Former US commander 'fumes' after denied Iraq job: Report

A former top US military commander has fumed in an "undiplomatic fashion" after being denied the job of ambassador to Iraq, even as the Obama administration is yet to make any formal announcement.

General Anthony C Zinni, the former top US commander in the Middle East, was quoted as saying that the Obama administration had offered him late last month the job of next ambassador in Iraq but withdrew the appointment without explanation, apparently in favour of a veteran diplomat, Christopher R Hill. He had even met secretary of state Hillary Clinton and discussed the Iraq situation.

Zinni was a prominent critic of the Iraq war, but he supported the temporary increase in troops in Iraq and opposed a rapid withdrawal of American forces there, putting him closer to Senator John McCain's's position than to president Obama's, the New York Times said.

With Zinni fuming in "undiplomatic fashion" about the way he was treated, the Times said, the question of who should be the next ambassador to Iraq has turned into an "embarrassing mess" for the Obama administration as it struggles to recover from other high-profile nominations.

The former military commander was quoted as saying that he was not looking for a job in the new administration when Obama's choice for national security adviser, General James L Jones, a former Marine commandant and longtime friend, called him just before the inauguration with the job offer. 

"He asked, if I'd like to serve as ambassador to Iraq or in one of the envoy jobs on the Middle East peace process," General Zinni told the Times in telephone interview. "I said yes."

About two weeks later, Zinni said, General Jones called back with a formal offer for the Baghdad job, and an appointment with secretary of state Hillary Rodham Clinton on January 26. Zinni said he met for more than an hour with Clinton, discussing a wide range of Iraq issues with her.

"She thanked me for taking this, and we went over what needed to be done," general Zinni said. The next day, he said, vice president Joseph R Biden called to thank him for taking the job. But that was the last word on Iraq that General Zinni said he heard from the administration.

There has still been no formal announcement about the Iraq job. The White House and the State Department, the paper said, have refused to talk about discussions with general Zinni, 65, a four-star Marine general who retired in 2000 as head of the military's Central Command. 

All indications suggest that the ambassadorial post will go to Hill, who has been the senior American envoy in negotiations over North Korea, but who has no Middle East experience, the Times said.

"Our policy is never to discuss our process for making ambassadorial appointments," a State Department spokesman, Robert A Wood, was quoted as saying. "Zinni would be on anyone's short list." Early on, he had also asked for the resignation of then defence secretary Donald H Rumsfled.

With decisions to make on withdrawing from corporate boards and recruiting aides, Zinni said he called Jones on to find out what was going on. General Jones broke the news, "It's going to be Chris Hill," Zinni said, he was told.

"As a sorry offer to placate me, they offered me ambassador to Saudi Arabia," General Zinni said. "I told them to stick it, where the sun don't shine."