عراق

This two-part essay, prepared for the Foreign Policy Research Institute ( www.fpri.org), is a condensed version of an article that appears in the Winter 2001–2002 issue of the National Interest. Read Part II. "With respect to what is sometimes characterized as taking out Saddam, I never saw a plan that

Despite reports that Saddam Hussein has rebuilt his army under sanctions, military morale is perilously low in Iraq. If the United States were to throw its weight behind the Iraqi opposition, Saddam Hussein's police state would likely collapse faster than did the Taliban. I lived in Iraq for nine months

On September 11, 2001, the world expressed shock as Al-Qa'ida terrorists hijacked four airliners, toppled the World Trade Center, and heavily damaged the Pentagon. This dramatic display of Al-Qa'ida's global reach has dominated international media attention, virtually to the exclusion of all other international news. However, the United States was

Ten years after the Gulf War, much of Iraqi Kurdistan is free from Baghdad's control and is busy trying to build a civil society in a very difficult region. Out of the ashes of tyranny, the Iraqi Kurds have built something tangible: a free, liberal society by Middle Eastern standards

On May 18, the day after Great Britain proposed lifting United Nations sanctions on all civilian goods in Iraq, a taciturn Iraqi farmer asked me: "Why does the West talk about Saddam's war crimes on one day, but reward him the next?" Such is the perception of ordinary Iraqis, who

Sanctions on Iraq are now 11 years old, and U.S. policy is going nowhere fast. The State Department has proposed to revise sanctions to try to undermine Saddam Hussein's propaganda, but the approach is little more than appeasement. At least that's how Iraqis described it during my recent nine-month visit

As U.S. policymakers review options for national missile defense and ways to reshape the military to meet future threats, nuclear proliferation -- particularly in the Middle East -- looms large as one of the most critical future challenges facing the United States. In the coming years, it is conceivable, if

August 2, 2001 marks eleven years since Saddam Husayn invaded Kuwait. Given Washington's unsuccessful effort to win UN Security Council approval for a reformed sanctions regime, the Bush administration must now reconsider the options for Iraq policy. Focus on Arms Control? While Russia's opposition nixed the imposition of "smart controls"

The supermarket in Dahuk was apologetic: the shipment of Coca-Cola had not yet arrived, but would Pepsi be okay? There was plenty of fruit and vegetables, several different cuts of meat and many brands of breakfast cereal. There was no shortage of cheeses or ice cream. There were also over