Washington, July 26: Under pressure to demonstrate progress in rebuilding Iraq to maintain domestic support, US President George W Bush is contemplating tapping major figures, including former Secretary of State James Baker, to work alongside the US administrator in the Gulf country. As part of the effort, the White House is considering asking several major figures, including former Secretary of State James A Baker III, to take charge of specific tasks such as seeking funds from other countries or restructuring Iraq's debt, The Washington Post quoting administrative officials said today.
It said Baker's name was forwarded yesterday as a prime candidate to work alongside L Paul Bremer, the US administrator in Iraq. But later in the day, a senior White House official said baker was one of several prominent figures who might be asked to play a role and said that no decision had been made.
"A lot of different things are being discussed," a senior administration official said, adding "nothing has happened yet."
The disclosure about another possible restructuring, second in three months, underscores the administration's concern about the rate of progress, despite assertions by Bush, Bremer and other senior officials this week that the effort is on track, the paper said.
In another augmentation of the postwar structure, the administration plans to name Reuben Jeffery III, a former Goldman Sachs investment banker who is now coordinating the federal aid aimed to help reconstruct lower Manhattan, as Washington-based coordinator for the Iraq reconstruction effort, it said. Bureau Report