Tuesday, May 3, 2016

More Biden Failure in Iraq

Max Boot

Iraq

"When it comes to Iraqi politics, Joe Biden seems to have the reverse­Midas touch: Everything he touches turns to muck. 

"Given the Iraq portfolio by President Obama, Biden made his mark in 2010 by putting the U.S. firmly behind the reelection as prime minister of the Shiite sectarian Nouri al Maliki even though Ayad Allawi, a non­sectarian leader, had won more votes. In charge once again during negotiations over the Status of Forces Agreement, Biden didn’t secure a treaty to keep U.S. forces in Iraq in 2011. The result: With the U.S. gone, Maliki’s sectarian vendetta was unleashed against Sunnis, leading them into the arms of ISIS. 

"Last Thursday Biden returned to the scene of the crime in a show of support for the new American Backed(sp) leader, Haider al Abadi, who replaced Maliki in September 2014. A senior official traveling with the vice president said the visit was a “symbol of how much faith we have in Prime Minister Abadi.”

" Within days, thousands of Muqtada al Sadr’s followers had overrun the seat of Iraq’s government, revealing Abadi’s impotence–and also the hollowness of a U.S. policy based on supporting him. " . . .

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