Washington - In light of the importance of Iraq to United States interests and the future of the region, there is urgent need for a bipartisan, forward-looking assessment of the situation in Iraq.

At the urging of Congress, the United States Institute of Peace, together with the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), the Center for the Study of the Presidency (CSP), and the James A. Baker III Institute for Public Policy at Rice University, is organizing a fresh look by persons outside the government of the current and prospective situation on the ground in Iraq, its impact on the surrounding region, and consequences for U.S. interests.

Leadership of the group, the "Iraq Study Group," will be provided by two distinguished co-chairs: former Secretary of Treasury and State James A. Baker, III, Honorary Chairman of the Baker Institute, and former Congressman Lee H. Hamilton, Director of the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars. The balance of the bipartisan group will be comprised of Americans who have distinguished themselves in service to their nation: Robert M. Gates, Rudolph W. Giuliani, Vernon E. Jordan, Jr., Leon E. Panetta, William J. Perry, Charles S. Robb, and Alan K. Simpson.

The deliberations of the group will be supported by experts from the private sector, to include: military experts, leading public policy and academic institutions, and humanitarian assistance organizations. The group will consult, among others, with members of Congress and the Administration, as well as individuals and officials in Iraq and the region.

More information on the Iraq Study Group is available on the Iraq Study Group Web Site. A transcript of the public announcement of the study group will be available online on March 16.

About the Iraq Study Group

The bipartisan Iraq Study Group, led by co-chairs James A. Baker, III, former Secretary of State and Honorary Chairman of the James A. Baker III Institute for Public Policy at Rice University, and Lee H. Hamilton, former Congressman and Director of the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, will conduct a forward-looking, independent assessment of the current and prospective situation on the ground in Iraq, its impact on the surrounding region, and consequences for U.S. interests. The United States Institute of Peace is organizing the group with the support of the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), the Center for the Study of the Presidency (CSP), and the Baker Institute.