President Bush’s “coalition of the willing” is set to all but disappear from Iraq by the end of the year, with 13 countries, including South Korea, Japan, Moldova and Tonga preparing to withdraw their few remaining troops.
Britain, Australia, Romania, Estonia and El Salvador are the only nations, apart from the US, that plan to remain after a UN mandate authorising their presence expires on December 31.
London must still reach an agreement with Baghdad, however, to keep its 4,100-strong contingent on the ground into the new year. Failure to do so in time would leave British troops without legal cover and they too would have to leave…
President Bush and Tony Blair scrambled the coalition together in the build-up to the Iraq invasion in a bid to put an international face on what was fast becoming an unpopular war. But the list of participants drew scorn for failing to include a greater number of powerful states, with the US and Britain the main contributors.
While the coalition is dissolving, another force of foreigners is still thriving in the country: thousands of private contractors from developing countries such as Peru, Uganda, the Philippines and Bangladesh.
And we all know what useful skills private contractors bring to Iraq.
#24–Paddy-O==well done. You actually referred to an objective source.
Chickenhawk: [A person who favors military force or action to carry out a foreign policy but has never served in the military.]
Now, I still think Bushieboy is a chickenhawk and Clinton/Obama are not. Doesn’t seem to fit the definition by which I agree to be bound.
Well, perhaps the key word here is “favors.” Did Clinton/will Obama, favor other action before resorting to military action? I think so.
Was Bush a chickenhawk? Most certainly, on two levels. One, the worst kind of chickenhawk is one who shirks military duty while enlisted and then goes on to send other military to their death. A Super-Chicken Hypocrite-Hawk if you will.
Second, we all know Bushieboy is just a meatpuppet for Cheney, who again, all agree is a Chickenhawk.
Ambiguity resolved.