If the U.S. withdraws and the Iraqi government collapses, this will be a tremendous victory for the jihadi project, leading to much higher levels of violence in Iraq, a humanitarian disaster, and growing threats both to moderate Arab governments and to Israel.

The mixed picture in last week’s White House report reflects the reality, namely, that Iraq could still go either way. It is tragic that the U.S. has taken so long to adopt the current strategy, which is showing undeniable signs of success. That strategy is working about as quickly as could have been expected -- perhaps more so. There is no reason to believe that the strategy cannot work, only that it has not fully worked yet and needs more time.

That said, all the time in the world will not help if Iran is allowed to obtain nuclear weapons. If that happens, victory in Iraq will be impossible and any progress achieved will likely be reversed. Iran can still be stopped without firing a shot if Western nations -- even without the help of Russia and China -- impose a complete trade, banking, travel, and diplomatic embargo. The alternative to confronting Iran now is a world with many more nuclear powers, growing terrorist threats, and a Muslim world dominated by Islamofascism of the Iran/Taliban/al-Qaida variety.