thedrifter
02-24-07, 07:47 AM
U.S. can't leave Iraq, Haig says
Nixon adviser says mistakes were made
By Brightman Brock
The Jupiter Courier
Posted February 24 2007
Jupiter · Tossing barbs at 30 years of U.S. presidents and the media, former Gen. Alexander Haig told retirees gathered at Florida Atlantic University on Friday that a quick departure by the United States from Iraq would force political dominoes to fall in the Middle East.
And none in America's favor.
If the United States follows a recent British-announced troop withdrawal, Iran would take over Iraq and Turkey would annex Kurdistan, he said.
Saudi Arabia, while slowly catching on to Iran's menacing intentions, would be over-run. Contrary to reports, Iran and Syria won't seek a stable Iraq, according to Haig.
"They'll be rolling up the Gulf states like it was an ice cream pie," said Haig, owner of Worldwide Associates Inc. in Washington, an advisory firm for global security.
He wished Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice "all the luck in the world" as she negotiates with Arab leaders across the region.
Best known for his role in the early 1970s as an adviser to former President Richard Nixon, Haig was a four-star general and commander of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and secretary of state for former President Ronald Reagan.
"These are the most dangerous times we have faced as a nation," Haig told a crowded auditorium at the Lifelong Learning Complex, at the John D. MacArthur campus in Abacoa, shortly before noon.
"All [world leaders] are waiting to see what we do," Haig said. "Will we cut and run like we did when 264 Marines were killed in Beirut?"
The future of American troops in Iraq and Afghanistan must be handled with diplomacy by those who have a firm knowledge of history, he said. America's Middle East problems "evolved over the generations."
"Too many American presidents have forgotten where we are going," Haig said.
Middle East policy by President Bush has been built on the belief that the Muslim world would easily support democracy, Haig said.
America's foreign policy problems could have been averted years ago if the United States had helped Great Britain retain its interest east of the Suez Canal, from Bahrain to Iran, Haig said, also blasting former President Jimmy Carter for undercutting the shah of Iran, who had been saddled with the region's stabilization responsibility.
The current administration has made mistakes, Haig added, "and it's nothing short of a disaster."
Brightman Brock can be reached at brightman.brock@scripps.com.
Ellie
Nixon adviser says mistakes were made
By Brightman Brock
The Jupiter Courier
Posted February 24 2007
Jupiter · Tossing barbs at 30 years of U.S. presidents and the media, former Gen. Alexander Haig told retirees gathered at Florida Atlantic University on Friday that a quick departure by the United States from Iraq would force political dominoes to fall in the Middle East.
And none in America's favor.
If the United States follows a recent British-announced troop withdrawal, Iran would take over Iraq and Turkey would annex Kurdistan, he said.
Saudi Arabia, while slowly catching on to Iran's menacing intentions, would be over-run. Contrary to reports, Iran and Syria won't seek a stable Iraq, according to Haig.
"They'll be rolling up the Gulf states like it was an ice cream pie," said Haig, owner of Worldwide Associates Inc. in Washington, an advisory firm for global security.
He wished Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice "all the luck in the world" as she negotiates with Arab leaders across the region.
Best known for his role in the early 1970s as an adviser to former President Richard Nixon, Haig was a four-star general and commander of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and secretary of state for former President Ronald Reagan.
"These are the most dangerous times we have faced as a nation," Haig told a crowded auditorium at the Lifelong Learning Complex, at the John D. MacArthur campus in Abacoa, shortly before noon.
"All [world leaders] are waiting to see what we do," Haig said. "Will we cut and run like we did when 264 Marines were killed in Beirut?"
The future of American troops in Iraq and Afghanistan must be handled with diplomacy by those who have a firm knowledge of history, he said. America's Middle East problems "evolved over the generations."
"Too many American presidents have forgotten where we are going," Haig said.
Middle East policy by President Bush has been built on the belief that the Muslim world would easily support democracy, Haig said.
America's foreign policy problems could have been averted years ago if the United States had helped Great Britain retain its interest east of the Suez Canal, from Bahrain to Iran, Haig said, also blasting former President Jimmy Carter for undercutting the shah of Iran, who had been saddled with the region's stabilization responsibility.
The current administration has made mistakes, Haig added, "and it's nothing short of a disaster."
Brightman Brock can be reached at brightman.brock@scripps.com.
Ellie