Archived material Access restricted Article
Rantburg

Today's Front Page   View All of Tue 03/14/2006 View Mon 03/13/2006 View Sun 03/12/2006 View Sat 03/11/2006 View Fri 03/10/2006 View Thu 03/09/2006 View Wed 03/08/2006
1
2006-03-14 Britain
Former diplomat sez US post-war strategy was a mess
Archived material is restricted to Rantburg regulars and members. If you need access email fred.pruitt=at=gmail.com with your nick to be added to the members list. There is no charge to join Rantburg as a member.
Posted by Dan Darling 2006-03-14 01:35|| || Front Page|| [11129 views since 2007-05-07]  Top

#1 Article: His views in the memo are echoed in a note by Gen Whitley, who says that while Gen Franks took credit for the fall of Baghdad, he showed little interest in the postwar period. "I am quite sure Franks did not want to take ownership of Phase IV," Gen Whitley wrote. He added that Phase IV "did not work well" because the concentration was on the invasion. "There was a blind faith that Phase IV would work. There was a failure to anticipate the extent of the backlash or mood of Iraqi society."

I think this reveals that there is blind faith among British diplomats and military officers that *a* strategy would have worked to prevent the current insurgency. Remember - these are the same Brits who got thrown out of Iraq after a decade anti-British guerrilla operations, in the 1920's.
Posted by Zhang Fei 2006-03-14 03:55|| http://timurileng.blogspot.com]">[http://timurileng.blogspot.com]  2006-03-14 03:55|| Front Page Top

#2 I find it pretty amusing that the Brits are pumping out this manure, when they took a decade to subdue a militarily-insignificant guerrilla force in Malaya, composed of 4000 part-timers and armed with little more than rifles - and that guerrilla force fought for another 25 years after the Brits left. If American planning was abysmal, I wonder how we should characteristic British incompetence planning.
Posted by Zhang Fei 2006-03-14 04:04|| http://timurileng.blogspot.com]">[http://timurileng.blogspot.com]  2006-03-14 04:04|| Front Page Top

#3 If the UK's diplomatic twits and soft-power generals think Garner was a mess, then he was probably doing things right. That he never really got a chance to get things off the ground may be the saddest legacy of Iraq.

There is always the presumption that someone should've anticipated the unknown unknowns - perfectly. It's the ugly blame game that always lurks in safe places until the shit hits the fan. So, when some clown pops out to say he knew (but did nothing about it) and prattles on about the failings of others, with only the sketchiest details even in perfect hindsight, regards what he would've done had he been Cock of the Walk, sane people know to label it as pissing in the wind by short-dicked sanctimonious morons and wannabe's.

Criticism of Garner, who barely had a chance to catch his breath before being replaced by a bureaucrat, and Franks, who earned his plaudits the hardest way possible: planning on the move after Turkey knocked everything into a cocked hat with perfect timing and perfect perfidy, is perfect sour grapes.

That's the graphic this story needs.
Posted by Hupeting Slineng3538 2006-03-14 05:10||   2006-03-14 05:10|| Front Page Top

#4 "Garner and his top team of 60-year-old retired generals" were "well-meaning but out of their depth".

"Well-meaning"...but in other words, stupid. One of two leftest handles describing those with whom they do not agree, the other being of course "racist."
Posted by Visitor 2006-03-14 09:02||   2006-03-14 09:02|| Front Page Top

#5 
Based on the Brits Basra performance, things would be far worse off today had they "handled" the entire occupation of Iraq.
Posted by RD 2006-03-14 09:09||   2006-03-14 09:09|| Front Page Top

#6 seeing how fast the admin moved Garner out of there, Id say they probably saw at least some of what this guy says too be true. Frankly theres little of it that rings false, though how much better it would have been had we done better is a legitimate matter of debate,
Posted by liberalhawk 2006-03-14 09:39||   2006-03-14 09:39|| Front Page Top

#7 First this is NOT a knock on the Bush administration, it is an attempt to put things in perspective.

Why don't these arm chair quaterbacks compare and contrast the state of affairs in the aftermath of Katrina (6 months out) and the Xmas Tsunami (15 months out) with the equivalent times in Iraq?
These things take time

And, oh yeah, there was a war (insurrgency, rebellion, terroist campaign, whatever) still going on.
Posted by AlanC">AlanC  2006-03-14 09:58||   2006-03-14 09:58|| Front Page Top

#8 Why don't these arm chair quaterbacks compare and contrast the state of affairs in the aftermath of Katrina (6 months out) and the Xmas Tsunami (15 months out) with the equivalent times in Iraq?

Or Bosnia? Or Haiti? Or France?
Posted by Robert Crawford">Robert Crawford  2006-03-14 10:02|| http://www.kloognome.com/]">[http://www.kloognome.com/]  2006-03-14 10:02|| Front Page Top

#9 RC "Or Bosnia? Or Haiti? Or France?"

Those are just iggerant savages who need the TLC of blue helmets so they don't count


Especially the LAST one on the list ;^)
Posted by AlanC">AlanC  2006-03-14 11:05||   2006-03-14 11:05|| Front Page Top

#10 ZF: If American planning was abysmal, I wonder how we should characteristic British incompetence planning.

Note that I'm not saying that the British were incompetent. I am saying that they did a reasonable job, under the circumstances. It is this generation of British military and diplomatic leaders that are incompetent - they know nothing of history and have learned nothing from their painfully limited experiences.
Posted by Zhang Fei 2006-03-14 15:18|| http://timurileng.blogspot.com]">[http://timurileng.blogspot.com]  2006-03-14 15:18|| Front Page Top

#11 Second guessing whether by the MSM, dhimmocrats, Brits, retired generals, or tater and his ilk is a steaming pile of chicken shit. It's fine to discuss after action thoughts, but the blame game stinketh.
Posted by wxjames 2006-03-14 16:20||   2006-03-14 16:20|| Front Page Top

#12 Real generals look forward
Armchair generals look backwards
Posted by 2b 2006-03-14 16:29||   2006-03-14 16:29|| Front Page Top

10:50 mmurray821
23:59 Snuns Thromp1484
23:58 JosephMendiola
23:49 phil_b
23:44 Snuns Thromp1484
23:41 DMFD
23:36 trailing wife
23:30 lotp
23:28 DMFD
23:27 Angump Slomosing6697
23:19 Formerly Dan
23:16 3dc
23:11 Inspector Clueso
22:49 JosephMendiola
22:34 BH
22:26 Frank G
22:25 JosephMendiola
22:24 Frank G
22:18 Frank G
22:13 Frank G
22:13 Frank G
22:02 JosephMendiola
21:54 Ulaigum Ebbereck6419
21:51 JosephMendiola









Paypal:
Google
Search WWW Search rantburg.com