Europe and Iraq: Remember Serbia?
Sun January 26th, 2003 14:09 MSTThe “Old Europe” countries of Germany, France, Luxembourg and Belgium insist that the United States deal with the Iraq problem only through the United Nations. The credulous US press takes them at their word and duly reports how our “unilateralism” is upsetting our “allies.”
Rarely mentioned is the role of the UN in the recent Serbian war. Europe asked the United States to intervene militarily to save them from a troubling problem. While it has slipped the memory of many, the United States’ war against Serbia was was not a United Nations action. Nevertheless, the Europeans approved of our use of violence… in fact, they practically begged us to intervene. They couldn’t do it themselves - even against the rump state of Serbia!
Also contrary to popular memory, this was hardly a simple humanitarian act. After all, Europe had simply watched as thousands were butchered in Bosnia and Croatia (not to mention Rwanda). Only when the problem threatened a refugee exodus and instability near Europe did they act. Then they were quite happy to use military violence, not diplomacy to solve their problem. Today, with the United States already the victim of a mass casualty attack, and Iraq the proven posessor and user of weapons of mass destruction, Europe insists on “more time” for diplomacy to work - as if 12 years isn’t enough!
So what do the Europeans really mean by their attitude toward the Iraq situation? Their words mean only one thing: “We don’t want you to go to war, and you should obey us.” They are frustrated that this time they can’t tame the tiger they so happily unleashed only a few years ago!
Taken in this light, it is clear that their pious rumblings are nothing more than the whines of a geriatric who can no longer take part in the action. They care nothing about multilateralism when *their* interests are at stake, but when *our* country has been viciously attacked, they obstruct. They cower. They bluster. They beg. But they add nothing.
The European elite has lost its ability to command world events, which is appropriate given their fecklessness in the face of clear danger. Shame is all they deserve for their attempt to stop the one country with both the moral clarity and the military power to respond to 21st century terrorism and WMD blackmail!
I have been serving in Iraq for over five months now as a soldier in the 2nd Battalion of the 503rd Airborne Infantry Regiment, otherwise known as the “ROCK.”
We entered the country at midnight on the 26th of March; one thousand of my fellow soldiers and I parachuted from 10 jumbo jets (known as C-17s) onto a cold, muddy field in Bashur, Northern Iraq. This parachute operation was the U.S. Army’s only combat jump of the war and opened up the northern front.
Things have changed tremendously for our battalion since those first cold, wet weeks spent in the mountain city of Bashur. On April 10 our battalion conducted an attack south into the oil-rich town of Kirkuk, the city that has since become our home away from home and the focus of our security and development efforts.
Kirkuk is a hot and dusty city of just over a million people. The majority of the city has welcomed our presence with open arms. After nearly five months here, the people still come running from their homes, in the 110-degree heat, waving to us as our troops drive by on daily patrols of the city. Children smile and run up to shake hands, in their broken English shouting “Thank you, mister.”
The people of Kirkuk are all trying to find their way in this new democratic environment. Some major steps have been made in these last three months. A big reason for our steady progress is that our soldiers are living among the people of the city and getting to know their neighbors and the needs of their neighborhoods.
We also have been instrumental in building a new police force. Kirkuk now has 1,700 police officers. The police are now, ethnically, a fair representation of the community as a whole. So far, we have spent more than $500,000 from the former Iraqi regime to repair each of the stations’ electricity and plumbing, to paint each station and make it a functional place for the police to work.
The battalion also has assisted in re-establishing Kirkuk’s fire department, which is now even more effective than before the war. New water treatment and sewage plants are being constructed and the distribution of oil and gas are steadily improving.
All of these functions were started by our soldiers here in this northern city and are now slowly being turned over to the newly elected city government. Laws are being rewritten to reflect democratic principles and a functioning judicial system was recently established to bridge the gap between law enforcement and the rule of law.
The quality of life and security for the citizens has been largely restored and we are a large part of why that has happened.
The fruits of all our soldiers’ efforts are clearly visible in the streets of Kirkuk today. There is very little trash in the streets, there are many more people in the markets and shops and children have returned to school.
This is all evidence that the work we are doing as a battalion and as American soldiers is bettering the lives of Kirkuk’s citizens. I am proud of the work we are doing here in Iraq and I hope all of your readers are as well.
Lt. Col. Dominic Caraccilo
“Die dulci fruimini!”