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Commentary
Bush needs to be careful with decisions about Iraq
Published:
Thursday, October 17, 2002
A recent decision by Congress has, in a sense, left the United States tetering on the brink of a war with Iraq.
President Bush has been pushing his "attack Iraq" policy for some time now, and has finally received Congressional approval for his plan. The question, however, remains: is this really smart?
Iraq has been a thorn in the side of international politics ever since the Gulf War in 1991. Some argued that the United States should have taken care of Saddam Hussein then. Whether that would have been a prudent action, the question is again in the international spotlight.
However, before we jump on the "war with Iraq" bandwagon, let us consider a few things:
What aggression has Iraq shown against the United States recently? While there is widespread mistrust regarding Iraq's cooperation with United Nations weapons inspectors, other than supposed anti-aircraft firing on U.S. planes, Iraq has shown little recent aggression against the U.S.
Bush has taken a strong initiative to make Iraq the U.S.'s problem. What about our war on terrorism? Bush should consider if he is attempting to bite off more than he can chew in a situation like this. As for rumors about Iraq having ties to al-Qaida, Bush should be certain of such a fact before declaring war on the nation.
Furthermore, how smart is it to brazenly start a war with a country that is supposedly stockpiling deadly chemical and biological weapons?
Perhaps most importantly,war with Iraq would disrupt humanitarian aid constantly funneling into the country. This aid has provided a small amount of relief to the desperate situation economic sanctions have created.
If Iraq refuses to cooperate with the U.N., military action, even a war, may be necessary. But Bush would be much better off with the U.N.'s support in such an event, than without it.
War should only be a final, unavoidable option.
