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If Iraq asked us, would we leave?

March 3rd, 2008
By POLIMOM

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Iran’s president doesn’t appear to have had anything new to say during his visit to Iraq:

BAGHDAD - Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on Monday dismissed U.S. accusations that his country is training extremists and demanded that the Americans withdraw from Iraq.

My first reaction was that his opinion on the matter isn’t the one that counts. If it were the Iraqi government saying that the US should leave, though, that would be another situation entirely.

However, I can see a point coming soon where Iraqi and American interests will diverge, and so I have a hypothetical question:

If the Iraqi government asked us to leave right now, do you think President Bush would agree to do so? And/or if elected, would John McCain agree a year from now, if asked?

Even if, by either of their definitions, the US mission there was not complete?



This entry was posted on Monday, March 3rd, 2008 at 11:25 am and is filed under Anti-Americanism, Foreign Politics, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Iraq, War. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

Viewing 19 Comments

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    No, we wouldn't leave. Strategic control of oil is the paramount US mission in Iraq, and the Iraqi people or their government will never be able to simply ask us to leave.

    Remember all the talk last year (from both Dems and Republicans) about how Al Maliki had to go and that we should replace him? How does that jive with the idea that Iraq is a sovereign nation?
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    Great question, easy answer: No and no.
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    Nah, I don't think we'd leave either. The only "good news" for both men is that there seems little chance of us being asked.
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    If the Iraqi government asked us to leave right now, do you think President Bush would agree to do so?

    No, of course he wouldn't.

    al-Maliki told Bush he wanted Blackwater out of Iraq. How did that work out?

    And/or if elected, would John McCain agree a year from now, if asked?

    No, of course he wouldn't.
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    Polimom,

    While no one can say what would (will?) happen if (when?) the Iraqi government asks the US to leave, the question has been asked:


    " . . . asked if, as a matter of principle, the United States would pull out of Iraq at the request of a new government, he said: "Absolutely. This is a sovereign government. They're on their feet."


    That was in 2005. The White House has more than once reiterated this position. One might think that would put the issue to bed.

    It would seem to me that the public assurance of the President of the United States would be a bit difficult to just walk away from. Alas, too many on the left are so afflicted with BDS that they just "know better!"

    It seems like it should be nice to be clairvoyant, though on second thought, these 'gifted' (afflicted?) folks don't seem to be very happy in their visions.
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    TM -- While I'm not as certain of the answer as some of the other commenters have been, I also wonder whether the US would actually deliver on the promise to which you refer.

    But to put this off to BDS, I think, misses the boat. I think this question goes to a larger view of how committed the US is to its own interests over those of host countries.

    For instance: If the Japanese said, tomorrow, that it would like us to remove ourselves from Okinawa, would we?

    Or if the Germans decided that WWII is far enough in the past, and they don't want to serve as a buffer anymore against Russia, would we leave if they asked?

    How about South Korea? Would the US interest in NK's activities trump a SK request to leave?

    If the answers to those are different from the Iraq question, why would that be? Because I'm not sure, actually, that there's any difference at all...
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    Polimom,

    I agree. On the matter of leaving when asked, there is (or should be) no difference.

    One suspects that it has been seen (by various elected governments of these nations) to be in the best interest of Japan, Germany, and Korea NOT to ask the US to remove its military forces for all these many decades.

    Is it really a stretch to think that maybe the government of Iraq might find similar reasons to invite us to stay for a while as well?

    If they did so, would President Hillary or President Obama say "yes", or just laugh at them and redouble the speed of their promised withdrawal?

    Who can know . . .
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    I agree with The Master that I see no immediate future in which the Iraqi government asks the American armed forces to leave. They get too much out of it - security for free; infratructure paid for by the American people. However, if such a prospect were to arise, I find it hard to believe that the President's answer in the interview you linked is the final word. First off, enormous pressure would be applied behind the scenes to make sure such an event never occurred. Second, what else can the President answer to this question? If he answers 'no', it's a political firestorm and an attack on the government they are trying to prop up. It's like asking Clinton today whether she is about to quit her campaign (or asking a college football coach if they are interviewing for another job right before the Bowl Game). You can't say right before the pivotal election that you're ready to abandon. Those bases aren't being built for a 5-10 year presence.
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    I did want to add that choosing to leave a sovereign nation even when they want you to stay is not the same as staying in one that wants you to leave. The first is a disagreement between sovereign nations; the second is an admission that the one nation is not truly sovereign. I'm sure there are many nations who would love for us to ship money to them to construct roads, schools, and hospitals. If we choose not to do so, we are exercising our freedom of choice. However, if we are inside another nation pursuing our interests and refuse to stop when asked, we are saying that other nation has no freedom to choose.
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    Leave as occupiers? Eventually.

    Leave completely? I doubt it. The case is strong for maintaining a military force in Iraq, stronger than our presence currently in Djibouti (next to Somalia, where we just conducted one or more air strikes against terrorists).

    http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/5482.htm
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