Raphel points to neocon ideology behind Iraq war

Sunday, October 23, 2005

WASHINGTON: A veteran US diplomat who served as a government adviser in Iraq says US policy in the country at the initial stage of the occupation was driven by neoconservative ideology rather than careful preparation and clear understanding of issues.

Ambassador Robin Raphel, who has been with the foreign service since 1977 and once served as assistant secretary of state, delivered her unusually candid remarks in a July 2004 interview for a relatively obscure history program at the US Institute of Peace. It has remained unnoticed until now, when increasing numbers of Americans began to question the Bush administration’s involvement in Iraq.

Raphel, who served as a trade adviser to the Iraqi government from April to August 2003, took particular issue with decisions by then administrator Paul Bremer to launch debaathification of the country and disband Saddam Hussein’s military. “What one needs to understand is that these decisions were ideologically based,” the diplomat argued. afp

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