Iraq as failed State
The Fund for Peace has an important new study on Iraq that warns it has become a failed state. . Newsday says:
‘ Dr. Pauline H. Baker, author of the report, describes a failed state syndrome as a condition in which a number of trends reinforce each other to produce spiraling conflict that the country has little or no independent capacity to stop. The report concludes that, a year after the invasion, Iraq is as shattered as it was the day that Saddam Hussein was overthrown, the main difference being that organized militias and terrorist groups have gained a foothold they did not have before.
“We have to get the facts straight before we can get the policy straight,” said Dr. Baker. “Currently, there are three major fictions that are being used to describe the transition in Iraq. The first is analytical – that Iraq could become a failed state, when, in fact, it already has failed. The second is legal – that the occupation will end on June 30, when, in fact, the occupation will end when foreign troops are withdrawn and capable Iraqi security forces take over. And the third is political – that after June 30, the sovereign government of Iraq and the people will be allied with the United States. In fact, the interim government will not have full sovereignty and the people are increasingly fearful and resentful of the U.S. presence.” ‘