New Hampshire Sens. Judd Gregg and John Sununu, both Republicans, offered grave assessments of America's mission in Iraq yesterday. They were reacting to the recommendations of the high-level committee that called for an overhaul in U.S. military and diplomatic strategy in that country.

Sununu said, "We are not winning the struggle in Iraq," while Gregg described the country as "a morass."

"There is no question but that we need to figure out a way to extricate ourselves from Iraq in a reasonable way that doesn't undermine our commitment to trying to make that country independent, free and oriented toward the market economy," Gregg said in a written statement.

For both senators, it was their bleakest public assessment of the U.S. campaign in Iraq. For Gregg, it seemed a significant shift from just three months ago, when he dismissed calls for beginning a "phased redeployment" of U.S. troops by the end of this year as a political stunt.

Both Gregg and Sununu offered strong support for a new report, the product of a study group led by former secretary of state James Baker and former representative Lee Hamilton. In blunt language, the report describes the situation in Iraq as "grave and deteriorating" and calls for a thorough overhaul of U.S. policy in the region. Among other recommendations, it suggests the United States engage Iraq's neighbors - Syria and Iran in particular - in stabilizing that country. The report also suggests that U.S. forces yield combat duties to Iraqi troops and redeploy into "special operations teams" that would help train and advise Iraqi forces and undertake "special operations" strikes.

"The primary mission of U.S. forces in Iraq should evolve to one of supporting the Iraqi army, which would take over primary responsibility for combat operations," the report reads.

In his statement yesterday, Gregg agreed with that recommendation and said Iraqis must assume more responsibility for securing their country so America can "extricate" itself. "This should be done sooner rather than later, and certainly with the Baker Commission as a blueprint for how we can proceed," he said.

Sununu said he agreed with "the vast majority" of the report's recommendations. It "provides a clear opportunity to re-evaluate the tactics employed in this fight," he said.

Sununu called for "prompt action" to reach out to neighboring countries, crack down on independent militias and encourage reconciliation talks between Iraq's factions.

Gregg and Sununu have generally supported the Bush administration's handling of the Iraq war, though both have cited instances of mistakes or poor planning. Over the past year, both have expressed hope that the violence in Iraq would recede as the country's government matured and its military grew. But that optimism was muted in statements the senators issued yesterday.

In February, Sununu predicted a reduction in the number of U.S. troops in Iraq by the end of this year, and he said he thought the Iraqi military was close to having a enough trained soldiers to allow Americans to leave.

Yesterday, he supported the Baker commission's recommendation that U.S. military facilities in Iraq be reduced and more responsibility be handed over to Iraqi brigades.

Gregg has been a more vocal supporter of the Bush policy. In September, in a speech on the Senate floor, Gregg acknowledged that America has committed "errors" in Iraq, but he defended Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and dismissed Democratic calls for a "phased withdrawal" of U.S. troops from Iraq.

"It is a policy that is firmly grounded in Birkenstocks and clearly not grounded in the reality of the world as it is," Gregg said.

In that same speech, Gregg also defended the Bush administration's decision to invade Iraq, "to take the fight to (terrorists') soil and meet them where they are.

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