By David Shelby
Washington File Staff Writer

Washington --- Following two days of Senate hearings with independent experts and analysts regarding the upcoming transition of sovereignty in Iraq, administration officials appeared before the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations April 23 to report on what is being done to prepare for the transformation of the U.S. presence from a governing authority to a diplomatic mission.

In his opening statement, committee chairman Richard Lugar (Republican from Indiana) said, "With lives being lost and billions of dollars being spent in Iraq, the American people must be assured that we have carefully thought through an Iraq policy that will optimize our prospects for success."

He continued, "Moreover, a detailed plan is necessary to prove to our allies and to Iraqis that we have a strategy and that we are committed to making it work. If we cannot provide this clarity, we risk the loss of support of the American people, the loss of potential contributions from our allies, and the disillusionment of Iraqis."

Responding to the Senate committee's call for clarification of the administration's plan for the transition, Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs Marc Grossman outlined the progress that has been made in establishing a U.S. Embassy in Iraq.

He indicated that temporary facilities have been identified for the embassy and are being renovated for that purpose. He also said that a site has been chosen for the construction of a permanent embassy.

Grossman told the senators that the embassy will have about 1,000 American nationals representing 12 to 15 different U.S. government agencies and that it will likely employ about 700 Iraqi nationals. He indicated that staffing efforts are well under way.

He also noted that a number of Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) officials currently serving in key positions will remain in Iraq temporarily in order to ensure a smooth transition.

Grossman estimated the operating expenses for the diplomatic mission to be between $1.1 billion and $1.5 billion for the remainder of fiscal year 2004 and fiscal year 2005. He said that $523 million in available funds have already been identified.

On the Iraqi side, Grossman said, sovereignty would devolve to an interim government that U.N. Special Envoy Lakhdar Brahimi is working to develop. He said that Brahimi had instructed CPA officials to meet with Iraqi jurists, nongovernmental organizations, and other local leaders to develop a list of Iraqis he could consult in his efforts to establish an interim government upon his return later this month.

This government would consist of a prime minister, a president, two deputy presidents and a council of ministers. He said an executive advisory body would be selected in July by a national conference.

Regarding his expectations for the situation as of July, Grossman said, "There will be an American ambassador, running a large but recognizable embassy. ... And when the ambassador drives off to call on Iraqis, he will be meeting with the prime minister and the president of a sovereign Iraq."

Senator Joseph Biden of Delaware, the committee's ranking Democrat, questioned how the administration can "get to the position where the Iraqi people will look out on July 1 and see that something really happened June 30."

Grossman responded that the government will have an Iraqi face, that the ministries will be run entirely by the Iraqis, and that the ensuing elections process will have an Iraqi and U.N. face.

Biden called for a stronger effort on the part of the administration to bring major international powers and Iraq's neighbors into the process, and to establish what he called "an international board of directors" in order to bestow greater legitimacy on the new Iraqi government.