Team Infidel
Forum Spin Doctor
By Mark John
BRUSSELS, Nov 4 (Reuters) - The United States should consult
internationally on its plans for Iraq given the potentially devastating
consequences of a failure in its policies there, former U.S. Secretary of
State Henry Kissinger said on Friday.
Speaking at a NATO event in Brussels, Kissinger warned against the
emergence of "a Jihadist government" in Baghdad, saying it would threaten
security far beyond Iraq and the Middle East.
"A catastrophic outcome in Iraq would affect directly or indirectly
all members of the (NATO) alliance as well as countries from South East Asia
to the northern hemisphere," Kissinger told an audience of NATO officials
and soldiers.
"That is why the next phase of Iraq policy in my view requires some
degree of intensive consultation about its direction," he said.
"Whether to do this in the NATO council or via some more restricted
contact group goes beyond the scope of this speech."
Kissinger said Washington should be ready after Iraqi polls due on
Dec. 15 to cooperate more in the "political reconstruction" of the country.
NATO last year launched a training mission for top Iraqi officers,
but opponents of the war, notably France and Germany, have resisted any
wider role.
NATO members such as Britain and Italy have individually contributed
to the U.S.-led coalition in Iraq and the European Union is involved in
training Iraqi judges and police.
Kissinger, who signed the 1973 peace deal that led to the final
pull-out of U.S. troops from Vietnam, did not offer any timeframe for a U.S.
military exit from Iraq and was scathing about former U.S. officials
critical of the running of the war.
The question of whether the war is undermining the fight against
terrorism, as some argue, is irrelevant, he said.
"I believe the people who are now managing this should be given the
opportunities and assistance in dealing with it," he said.
Suzanne Patrick, who resigned as U.S. defence undersecretary for
industrial policy in July, said recently a "single-minded focus" on wars in
Iraq and Afghanistan was causing Washington to lose sight of key issues such
as China and the wider Muslim world.
BRUSSELS, Nov 4 (Reuters) - The United States should consult
internationally on its plans for Iraq given the potentially devastating
consequences of a failure in its policies there, former U.S. Secretary of
State Henry Kissinger said on Friday.
Speaking at a NATO event in Brussels, Kissinger warned against the
emergence of "a Jihadist government" in Baghdad, saying it would threaten
security far beyond Iraq and the Middle East.
"A catastrophic outcome in Iraq would affect directly or indirectly
all members of the (NATO) alliance as well as countries from South East Asia
to the northern hemisphere," Kissinger told an audience of NATO officials
and soldiers.
"That is why the next phase of Iraq policy in my view requires some
degree of intensive consultation about its direction," he said.
"Whether to do this in the NATO council or via some more restricted
contact group goes beyond the scope of this speech."
Kissinger said Washington should be ready after Iraqi polls due on
Dec. 15 to cooperate more in the "political reconstruction" of the country.
NATO last year launched a training mission for top Iraqi officers,
but opponents of the war, notably France and Germany, have resisted any
wider role.
NATO members such as Britain and Italy have individually contributed
to the U.S.-led coalition in Iraq and the European Union is involved in
training Iraqi judges and police.
Kissinger, who signed the 1973 peace deal that led to the final
pull-out of U.S. troops from Vietnam, did not offer any timeframe for a U.S.
military exit from Iraq and was scathing about former U.S. officials
critical of the running of the war.
The question of whether the war is undermining the fight against
terrorism, as some argue, is irrelevant, he said.
"I believe the people who are now managing this should be given the
opportunities and assistance in dealing with it," he said.
Suzanne Patrick, who resigned as U.S. defence undersecretary for
industrial policy in July, said recently a "single-minded focus" on wars in
Iraq and Afghanistan was causing Washington to lose sight of key issues such
as China and the wider Muslim world.