Torog
10-18-2004, 11:01 AM
Our allies and Iraq: Australia and Germany are telling cases (http://freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1248530/posts)
Manchester Union Leader ^ (http://freerepublic.com/^http://www.theunionleader.com/articles_showa.html?article=45770)| October 18, 2004 | Editorial
AUSTRALIAN Prime Minister John Howard won re-election two Saturdays ago, and the American media hardly noticed. That is not surprising, considering that Howard??s victory undermined John Kerry??s assertion that President Bush is alienating America??s allies.
Howard??s challenger had pledged to withdraw Australian troops from Iraq. He lost. The Australian people chose Howard, who had pledged to continue his country??s involvement in the war. After his re-election, Howard praised President Bush, saying, ??I respect him very much both as an individual and as a very strong leader. I think the strength of his stand against terrorism has been very important. In politics that is very important, because often people will vote for you because they respect the strength and consistency of your view even though on a given issue they may not agree with you.?
Kerry likes to pretend that the only reason some nations refused to support the war in Iraq was because of President Bush. But when France, Germany, Russia and China opposed the war, they did so because they had complex economic and military ties to Saddam Hussein. France refused to send troops to Iraq, but later joined the United States in the peacekeeping effort in Haiti this year ?? showing that France was opposed to toppling Saddam, not to aligning with President Bush.
Just last week Germany announced: ??There will be no German soldiers in Iraq. . . The position of the German government as far as Iraq is concerned is clear ?? it will not be changed.? So much for the idea that Old Europe would gladly ease America??s burden in Iraq if only we had a President who spoke French and asked them really, really nicely.
Manchester Union Leader ^ (http://freerepublic.com/^http://www.theunionleader.com/articles_showa.html?article=45770)| October 18, 2004 | Editorial
AUSTRALIAN Prime Minister John Howard won re-election two Saturdays ago, and the American media hardly noticed. That is not surprising, considering that Howard??s victory undermined John Kerry??s assertion that President Bush is alienating America??s allies.
Howard??s challenger had pledged to withdraw Australian troops from Iraq. He lost. The Australian people chose Howard, who had pledged to continue his country??s involvement in the war. After his re-election, Howard praised President Bush, saying, ??I respect him very much both as an individual and as a very strong leader. I think the strength of his stand against terrorism has been very important. In politics that is very important, because often people will vote for you because they respect the strength and consistency of your view even though on a given issue they may not agree with you.?
Kerry likes to pretend that the only reason some nations refused to support the war in Iraq was because of President Bush. But when France, Germany, Russia and China opposed the war, they did so because they had complex economic and military ties to Saddam Hussein. France refused to send troops to Iraq, but later joined the United States in the peacekeeping effort in Haiti this year ?? showing that France was opposed to toppling Saddam, not to aligning with President Bush.
Just last week Germany announced: ??There will be no German soldiers in Iraq. . . The position of the German government as far as Iraq is concerned is clear ?? it will not be changed.? So much for the idea that Old Europe would gladly ease America??s burden in Iraq if only we had a President who spoke French and asked them really, really nicely.