When President Bush declared war on Iraq in 2003 few people would have predicted the mess that this action would cause in the future. Today, seven years later, we have begun to see the consequences of his actions. Because of Bush’s decision in 2003 President Obama is facing one of the most crucial decisions of his presidency. On becoming president Obama vowed to have American troops out of Iraq by August of this year. However things have changed since that promise was made and this action is no longer in the best interest of the Iraqi people. When the promise was originally made it was assumed that Iraq would have a stable democratically elected government by now and, as has been shown by other articles in the New York Times, stability is not going to happen any time soon. Yet, the President is planning to stick to his original deadline of August. However, without the American forces there to support the fledgling government in Iraq that the U.S. has tried so hard to create, this government will most likely collapse.
The only government that works is one that has been given legitimacy by the people. Iraq’s government is not recognized by a majority of its people and it continues to lose respect with its many recounts and talks of tampering. During the first election in 2005 only a small amount of Iraqis even voted, how can a government be expected to survive without the support of the people that it is governing? Also, as shown in another New York Times article, violence is still common all around Iraq. The article, published a week ago, spoke specifically about bombings in Iraq that only generated more distrust in the government and showcased the continued actions of Al Qaeda. All of these facts point to an unstable government that has only survived because of American presence. If America was to pull out right now the government would most likely fall, especially because Al Qaeda is always lurking on the fringes, waiting for any opportunity to regain power in Iraq.
However, although the government continues to be unstable, the Iraqi forces have continued to progress and grow into a formidable force. A statement given by a deputy national security advisor stated that recent Iraqi-lead missions show that the Iraqi troops are showing progress and the ability to provide their own security. However, no army, no matter how well trained, is effective without strong leadership. The government that is currently in place right now is nowhere near stable enough to provide the type of leadership needed to effectively use this strong new army. For a long time American forces have been the support for the Iraqi government and the leadership for the Iraqi army, if they were to pull out now the results could be disastrous.
However, while staying in Iraq forever is not the solution to this problem, neither is pulling troops out right now. If the president was willing to enact a more gradual pull out rather than the immediate pull out that he is planning now that would allow more time for the government to gain stability and legitimacy from the people and also the skills to use their army effectively to keep Al Qaeda at bay. The Iraqi people want peace and stability, however they do not feel that the government is providing them the security that they need amidst all of the violence still going on in Iraq. If a gradual pull out were to take place the Iraqi politicians could use the holes left by the American troops to prove to the people that they would do whatever it takes to keep them safe. Also this would give the Iraqi leaders more experience with the troops and they would learn how to utilize them to the Iraqis advantage. Yet, while the Iraqi government would be given these opportunities to prove itself, American troops would be standing by in case of more violence, to continue training the army and to help the Iraqi government become the strong force that it needs to become.
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