World View - October 27, 2006

The recent developments in Iraq exposed the failure of the US policy there. But President George W. Bush came out in defence of his administration. The other events that made it to the headlines this week were the peace talks in Sri Lanka and the expulsion of Jan Pronk, the UN envoy to Sudan. The events were contemplated, analysed and commented on. We present here excerpts of editorials from the regional and the international press.

The Iraq issue really heated up this week. Elements of US President George W. Bush's statement "We've never been 'stay the course'" and that the beleaguered Iraqi government is doing "remarkably well" were assessed threadbare. Alberto Fernandez, however, told the truth that the United States had shown "arrogance" and "stupidity" in Iraq. But the next day, the State Department official, in charge of public diplomacy for the Middle East, did a volte face and was quoted as saying that he "seriously misspoke".

In the UK, Britain's army chief, General Sir Richard Dannatt, created a storm by declaring that Britain should pull its troops out of Iraq "some time soon" because their presence there was exacerbating security problems around the world.

In a lengthy editorial titled "Trying to contain the Iraq disaster", the New York Times castigated Bush for his myopic views and spelled out a policy to protect the integrity of Iraq and suggest an honourable exit for American and coalition forces.

"The president cannot leave office with American troops still dying in an Iraq that staggers along just short of civil war, on behalf of no concrete objective other than 'get the job done', which is now Bush's rhetorical substitute for 'stay the course' ... Americans, Iraqis and the rest of the world need clear, public signs of progress."

It also suggested that Bush should fire Secretary of Defence Donald Rumsfeld.

Australia's Sydney Morning Herald said that it was time to skip slogans and called on the US and its allies, including Australia, to ponder on the next course of action.

"The case against a premature withdrawal should not rest on defence of an invasion that was launched partly on false pretences but, rather, on the new realities created by that invasion and its bungled aftermath ...

"... Still, as a minor party to the invasion, Australia has a direct responsibility from which it should not unilaterally walk away."

In Lebanon, The Daily Star urged the Bush administration to correct its mistakes and admit its failures. It said: "... The first step towards recovering from the disaster that is America's foreign policy in the region is to admit the mistakes that have been made and to acknowledge that US goals have become unmanageable."

On the other hand, Jordan Times pointed out that the only option that would seem to stand a chance of success was for Washington and Europe to underwrite, financially, a massive regional effort to secure and rebuild Iraq. "That would mean a withdrawal of foreign troops combined with a massive regional rebuilding effort, financed primarily by those guilty of destroying it."

Joining the debate, Britian's The Daily Telegraph questioned: "How soon will Britain and America withdraw, and what kind of country will they leave behind?"

Another UK daily, The Independent, hit the nail on the head by saying "America's mission in Iraq has been manipulated at every turn to suit the US domestic political agenda ... In the light of this, we are entitled to treat the latest announcement from the US - that Iraq will be ready to take charge of its own security within 12 to 18 months - with extreme scepticism."

Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka's main political parties have buried the hatchet and have agreed to hold peace talks in Geneva with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, a separatist and terrorist group that is fighting for a separate state for the country's Tamil minority. The Norwegian peacebrokers are optimistic about finding a solution to end the ethnic conflict in the island nation.

Sri Lanka's The Sunday Observer noted: "Nobody wants war. What is of importance is arriving at a strategy of achieving vital peace in a dignified manner, which is acceptable to all communities of this country."

The Washington Times, however, was cynical about the outcome. It suggested that the only way to tame the LTTE was by targeting the group's worldwide fundraising network.

Commenting on the situation, the Indian Express lamented the isolation of the moderate Tamils in Sri Lanka. "They are caught between a rock and a hard place. There is no place for them in an LTTE fiefdom," it stated.

Sudan

The Khartoum government expelled the UN's Sudan envoy Jan Pronk for posting candid views on his blog on the morale of the rank and files of the Sudanese army and, in particular, the situation in Darfur.

Saudi Arabia's Arab News pondered: "It is hard to see what those who decided on the UN official's removal imagined would be gained by it. It will deepen suspicions of government policy in Darfur at a time when the Janjaweed militias seem once again to be out of control."

The Sudan Tribune stated that Pronk, like Mukesh Kapila - the former United Nations' Humanitarian Coordinator in Sudan who was expelled in February 2004 - paid the price for telling the truth.

"Jan Pronk may have made mistakes throughout his stay in Sudan but in this case, if he did something wrong, it was that he said the blunt truth."