tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13112593.post116575364475614879..comments2024-03-20T10:19:56.838+01:00Comments on the beatroot: Poland's exit strategy from Iraqbeatroothttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11242716221133886807noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13112593.post-41382630425361998262007-01-23T04:51:00.000+01:002007-01-23T04:51:00.000+01:00- An Exit Strategy for Iraq- originally and indepe...- An Exit Strategy for Iraq- originally and independently devised in September 2004.<br /><br />By Howard Roberts<br /><br /><br />A Seven-point plan for an Exit Strategy in Iraq<br /><br />1) A timetable for the complete withdrawal of American and British forces<br />must be announced.<br /> I envision the following procedure, but suitable fine-tuning can be<br />applied by all the people involved.<br /><br /> A) A ceasefire should be offered by the Occupying side to<br />representatives of the Sunni insurgency and the Shiite and Kurdish communities. These<br />representatives would be guaranteed safe passage, to any meetings. The<br />individual insurgency and community groups would designate who would attend.<br />At this meeting a written document declaring a one-month ceasefire,<br />witnessed by a United Nations authority, will be fashioned and eventually<br />signed. This document will be released in full, to all Iraqi newspapers, the<br />foreign press, and the Internet.<br />( The inclusion of Kurdish communities in this sub-section was added in early September 2006-<br />as an attempt to define the goals of parity and fairness and to avoid any sectarian splitting<br />of Iraq.)<br /> B) US and British command will make public its withdrawal, within<br />sixth-months of 80 % of their troops.<br /><br /> C) Every month, a team of United Nations observers will verify the<br />effectiveness of the ceasefire.<br />All incidences on both sides will be reported.<br /><br /> D) Combined representative armed forces of both the Occupying<br />nations and the insurgency organizations and major community factions, that agreed to the cease fire will<br />protect the Iraqi people from actions by terrorist cells.<br /><br /> E) Combined representative armed forces from both the Occupying<br />nations and the insurgency organizations/community factions will begin creating a new military<br />and police force. Those who served, without extenuating circumstances, in<br />the previous Iraqi military or police, will be given the first option to<br />serve.<br /><br /> F) After the second month of the ceasefire, and thereafter, in<br />increments of 10-20% ,a total of 80% will be withdrawn, to enclaves in Qatar<br />and Bahrain. The governments of these countries will work out a temporary<br />land-lease housing arrangement for these troops. During the time the troops<br />will be in these countries they will not stand down, and can be re-activated<br />in the theater, if the chain of the command still in Iraq, the newly<br />formed Iraqi military, the leaders of the insurgency/community factions, and two international<br />ombudsman (one from the Arab League, one from the United Nations), as a<br />majority, deem it necessary.<br /><br /><br />G) One-half of those troops in enclaves will leave three-months after they<br />arrive, for the United States or other locations, not including Iraq.<br /><br /> <br /><br /> H) The other half of the troops in enclaves will leave after<br />six-months.<br /><br /> I) The remaining 20 % of the Occupying troops will, during this six<br />month interval, be used as peace-keepers, and will work with all the<br />designated organizations, to aid in reconstruction and nation-building.<br /><br /><br /> J) After four months they will be moved to enclaves in the above<br />mentioned countries.<br /> They will remain, still active, for two month, until their return to<br />the States, Britain and the other involved nations.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />2) At the beginning of this period the United States will file a letter with<br />the Secretary General of the Security Council of the United Nations, making<br />null and void all written and proscribed orders by the CPA, under R. Paul<br />Bremer. This will be announced and duly noted.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br />3) At the beginning of this period all contracts signed by foreign countries<br />will be considered in abeyance until a system of fair bidding, by both<br />Iraqi and foreign countries, will be implemented ,by an interim Productivity<br />and Investment Board, chosen from pertinent sectors of the Iraqi economy.<br />Local representatives of the 18 provinces of Iraq will put this board<br />together, in local elections.<br /><br />4) At the beginning of this period, the United Nations will declare that<br />Iraq is a sovereign state again, and will be forming a Union of 18<br />autonomous regions. Each region will, with the help of international<br />experts, and local bureaucrats, do a census as a first step toward the<br />creation of a municipal government for all 18 provinces. After the census, a<br />voting roll will be completed. Any group that gets a list of 15% of the<br />names on this census will be able to nominate a slate of representatives.<br />When all the parties have chosen their slates, a period of one-month will be<br />allowed for campaigning.<br />Then in a popular election the group with the most votes will represent that<br />province.<br />When the voters choose a slate, they will also be asked to choose five<br />individual members of any of the slates.<br /> The individuals who have the five highest vote counts will represent a<br />National government.<br />This whole process, in every province, will be watched by international<br />observers as well as the local bureaucrats.<br /><br />During this process of local elections, a central governing board, made up<br />of United Nations, election governing experts, insurgency organizations, US<br />and British peacekeepers, and Arab league representatives, will assume the<br />temporary duties of administering Baghdad, and the central duties of<br />governing.<br /><br /><br />When the ninety representatives are elected they will assume the legislative<br />duties of Iraq for two years.<br /><br />Within three months the parties that have at least 15% of the<br />representatives will nominate candidates for President and Prime Minister.<br /><br />A national wide election for these offices will be held within three months<br />from their nomination.<br /><br />The President and the Vice President and the Prime Minister will choose<br />their cabinet, after the election.<br /><br /><br /> 5) All debts accrued by Iraq will be rescheduled to begin payment, on the<br />principal after one year, and on the interest after two years. If Iraq is<br />able to handle another loan during this period she should be given a grace<br />period of two years, from the taking of the loan, to comply with any<br />structural adjustments.<br /><br /><br /><br />6) The United States and the United Kingdom shall pay Iraq reparations for<br />its invasion in the total of 120 billion dollars over a period of twenty<br />years for damages to its infrastructure. This money can be defrayed as<br />investment, if the return does not exceed 6.5 %.<br /><br /><br />7) During the interim period all those accused of crimes against the Iraqi people,<br />or against international law will be given access to a fair trial.<br />The extent of the implications of the international nature of the crime, and the<br />security standards which exist in Iraq will dictate the place of the trial, and it’s subsequent procedures.<br />All defendants will have the right to present any evidence they want, and to<br />choose freely their own lawyers.<br />If they are found guilty they will be given all necessary appeals provided for by the jurisdiction<br />of their trials, and will be sentenced in Iraq, after all these appeals are exhausted.<br />If they are found not guilty they will be released and given protection under international law,<br />with the strict adherence to these laws by the judicial organs of a sovereign Iraq.sevenpointmanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06482791850775174142noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13112593.post-1165962089046834872006-12-12T23:21:00.000+01:002006-12-12T23:21:00.000+01:00"You must admit that they had some help from the L..."You must admit that they had some help from the Left which did everything to undermine the democratic reforms in Iraq"<BR/><BR/>Hmm Sonia, Bush friendly republicans controlled all branches of the US government and had approximately zero influence on anything done in Iraq pre or post invasion.<BR/>Face it, the W administration had every opportunity to do just what it wanted in just the way it wanted to and the result has largely been a nightmare of incompetence and missed opportunities.<BR/>Blaming the current problems on those who were warning the whole thing was not a good idea in the first place is intellectually dishonest at _best_.michael farrishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10232229721381140090noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13112593.post-1165948036896502542006-12-12T19:27:00.000+01:002006-12-12T19:27:00.000+01:00Neocons are ‘out’ because the neocons FAILED. You ...<I>Neocons are ‘out’ because the neocons FAILED.</I> <BR/><BR/>You must admit that they had some help from the Left which did everything to undermine the democratic reforms in Iraq. They wanted Bush to fail in Iraq so much, they didn't care if the Iraqi people suffer in the process...soniahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00938174968325568608noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13112593.post-1165933344303629582006-12-12T15:22:00.000+01:002006-12-12T15:22:00.000+01:00the polish zone in iraq is rel peacefull.So i do n...the polish zone in iraq is rel peacefull.<BR/>So i do not think the polish government and its soldiers failed.<BR/>the poles did a very good job in their zone and the iraqis know that and like ,respect the polish soldiers....<BR/><BR/><BR/>the poles can leave iraq with their heads up...Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13112593.post-1165858746609880782006-12-11T18:39:00.000+01:002006-12-11T18:39:00.000+01:00Neocons are ‘out’ because the neocons FAILED. As t...Neocons are ‘out’ because the neocons FAILED. As they always would. A few hundred lives might have been saved if they had stayed where they should have – hanging around the library of the American Enterprise. Institute. I would pack them all off and drop them off in the middle of Baghdad high street, where they belong. <BR/><BR/>Jan: <I>The real losers are the Iraqis with peace nowhere insight.</I><BR/><BR/>Agreed. Although I heard Bush gibbering on earlier of the TV about how things are better for Iraqis in that they…er…um…’have a free press!’ <BR/><BR/>I don’t know if he really believes that. For sure they have a law that says that they have a free press: but when editors fear printing anything that might bring on a truck full of bombs driven through the front of their building, then that is not really a free press, is it? I saw CNN’s International Correspondent programme a couple of weeks ago and Iraqi journalists were saying it’s just impossible to act as a journo in that country now. <BR/><BR/>And by ‘arrogance of the Polish government’ I meant going against the wishes of both the Poles at home – who had better sense than the neocons in opposing the war – and going against the wishes of the Iraqis, who never wanted the occupation, either.beatroothttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11242716221133886807noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13112593.post-1165854192285988042006-12-11T17:23:00.000+01:002006-12-11T17:23:00.000+01:00Poland’s exit strategy is now simple; it time to g...Poland’s exit strategy is now simple; it time to go and the precise moment will be based on appearances. <BR/><BR/>Beatroot said: “the arrogance of the Americans, British, Polish is stunning. They are literally trying to pass the buck for the bloody chaos they have created onto a weak and helpless Iraqis state” <BR/><BR/>Not really an attitude of arrogance for the Poles as much as a cynical calculation. For Poland this was a matter of supporting the US notwithstanding if the US action was ill advised and executed poorly. The maintenance of the relationship was deemed the paramount interest not the outcome in Iraq. Just look at Australia to see a near parallel policy. Also expect Polish soldiers at the next US adventure.<BR/><BR/>The real losers are the Iraqis with peace nowhere insight.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13112593.post-1165850865222616432006-12-11T16:27:00.000+01:002006-12-11T16:27:00.000+01:00Well, for once you're right. There was a regime ch...Well, for once you're right. There was a regime change in Washington. Neo-cons are out. Paleo-cons are in. Instead of supporting the democratic forces in the region, US will begin to support the forces of repression. Deals will be made, even with Syria and Iran. What's Arabic for Yalta ?soniahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00938174968325568608noreply@blogger.com