Iraq shadow looms large over next US elections

New Delhi, Sept 18 (UNI) The US misadventure in Iraq will cast its shadow on the coming US Congressional elections which has left the Bush Administration alone within the international community, former US Deputy Secretary of State Strobe Talbott said today.

Describing British Premier Tony Blair as one of the 'casualties' of the US war on Iraq, Mr Talbott said at a seminar here that Mr Bush had bet his Presidency on Iraq. The leverage to his successor seemed to be diminishing. ''We have got ourselves in a terrible fix...'' Iraq was going to a big issue in the coming elections and the Bush Administration was left alone on the issue with the rating having gone down in the entire would except in India.

He said there was a shift in President Bush's Foreign Policy during his first and second terms in office.

In his first term, he was extremely sceptical about multi-lateral diplomacy.

He said there was no mention now of the terms like 'Axis of Evil' indicating Baghdad, Tehran and Pyongyang.

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