Gates Says Iraqi Leaders Feel Pressure

Army Gen. David Petraeus, commander, Multi-National Forces-Iraq, listens to a joint-news conference with Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Iraqi Defense Minister Abdul-Qader al-Obeidi, not shown, Wednesday, Dec. 5, 2007, in Baghdad, Iraq. (AP Photo/Pool, Haraz N. Ghanbari) (Haraz N. Ghanbari - AP)

MANAMA, Bahrain -- Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Thursday he came away from his visit to Iraq feeling "very good about the direction of things in the security arena." His top U.S. commander in the country described a 60 percent decline in violence there in the past six months.

Gates met for an hour with Gen. David Petraeus after spending two days holding talks with Iraqi officials and military commanders in both Baghdad and up north in Mosul. The Pentagon chief said the Iraqi government now must take advantage of the improved security and move toward needed political reforms.

Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and the presidential council "know that people are getting impatient, and that they need to get on with legislation and sending the message to the rest of their people that they can work together," Gates told reporters traveling with him. "My hope is that that will produce some results fairly soon in some of these key legislative areas."

Gates noted that progress is being made by local tribal leaders and provincial governments to quash violence in their communities. Now, he said, leaders on the national level are feeling pressure to match that local progress.

While Petraeus described the security gains in parts of Iraq, he acknowledged there are still significant problem areas. Those include the north, where some al-Qaida activity is on the rise.

But overall, he said the gains in Baghdad give him the flexibility to boost military efforts in other regions that are still rocked by violence.

Armed with charts showing that as of Wednesday, weekly attacks and Iraqi civilian deaths have plunged to levels not seen here since early 2006, Petraeus told reporters that the reduction lets him make force adjustments to address remaining problem areas, which would include northern Iraq.

Speaking at the U.S. military's Camp Victory, Petraeus said the improved security is due to a number of factors including a "a reduction in some of the signature attacks that are associated with weapons provided by Iran," as well as a cease-fire called by radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr that he said had a particularly noticeable impact on what had been one of the most violent areas of Baghdad.

Both Petraeus and Gates said that it is too soon to tell what has caused the drop, or whether Iran is living up to its promise to the Iraqi government to try to stem the movement of arms and extremists into Iraq.

"I think that is still an open question," said Gates, who spoke to reporters after he toured the USS Vicksburg, a guided-missile cruiser that has been patrolling the Arabian Gulf, but docked here. "They clearly have made some commitments to the government of Iraq and I think we're waiting to see. "

Gates will be attending a regional security conference in Manama, and he said he expects that "Iranian behavior in a number of areas will clearly come up during the conversations."

Petraeus also noted that the military has detained individuals as recently as October who were trained by Iranians, evidence the instruction has continued.