General Clark: "It's time to withdraw, we need politics and diplomacy."
Corriere della Sera | 9/11/2007
Washington—For the last few weeks General Clark, ex-commander of NATO, winner of the Balkan War, has led a campaign against the war in Iraq. Clark, who is not running for president as he did in 2004, but who might be part of a Democrat government should the Republicans lose the elections in 2008, accuses Bush of "hiding behind the generals" and exhorts congress to confront him. In his speeches he warns that the war in Iraq is a failure, that it has exacerbated the problems in the Middle East and damaged America's image in the world.
What do you think of Petraeus' report?
I know Petraeus, he is a good general and some military progress may have occurred in Iraq. But it is tactical progress, and I don't think it's enough because you can't win just by fighting and silencing the opposition. We need to stop discussing tactics and soldiers and shift the debate on to President Bush's strategies and policies, not just in Iraq but in the whole region.
Whose job is that?
Congress. They need to tell President Bush clearly that it's not Petraeus who is under scrutiny, but him. They have to ask him to forge a strategic regional plan and warn him that if he doesn't they will cut funding for the war in Iraq and will adopt other measures. The administration doesn't want to hear it but even moderate Republicans are beginning to protest.
But the president can block congress with a veto. He's also preparing an appeal to the nation.
I assume that he will continue talking about troops, because when we criticize the conflict in Iraq he responds by saying we are abandoning the soldiers. There's a coalition called "Americans against the escalation," that urges citizens to pressure congress. The time has come for withdrawal.
Do you think the latest offensive worked?
I don't think so and now the administration wants it to continue another six to nine months. My sense is that this is not the real issue. You cannot achieve difficult objectives like Iraqi national reconciliation with troop increase. You need politics and diplomacy, the involvement of other countries.
Bush admonishes that if the United States withdraws from Iraq it would become another Vietnam.
The comparison doesn't hold. If we leave Iraq, or rather, when we leave Iraq, we'll still have important interests in the region. Just think of Iran's nuclear ambitions, of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, of the need to guarantee the security of oil routes. Withdrawal from Baghdad doesn't imply withdrawing from our responsibilities.
Why did this war damage the image of the United States?
Because we made too many mistakes and there have been too many scandals. And because of the war we neglected other problems. We didn't exercise the leadership that is required of us. We need to go back to being the country people look to for leadership.
