Press
Press Release of Intelligence Committee
Title
Rockefeller: "Intelligence Assessment Confirms Dire Situation in Iraq"
~Critical Assessment Delivered Prior to Senate Debate~
Press Contact:
Wendy Morigi, (202) 224-6101
Created date
Tuesday, February 06, 2007
Body
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, the Senate Intelligence Committee received the new National Intelligence Estimate (NIE) on Iraq, entitled “Prospects for Iraq’s Stability: A Challenging Road Ahead.” Senator John D. (Jay) Rockefeller (D-WV), Chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, highlighted the importance of having the NIE on Iraq in advance of the Senate’s upcoming debate on resolutions related to the President’s proposed buildup of troops in Iraq.
“I am pleased that this long anticipated intelligence assessment arrived in time to inform next week’s Senate debate on Iraq policy,” said Rockefeller. “The assessments contained in the new Estimate confirm that violence and extremism have driven Iraq to civil war. The Estimate reaffirms my belief that the best hope for progress toward stabilizing Iraq lies only with the Iraqi people and their political leaders. The steps identified by the Intelligence Community as having the best chance of reversing the chaos and bloodshed in Iraq are all political developments, not military.”
The Director of National Intelligence (DNI) provided the full classified estimate as well as an unclassified version of the Estimate’s key judgments. This NIE was originally requested in a July 26, 2006 letter from several Senators to the Director. Subsequent to that request, the Senate adopted an amendment to the fiscal year 2007 Defense Appropriations Act that required the DNI to produce an NIE on Iraq.
Senator Rockefeller added, “I encourage all members of the Senate to read the entire classified NIE. It provides significantly more detail and discussion about the intelligence underlying the declassified key judgments.”
“I am pleased that this long anticipated intelligence assessment arrived in time to inform next week’s Senate debate on Iraq policy,” said Rockefeller. “The assessments contained in the new Estimate confirm that violence and extremism have driven Iraq to civil war. The Estimate reaffirms my belief that the best hope for progress toward stabilizing Iraq lies only with the Iraqi people and their political leaders. The steps identified by the Intelligence Community as having the best chance of reversing the chaos and bloodshed in Iraq are all political developments, not military.”
The Director of National Intelligence (DNI) provided the full classified estimate as well as an unclassified version of the Estimate’s key judgments. This NIE was originally requested in a July 26, 2006 letter from several Senators to the Director. Subsequent to that request, the Senate adopted an amendment to the fiscal year 2007 Defense Appropriations Act that required the DNI to produce an NIE on Iraq.
Senator Rockefeller added, “I encourage all members of the Senate to read the entire classified NIE. It provides significantly more detail and discussion about the intelligence underlying the declassified key judgments.”