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March 21, 2003/Adar2 17 5763, Vol. 55, No. 30
Who's to blame?EditorialAs this issue goes to press, a handful of hours remain before the deadline President George W. Bush imposed upon Saddam Hussein and his sons to leave Iraq - or else.As you read this, the "or else" will have become clear. But who exactly is to blame? Blame Saddam Hussein the most: He has rejected almost every U.N. resolution to disarm and has blocked weapons inspectors repeatedly. He has adamantly refused to comply, even when aware of the buildup of infantry, carrier groups, tanks, artillery and Air Force squadrons near his borders. Hussein has no care for the Iraqi people; he only cares about his own power. Blame George W. Bush in part, for sloppy diplomacy: He has repeatedly rejected relying on NATO and the United Nations to rein in Hussein. Consider Bush's dealings with Turkey. Rather than working through NATO to convince Turkey to allow the United States to use its border with Iraq as a beachhead, Bush unilaterally urged Turkish leaders to go along with U.S. intentions in exchange for money, overlooking the fact that the Turkish people adamantly oppose the war. Bush erred by asking Turkish leaders to oppose the people's will, when he could have strengthened his request by employing NATO, where Turkey has a vote and hence power and influence on the world stage. Bush also erred in dealing with the United Nations. Months ago, when he announced that the United States would do what it deemed necessary, notwithstanding the decisions of the U.N., many other nations saw him as a swaggering bully. Cutting strings to international organizations undercuts the diplomatic channels so much needed on the world stage. Blame Germany and Russia, but blame France more: France has been flexing its rhetorical muscles to compensate for its waning influence internationally and in its European backyard. At the United Nations, France has attempted to block nearly every U.S.-backed resolution for Iraq to disarm. Why do this, when surely they knew that if the United Nations failed to enforce change in Iraq, the United States would try to force it anyway? It seems apparent that France opposed the world's only superpower to demonstrate that the real threat is not Iraq but rather unchecked U.S. hegemony. France may have won the latest battle at the United Nations against the United States, but it lost the war by helping gut the United Nations of what little respect and efficacy it has left. So who's to blame? Spread it around. The coming days will be tragic. It didn't have to be that way. |
