Top Features
The Fractured Shia of Iraq
Report from Matthew Duss and Peter Juul delivers analysis of the tensions within Iraq's majority party
Strategic Reset
A new four-point strategy for Iraq and the Middle East from Brian Katulis, Lawrence J. Korb, and Peter Juul.
How to Redeploy
Lawrence J. Korb, Sean Duggan, and Peter Juul detail how to safely redeploy troops from Iraq in 8 to 10 months.
How Does This End?
Report from Korb, Katulis, Duggan, and Juul shows why "staying the course" endangers our overall security and endangers our long-term goals in Iraq.Other War in Iraq Features
October 23, 2009
Impressions from Iraq: Part Three
Lawrence J. Korb talks with an outspoken advisor to Commanding General Ray Odierno and with Wounded Warriors in his latest report from Iraq.
October 19, 2009
Impressions from Iraq: Part Two
Lawrence J. Korb continues his reports from Iraq during a visit to assess the security situation.
October 13, 2009
Impressions from Iraq: Part One
Lawrence J. Korb provides the first of several reports from the ground in Iraq.
August 21, 2009
In Afghanistan, Do What We Must
Lawrence Korb argues that it’s time we prioritized operations in Afghanistan over Iraq before the situation deteriorates further.
July 22, 2009
Learning to Listen in Iraq
Prime Minister Maliki’s meeting with President Obama is an opportunity to discuss what the United States can do to facilitate reconciliation in Iraq, write Brian Katulis and Emily Hogin.
July 14, 2009
Rethinking “Advising and Training” in Iraq
The United States should address human rights abuses and corruption in Iraq’s security forces, write Brian Katulis and Emily Hogin.
May 12, 2009
Funding War Through the Backdoor
Including programs not directly related to the Iraq and Afghanistan wars in the supplemental funding bill perpetuates the broken defense acquisitions process, write Laura Conley and Sean Duggan.
April 15, 2009
Lessons from Iraq: Using Aid Effectively in Afghanistan and Pakistan
CAP explores the lessons from Iraq and the challenges in Afghanistan with the special inspector generals who are leading reconstruction efforts in both countries.
March 30, 2009
A Standoff in Central Baghdad
The violence in Baghdad this weekend is the inevitable result of the shaky foundation built by the “surge” and not an excuse to halt troop withdrawals, writes Brian Katulis.
March 20, 2009
Weekly Round Up March 16 - 20, 2009
CAP focused this week on the sixth anniversary of the Iraq war, a growing crisis in Afghanistan, and turning the economy around.
March 19, 2009
Lessons from Six Years in Iraq
Six years after the start of the Iraq war, Lawrence Korb, Sean Duggan, and Laura Conley reflect on its consequences at home and abroad.
March 4, 2009
Ask the Expert: Getting the United States Out of Iraq
Lawrence J. Korb responds to President Obama's Iraq plan, whether it is likely to spur political action in Iraq, and whether we will be ready to leave in August 2010.
February 27, 2009
The Promised Withdrawal from Iraq
President Obama lives up to his campaign promise on Iraq, setting a withdrawal deadline that meets the needs of the United States and Iraq, writes Lawrence J. Korb.
February 5, 2009
Managing the Transition in U.S. Policy
The results of Iraq’s provincial elections are not yet final, but some analysts have already drawn conclusions about their meaning.
January 12, 2009
Video: An Iraqi Refugee Story
Experts and Iraqis discuss the dangers that U.S.-affiliated Iraqis face and how to help them.
January 12, 2009
Stories from U.S.-Affiliated Iraqis
Iraqis give their personal accounts of what it's like living in Iraq and having affiliations with the United States.
January 12, 2009
Operation Safe Haven Iraq 2009
New report from Natalie Ondiak and Brian Katulis presents an action plan for airlifting endangered Iraqis linked to the United States.
December 11, 2008
Think Again: War on War (and More)
In the last installment of a four-part series on Bush’s war on the press, Eric Alterman looks at treatment of press during the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.
December 9, 2008
National Security and Nonproliferation Briefing Book: The Iraq War
The next president will be faced with vital political and military questions on the future of the U.S. forces in Iraq. Korb and Conley outline the challenges and solutions.
December 5, 2008
Criticism of War Policy is Patriotic
Reading Party of Defeat by David Horowitz and Ben Johnson is like listening to Hannity without Colmes.
November 13, 2008
Think Again: Meanwhile, Back in Baghdad...
News coverage of Iraq dwindled in the shadow of the presidential campaign, write Eric Alterman and George Zornick.
November 7, 2008
Power Is Decided by the Gun
Violence trends in Iraq are shifting toward the kind of targeted, political killings that can only be stopped by an overall political settlement, writes Peter Juul.
November 7, 2008
Public Opinion Snapshot: Fix the Economy, End the War
The voters have spoken; they want solutions to the economic crisis, and they want the United States out of Iraq, writes Ruy Teixeira.
October 21, 2008
Dealing with Iraq
Brian Katulis and Peter Juul outline four reasons why Americans need to debate the proposed U.S.-Iraq security agreement.
September 25, 2008
Iraq's Political Transition Not Meeting Benchmarks
New interactive chart shows status of each of the 18 benchmarks for political progress in Iraq.
September 16, 2008
Iraq's Booming Budget Surplus
CAPAF's Lawrence J. Korb testifies to the House Budget Committee on how to reign in budgetary mismanagement and shift the financial burden in Iraq.
September 10, 2008
Victory in Iraq Declared, Not Achieved
The Iraq troop withdrawals President Bush announced on Tuesday at the National Defence University were much ado about nothing. The slight reduction in troop levels will keep US troop levels several thousand above what they were in January 2007 when he announced the "surge" of US troops. Bush administration critics will say the troop withdrawals are too little and too late, while supporters will echo Bush's "return on success" talking point.
September 10, 2008
Iraq’s Political Transition After the Surge
Brian Katulis, Marc Lynch, and Peter Juul outline five enduring tensions and ten key challenges in Iraq.
September 9, 2008
Bush Makes Mountains Out of Molehills
Bush’s speech hides the reality of still high troop levels and a deteriorating situation in Iraq, write Lawrence J. Korb and Sean Duggan.
September 4, 2008
Think Again: Remember Iraq?
The media buries news of an agreement that could end the war, write Eric Alterman and George Zornick.
August 29, 2008
Standoff in Khanaqin
Trouble brewing between Arabs and Kurds emphasizes that Iraq needs political solutions that the U.S. troop presence can't solve, writes Brian Katulis.
August 17, 2008
Iraqis Must Control Their Own Security
It is becoming increasingly clear that any bilateral U.S.- Iraqi Status of Forces Agreement will have to include a date certain for withdrawal.
August 13, 2008
Withdrawing from Iraq
A panel of military experts disagreed on setting a timeline for an American withdrawal from Iraq, but agreed that a redeployment could be done relatively quickly.
August 8, 2008
Public Opinion Snapshot: A War Worth Fighting
Polls show that the public thinks the war in Iraq was a mistake, but that we should be taking stronger action in Afghanistan.
August 5, 2008
Video: How to Redeploy
It is not only possible, but necessary, to conduct a safe and responsible redeployment of U.S. forces from Iraq in no more than 10 months.
July 28, 2008
The Kirkuk Impasse
Iraq's unresolved ethnic and sectarian conflicts continue to fester, threatening renewed violence, write Brian Katulis and Peter Juul.
July 25, 2008
Public Opinion Snapshot: A Tale of Two Wars
On the decision of whether to prioritize Iraq or Afghanistan, conservatives’ views are completely opposite from the American public.
July 20, 2008
Contrasting Goals in Iraq
With Friday's announcement by the White House that the United States and Iraq have agreed to set a "general time horizon" for a US troop withdrawal, it is increasingly obvious that Iraqi political leaders are calling the shots when it comes to a future role for the United States, and that President Bush has not learned anything about Iraq in the last five years.
July 18, 2008
Public Opinion Snapshot: It’s Time to Go
New public opinion data clearly shows that the public thinks we should leave Iraq, and that we don’t have to stay in Iraq to succeed against terrorism.
June 27, 2008
Our Work Doesn't End with the Surge
The Pentagon and GAO report that violence in Iraq is down. But we must still help Iraqis achieve greater security and prosperity.
June 25, 2008
International Affairs Forum Interview with Brian Katulis
International Affairs Forum talks with Brian Katulis about the situatoin in Iraq.
June 16, 2008
Cherry Picking the Facts on Pre-War Intelligence
Lawrence Korb and Matt Duss show how Fred Hiatt picks and chooses from the recent pre-war intelligence report to tell a one-sided story on Iraq.
June 9, 2008
This Week in Congress 6.09.08 - 6.13.08
June 2, 2008
This Week in Congress 6.02.08 - 6.06.08
May 22, 2008
Think Again: There They Go Again: The “Pro-Military” Conservatives
Conservatives claim to be pro-military, but how has President Bush's conservative administration treated those in the military?
May 22, 2008
Why the U.S. Must Pull Out of Iraq
As the debate over supplemental funding for the war in Iraq plays out in Congress, a growing consensus on the need to adopt a policy of "strategic patience" has become accepted wisdom in the national debate. Proponents of this policy argue that solidifying recent security and political gains in Iraq is contingent upon the US military remaining in the country indefinitely. However, in order to truly capitalize on those gains, the United States must begin to withdraw its forces from Iraq.
May 21, 2008
Congress Must Ask General Petraeus Tough Questions
There are several key questions that lawmakers should ask General Petraeus so that the American people can be assured that General Petraeus’ CENTCOM appointment will serve their interests.
May 19, 2008
The Road to Kuwait
Iraq War advocates overstate the difficulties of withdrawal, writes Lawrence Korb.
May 19, 2008
This Week in Congress 5.19.08 - 5.23.08
May 15, 2008