers blood and I am fed up to see so little gratitude by some in Iraq.
as i said we made so many mistakes at first that it was understandable at first that the IRAqis BUT AFTER THE SURGE , there is no reason whatsoever to DOUBT the good intentions of US ............the SHIA;s and KURDS should be specially grateful.............the SUNNIs should be ashamed of what they did during SADDAM's reign to the Kurds and the SHIAs.............and now they should accept minority status and be grateful that there is NO RETALIATION against them.
The ARAB neighbors should stop supporting the Sunni insurgency .

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11:14 pm, Jul 2, 2009
squiggy

It remains to be seen if Biden is capable of getting them all to the table to agree, not that he would necessarily be responsible if they didn't.

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11:23 pm, Jul 2, 2009
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