Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid intensified his criticism of President George W. Bush in Washington on 14 September 2006, declaring that Iraq had descended into civil war and faulting the administration for refusing to engage diplomatically with Iran and North Korea.
Reid cited nearly 2,700 American deaths and more than 20,000 wounded in Iraq, along with a cost he put at three billion dollars per week, as reasons to change course. He said the daily death toll inside Iraq left no doubt about the civil war's reality.
At a conference on Iran policy, Reid also highlighted an International Atomic Energy Agency objection that a recent congressional report had overstated Iran's nuclear capabilities. He called the White House reluctance to hold direct talks with adversaries "a cop out," drawing a parallel with Ronald Reagan's arms control negotiations with the Soviet Union.
Reid supported strong UN sanctions against Iran over its nuclear program while arguing that direct diplomacy should accompany that pressure. The White House maintained that talks with Tehran remained contingent on Iran suspending uranium enrichment. Republican opponents had argued that Democratic calls for an Iraq withdrawal timetable would benefit militant groups and weaken US security.
Historical summary. TurkishPress restated this wire report, first published in September 2006, in its own words.