US Gen. Casey: No quick results from new Iraq plan

By JERUSALEM POST STAFF
There are no guarantees of overall success or quick results in the new US-Iraqi security drive in Baghdad, Gen. George Casey, the US commander in Iraq said on Monday. He told reporters he did not expect significant results until the summer and fall, for the first time putting a timeframe around the new plan that was announced Wednesday by US President George W. Bush. "As with any plan, there are no guarantees of success, and it's not going to happen overnight but with sustained political support and the concentrated efforts on all sides I believe that this plan can work," Casey said at a news conference. US Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad, who joined Casey at the podium, declared that there were no deadlines being imposed on the Iraqis to take action against gunmen, but the pressure was a perception that existed because of the Shiite-dominated government's failure in the past to weed out Shiite militia fighters.