Stephen Zunes on Respsonsible Withdrawal
November 22, 2005
Stephen Zunes is a professor of politics at the University of San Francisco and Middle East editor for the Foreign Policy in Focus Project
There are a number of scary scenarios that could result from the withdrawal of U.S. forces from Iraq. These include that country plunging into full-scale civil war, splitting into three (accompanied by ethnic cleansing), succumbing to fundamentalist Islamic rule, falling under increased influence by Iran and becoming a training and logistical base for international terrorism. All of these should be taken seriously.
The reality, however, is that each of these is at least as likely if U.S. forces remain than if U.S. forces withdraw. The U.S.-led war in Iraq is creating insurgents, including terrorists, faster than we can kill them. The U.S. and British military presence is exacerbating ethnic and sectarian divisions, not lessening them. The overwhelming U.S. presence throughout the government is weakening its standing with the Iraqi people and its ability to govern, rather than strengthening it.
While the principle of self-determination must be respected and while Iraqis are more than capable of governing themselves once stability and basic services are restored, the current circumstances may require active leadership from the outside. The United States, however, simply does not have the credibility to take that on.
Despite this, the vast majority of both parties in Congress, in continuing to fund the war, are putting their trust in the very same people who have proven to be profoundly ignorant about Iraq and totally inept in managing the post-war situation.
As a result, given the choice between “staying the course” and an immediate U.S. withdrawal, the latter is clearly the least bad option.
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