In Iraq, Iran Has Its Way

"... Today, nearly eight months after the March 7 parliamentary elections, Iraqi leaders still cannot agree on who should lead the country. ..... If the Iranian regime cannot fully dominate Iraq, then it wants a weak and fractured Iraqi government. Iran wants to ensure that Iraq never again poses the threat it did when Saddam Hussein invaded Iran in 1980. The release of nearly 400,000 secret U.S. military field reports by WikiLeaks sheds new light on how destructive the American invasion of Iraq has been - to Iraqis and the region as a whole. The documents emphasize how the Iraq conflict has unleashed a new wave of sectarian hatred and upset the Persian Gulf's strategic balance, helping Iran emerge as the dominant regional power. .... And the Iranian regime has also gained the upper hand in the latest political maneuvering. Tehran has brought together two of its staunchest Shiite allies: Maliki and the anti-American cleric Muqtada al-Sadr.... By surviving the challenge from the "Green Revolution," the Iranian regime has become stronger and more emboldened to engage in adventurism abroad. Since the March 7 elections, the United States has been sidelined in the political machinations of Iraq. With remaining U.S. troops set to withdraw by the end of 2011, the Obama administration has little leverage to force Iraqi leaders to reach a compromise. And Iran is waiting patiently to get its way."