Bush flips on Iraq, N. Korea criticized

President Bush’s efforts to resolve two major foreign-policy challenges in his waning days in office have prompted double-barreled criticisms, with leaders here and abroad questioning concessions his administration has made to Iraq and North Korea.

House Armed Services Committee Chairman Ike Skelton said Monday that he was “deeply troubled” by a pending status-of-forces agreement (SOFA) with Iraq because it could result in American troops being prosecuted in Iraqi courts.

Across the globe, Japan and South Korea have gone public with rare dissent, saying they are worried over an agreement on how to verify North Korean pledges to give up making fuel for nuclear weapons.

Mr. Skelton, the leading House Democrat responsible for the U.S. military, said: “I do not believe it was wise to push off major decisions about the legal protections U.S. troops would have in such cases or the crimes for which they could be charged.”

Both Iraq and North Korea had been defined by Mr. Bush as members of the “axis of evil,” and subsequent events in each were largely driven by what is often referred to as the Bush doctrine of pre-emptive military action against terrorist threats.

The doctrine resulted in an invasion of Iraq and perceptions in neighboring Iran, as well as North Korea, of a U.S. military threat. Iran responded by arming anti-U.S. fighters in Iraq, according to U.S. officials, while North Korea tested its first atomic bomb.

Mr. Skelton’s criticism targeted a SOFA agreement signed Monday by Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshiyar Zebari and U.S. Ambassador Ryan C. Crocker in Baghdad.

By setting a three-year deadline for the complete withdrawal from Iraq, it eliminates one firm line set by Mr. Bush in opposing “artificial timetables.”

Mr. Skelton also warned that the U.S.-Iraq agreement contained “vague language” that would “likely cause misunderstandings and conflict between the U.S. and Iraq in the future.”

“Should the Iraqi council of representatives pass the agreement, the House Armed Services Committee will closely monitor the agreement´s implementation to ensure the protection of our men and women in uniform, who have served and who continue to sacrifice on our behalf in Iraq,” Mr. Skelton said.

Mr. Skelton’s criticism of the SOFA contrasted with praise from the Bush administration, Iraqi officials and even a tentative endorsement from Iran on Monday.

“Definitely, today is an historic day for Iraqi-American relations,” Mr. Zebari told reporters after exchanging signed copies with Mr. Crocker.

The two men also signed a long-term strategic framework, which Mr. Crocker said would define the countries’ ties for years.

“It reminds us all that, at a time when U.S. forces will continue to withdraw from Iraq in recognition of the superlative security gains over the last few years, our relationship will develop in many other important ways,” Mr. Crocker said.

Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told a Pentagon news conference that he has consulted the top U.S. commanders in Iraq and that they all think the agreement allows enough time for the Iraqis to be ready to defend themselves.

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