Senator Biden Signs On! - Read Our Plan for an Iraqi Union
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In my April 17 Plain Talk editorial, “The Best Solution,” I explained my plan to end the current violent stalemate in Iraq. I put forth a bold new idea that would reverse the course that we now find ourselves in — a course that a solid majority of my fellow citizens now feel is a disastrous one with no end in sight. I presented this idea because the Bush administration seems bankrupt of fresh ideas and original thinkers. And because it seems incapable of seeing or acknowledging the errors of its Iraq policy.
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In my editorial I presented the idea for an Iraqi Union comprised of three independent Republics established along the three main ethno-religious fault lines: Shiite, Sunni, and Kurd. In the past, Goals for Americans has advocated other variations on this same theme because we believe Iraq is fundamentally an artificial state and that it will never be a successful and functioning democracy until these three groups are given the autonomy they inherently crave. We believe that because foreign governments pieced the country together at the conclusion of World War I of Iraq that Iraq has no real legitimacy.
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The history of Iraq is a textbook case of imperialism. Present-day Iraq was part of the vast Ottoman Empire, which made the fatal mistake of siding with Germany in World War I. The Sykes-Picot Agreement, concluded in secret in May 1916, divided up the area into spheres of influence and direct control, with the British getting Iraq and Jordan and the French getting Syria and Lebanon.
The British originated the false country of Iraq at the conclusion of the war by combining THREE DISTINCT PROVINCES INTO ONE — MOSUL, BASRA, and BAGHDAD. Even with a sizeable and experienced military presence on the ground, the British soon found themselves in over their heads.
Their vision was to nullify Islamic influence by supporting Arab sectarian nationalism. (Sound familiar?)
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They installed the first King Faisal, son of Sharif Hussein, who wrote these prophetic words: “I see different ethnic groups, and each one of them wants to rise to the top and control the government … or they are not willing to see themselves as part of a larger whole. Unfortunately, I do not yet see in Iraq an Iraqi people.”
Iraq was, at its conception, a false country. The bewildering complexity of the ethnic mix and tribal difference of the region is the one true constant.
So why, we ask, should the outside world continue to insist that the artificial country of Iraq be maintained, legitimized, and force-fed, no matter what the cost in blood and treasure? And why should American prestige be crippled and denigrated in the process?
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The short answer is this: The civilian leadership in the Pentagon, the neoconservative cabal that furiously promoted the war, with Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and Vice President Dick Cheney as their spearheads, cannot see the folly of their ways. Along with President Bush, they pushed this war on the American public with a campaign of fear. This group includes former Deputy Secretary of Defense Paul Wolfowitz, now head of the World Bank, Richard Perle, Douglas Feith, Scooter Libby, now under indictment, David Wurmser, Elliot Abrams, Harold Rhodes, and others.
To admit their mistakes now would be to dilute their chances to continue their cause, by war if necessary, to the benefit of Israel.
My plan recognizes the most basic reality of the region. My plan recognizes that these three ethno-religious groups could get along much better if they first had their independence, and if they shared the vast oil wealth beneath their sand in a fair and equitable manner. My plan represents a giant step — a step away from wishful and stubborn thinking into the light of reality and common sense.
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Earlier this month, Senator Joseph Biden, the ranking Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and Leslie Gelb, president emeritus of the Council on Foreign Affairs, came forward with a plan very similar to mine, and we applaud them for it. But first, some sobering current history to give context to the sense of urgency I share with these two men.
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Many of the original architects of the Iraq war and current occupation — Rumsfeld’s neoconservative advisors — still cling to the same discredited ideas and rosy optimisms they did three years ago, when they promoted the war. They share this dangerous habit with our President. Recently Secretary of State Rice, in a rare moment of candor, said that she believed that thousands of tactical errors had occurred during the war. Ranking members of the military grumbled privately that tactically they were performing wonderfully — that it was the political and strategic thinking from the civilian Pentagon leaders — the neoconservative war hawks of Rumsfeld’s inner circle that had made thousands of errors. Just the other day, while standing right beside Secretary Rice, Secretary Rumsfeld said that he had no idea what she was talking about.
And we’re supposed to have confidence in these leaders?
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With every passing month, one year into the next, these same people keep promising us that the light at the end of the tunnel is just around the corner. This week marks the third year anniversary of President Bush’s “Mission Accomplished” event — a public-relations blunder that has haunted him ever since — and Bush once again said that we’re at a turning point, and that things are looking up. At same time, Lt. General Peter Chiarelli, in Iraq said, “There’s nothing about this that I would call peacekeeping! We’re in a fight!”
Bush also warned of “more days of sacrifice and struggle.”
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April was one of the bloodiest months of the war for American soldiers, with 70 killed and scores more seriously wounded. Daily sectarian violence roils the country as lawless militias and death squads rule the streets. It is estimated that over 100,000 families have been driven from their homes to escape the carnage.
The Bush administration is hanging their desperation hat on this latest “turning point,” the selection of Jawad Nouri al-Maliki as the new Prime Minister. By some miracle they hope — pray — that his appointment will quell the insurgency, convince the various militias to turn in their weapons and renounce tribal and ethnic loyalties that go back generations, make the sectarian hatred evaporate overnight, and turn 26 million Iraqis into democracy-loving citizens of a central government that hasn’t even been formed yet, much less tested.
Three years of occupation do not justify this dangerous fantasy. But it’s a fantasy the neoconservatives that control Bush still cling to. It is time for the powerful voices of moderation within the Bush administration to break the back of the neoconservative stranglehold on our foreign policy agenda.
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The vision we share with Senator Biden and Leslie Gelb is a realistic way out of this mess. Our plans recognize the historical forces that have been pulling Iraq apart in three directions ever since European diplomats forced its artificial character on the region a century ago. We believe the insurgency can be defeated and sectarian warfare reduced and then terminated if the Bush administration gets behind a THREE-REPUBLIC SOLUTION.
We welcome the addition of Senator Biden’s voice in the promotion of this bold new vision, and we hope it encourages others in the government to step forward and join us.
An institutional inertia has settled over the White House while Iraq implodes. We need for this New Vision to take root and grow. An idea is only as good as the citizens and public officials who get behind it — who are willing to put their careers on the line. An idea such as this, which originated beyond the corridors of power, needs momentum and passion behind it to keep it alive if it’s ever to take flight.
Now is the time for policymakers in the White House, the State Department, the Pentagon, and the Congress (which has been far too weak) to come together and formulate a blueprint to put this vision into action. This blueprint must then be presented to the people of Iraq and the citizens of America, who have all sacrificed so much.
The Citizens of America demand better, wiser leadership from our elected officials.
We urge you to forget “Power Politics” and give us “Power Leadership”!