Washington Post: Petraeus: The Islamic State isn’t our biggest problem in Iraq
Gen. David H. Petraeus, who commanded U.S. troops in Iraq during the 2007-2008 surge, was back in that country last week for the first time in more than three years. He was attending the annual Sulaimani Forum, a get-together of Iraqi leaders, thinkers and academics, at the American University of Iraq - Sulaimani in northern Iraq’s Kurdistan region.
In his most expansive comments yet on the latest crisis in Iraq and Syria, he answered written questions from The Post’s Liz Sly, offering insights into the mistakes, the prosecution and the prospects of the war against the Islamic State, also known as ISIS, which he refers to by its Arabic acronym, Daesh.
WNU Editor: A rather obvious observation .... Animosity between David Petraeus and Iranian commander, Qassem Soleimani, still on display (Dan Lamothe, Washington Post).
More News On Former CIA Director General Petraeus Claims That Iran-Backed Militias And Not The Islamic State Are The Biggest Threats In Iraq
David Petraeus: Iran more of a threat than ISIL -- Politico
Gen. Petraeus: Biggest threat to Iraq's stability is Iran-backed militias, not ISIS -- FOX News
David Petraeus: Biggest threat to Iraq's future is Iran, not ISIS -- CBS News
Gen. David Petraeus: ISIS isn't the biggest threat to Iraq -- Business Insider
David Petraeus: Iran more of a threat than the Islamic State -- Ya Liban
Petraeus: Iran-Backed Militias Bigger Threat than ISIS to American Interests in Iraq -- The Tower
ISIS Actually Not the Biggest Threat to Iraq, Former CIA Head Says -- Epoch Times
Petraeus: Iran, not ISIS, is main threat to Iraq -- Al Arabiya
Iran is a bigger threat than Islamic State. So what? -- Daniel W. Drezner, Washington Post
9 comments:
Well, he said it with a straight face
http://www.moonofalabama.org/2015/03/created-a-mess-in-the-middle-east-just-blame-iran.html
It's easy to speak with a straight face when one is telling the complete truth. Even the Israeli leadership or at least the Prime Minister recognizes the threat posed by Iran is greater than the threat posed by ISIS.
I'm pleased to see there are at least some people in American leadership who understand this even if they are former leaders. This may at least partially explain why General Petraeus had to be destroyed. After all the Administration, Iran's media allies, and other members of the P5+1 couldn't have a respected US General undermining a nuclear deal with Iran or so it might seem.
B. Poster,
Helps if you read the links.
General Betrayus is the one who brought in the Salvador Option, which legitimised the Iranian backed Shiite Militias and Death Squads as a legitimate anti- terrorist arm of Iraqi Security Forces.
If they are a "problem" , maybe he should not have created and legitimized them in the first place.
Jay,
With all due respect I do not need to "read the links" as you suggest. EVERYONE in America is familiar with your analysis about "general Betrayus" and most are appreciative of it. Perhaps as a Canadian you simply do not get it. No disrespect is intended here but you and your country are not being targeted. My country is being targeted.
When General Petraeus was brought in all he could do was achieve a face saving exit from Iraq for America. He did this. Unfortunately some folks in the current leadership have been foolish enough to go back in with America's current limited capabilities this is very, very foolish.
Nevertheless as I pointed out the Shite death squads could not have been created by America or General Petraeus as their abilities were WAY beyond America's long before General Petraeus arrived.
Now he might alter his public speeches based upon the actions of current US government policies. Again, as I've stated elsewhere, redeploy to positions that give us a fighting chance to defend our nation.
Yup, no,
The Empire needs war,
F-35's are 67% more expensive per copy than Super Hornets,
The War Machine nneds to be fed.
The US has only three quivers left,
- printing dollars,
- financiaization of debt,
- the MIC.
- the US is not under "attack", the NeoCon's Unipolar World, has turned out to be multipolar.
Come on peopl! Doesn't anyone know how this works?
These people HAVE to keep a straight face, it's all part of the act . I refuse to believe that people dont know that, u must be a kid or something.
and "even Israel rrecognises threat"
Are u being serious? Israel doesn't even recognise that they themselves are a threat to humanity, never mind to just Palestine.
Couldn't have said it better
You can keep industries running just fine without war.
You have planned obsolescence just as you would with a corporate car fleet truck fleet or air fleet. Parts wear out. New technologies are invented and you need upgrades.
Going bleeding edge each and every time may not be the way to go.
As the USD plunges, we won't have to worry about people ignoring on purpose the concept of purchasing power parity. It will make comparisons easier. People won't be able to squirm their way out of arguments.
Pinochet had to go they said, but not one rat bastard had a harsh word for the the USSR supporting Mengistu. Of course thsoe rat bastards would have to keep up.
Israel does not pose a threat to "Palestine." They've bent over backwards taking huge risks and suffering huge losses in trying to appease these people. Furthermore there's no way for Israel to threaten humanity. they are simply not big enough or powerful enough. They have no ability to project power or influence anywhere outside of the Middle East. In contrast, ISIS, Iran, and the Sunni Arab states can launch Islamic terrorist attacks anywhere in the world on short notice.
I agree that F-35s are to expensive. The problem is the aircraft was designed to do to many things in order to save money. It would have been far better to have multiple aircraft for various purposes. Anytime one sets out with the primary goals being to "save money" or to be "jack of all trades" they end up being a master of none and end up spending more money to correct shortcomings!! Furthermore like a gambler who thinks if he/she just stays in they are finally going to get a return on the investment they are unable to admit at this time that they've made a mistake. This has nothing to do with an empire needing war even if the US had an empire which it does not.
As for needing war, Iran, Russia, and China need war to keep their populations in line. They need a "foreign devil." Unfortunately the US fits that quite well do in large part to the stupidity on the part of the American government. There's ways we could lessen the hatred by a redeployment of forces but we will still need to maintain a vigorous defense.
When the USD loses its role as world reserve currency very soon, the US will no longer have this "quiver." With that said given the existential threats the US faces on multiple fronts it is entitled to and should be expected to use whatever "quiver" it has available to it. To do less would be a disservice to the American people. With that said with regards to Russia and China a better approach is probably to try and find someway to add value to the leadership of those countries.
For what its worth, I've long admired Canada's foreign policy. Furthermore Canadians have a higher quality of life, more opportunities are available to them for advancement, they are healthier, and wealthier than most Americans. America could learn much from them.
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