(This is in continuation of my earlier post…click here to read).


In spite of all the mixed reports coming in, General David Petraeus appears to be a thorough professional. Well, you may ask how I have arrived at this conclusion without meeting the chief of US troops in Iraq.

Also, isn’t this a contradiction - on the one hand I oppose the continued occupation of Iraq by US forces, while on the other I praise this General? There are many reasons. Also, his recent interview with PBS News Hour has cleared any doubts about his professional standing.

Let me explain further. I am an amateur student of military strategy and traditions, and the history of the military campaigns during the first and second world wars interest me.

The Generals who fought under the most trying conditions fascinate me because they were doing a professional job. The names that come to my mind are Eisenhower, Montgomery ‘Monty’, Rommel and Patton.

Howsoever tough there task was, it cannot be compared with that of General Petraeus. He took over the command of an occupying force and the total mess (despite four years of occupation by the US and British troops). Plus the nature of this ‘war’ is totally different.

And to top it all, the most confusing/worrisome aspect for this army commander is that his country is divided whether to get the troops out of Iraq or not. While the President (Commander-in-Chief of the US Armed Forces) is adamant that the troops should stay there ‘until the situation improves’, the Congress does not think so.

What can be more challenging than this!

As a journalist I had a chance to interact with Indian, British and American soldiers on many occasions, and I find it a fascinating exercise to study their mind, life and profession.

(Maybe because I come from what is called a ‘martial race’, and my grandfather worked in the Army headquarters during the British days in India. Some of my relations fought in the Middle East theatre during World War-I and II along with the British - and American - troops.)

Now back to Gen Petraeus and his interview with PBS News Hour.

If you read between the lines, the General has without compromising the dignity of his office (although the interviewer’s questions were highly loaded) given enough hints what the ground reality is.

Excerpts:

JIM LEHRER: What effect is the Iraq debate in Washington having on your operations on the ground in Iraq?

GEN. DAVID PETRAEUS: Well, to tell you the truth, Jim, we’ve more than got our hands full and occupied out here.
We’re certainly aware of the debate that’s ongoing back there, but the fact is, we’re pretty focused on what it is that we’re engaged in out here, and we’re really trying to stay focused on that. Our mission is very clear, and that’s what we’re intent on accomplishing….

JIM LEHRER: …Is it affecting your own morale, your own feeling of support toward you and your mission at all?

GEN. DAVID PETRAEUS: Jim, I’ve felt like I’ve had a fairly heavy rucksack here. And I’ve got a lot of great folks out here to help carry that rucksack, frankly.

Occasionally, you feel another rock being put in there, but this is a really consuming endeavor. It’s, frankly, the most consuming endeavor of my professional life.

And, again, it tends to more than occupy one’s day. And you don’t have a lot of time to think about other things, other than just getting on with the business at hand out here in Iraq.

JIM LEHRER: …Your name comes up in every other sentence on both sides of every debate involving Iraq right now…If General Petraeus can’t pull this off, nobody can, and this is the last chance for this to work. Is that an accurate reading of how you see it, as well?

GEN. DAVID PETRAEUS: Well, as I mentioned at the outset, Jim, again, I’m conscious of a couple of things. One is that the Washington clock is moving more rapidly than the Baghdad clock, so we’re obviously trying to speed up the Baghdad clock a bit and to produce some progress on the ground that can perhaps give hope to those in the coalition countries, in Washington, and perhaps put a little more time on the Washington clock.

I’m keenly aware, again, that we’ve got a pretty heavy rucksack of responsibility out here, got a lot of help in carrying that rucksack. We’re doing the very best we can with what we have, and, really, that’s about all that we can do, Jim.
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Now here is a General, given a thankless task of trying to salvage whatever he can from the debris, explaining the ground reality without bringing into disrepute his Commander-in-Chief.

The Time magazine wrote in a recent issue: “General David Petraeus has repeatedly said, ‘A military solution to Iraq is not possible.’ Translation: This thing fails unless there is a political deal among the Shi’ites, Sunnis and Kurds.

“There is no such deal on the horizon, largely because of the President’s aversion to talking to people he doesn’t like,” says Time magazine.

With this background, my admiration for this General, who appears to be a gentleman and a professional, has grown.

I conclude with a few famous quotes: “War is too important a matter to be left to the military.” - Georges Clemenceau (1841-1929) French statesman and journalist.

“Peace cannot be kept by force; it can only be achieved by understanding.� - Albert Einstein

“I know not with what weapons World War III will be fought, but World War IV will be fought with sticks and stones.� - Albert Einstein