Thursday, October 12, 2006

New British army chief calls for troops to "cut-and-run"


I wonder if the Dick and the Bush can hear anything. I doubt it. But here's the latest professional advice for them to reject.
(From SignonSanDiego)

"Britain's new army chief called for a withdrawal of British troops from Iraq, warning that the military's presence there only exacerbates security problems, according to an interview published Thursday.
Gen. Richard Dannatt described British Prime Minister Tony Blair's Iraq policies as 'naive,' declaring that while Iraqis might have welcomed coalition forces following the ouster of Saddam Hussein, the good will has since evaporated after years of violence.

"The British military should 'get ourselves out sometime soon because our presence exacerbates the security problems,' said in an interview with the Daily Mail released on the tabloid's Web site. 'Whatever consent we may have had in the first place' from the Iraqi people 'has largely turned to intolerance,' he was quoted as saying.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

While I believe this man is correct, I also believe that he is responding the the direct terrorism that has taken place in the UK. It seems that violence, perhaps, does work.

Contested Terrain said...

Thanks for your thoughtful comment.
Certainly attacks within the U.S. or the UK are part of the equation. But actually I don't think that's what the British army chief was relating to. I think that the unlikely chance of solving the violence problem in Iraq is the key to his and a growing number of similar comments. Few outside the West Wing and the columns of the N.Y. Post still think in terms of "victory" in Iraq.
Thanks again for your comment.