Saddam’s Coalition of the Bribed II
I’ve already blogged about this topic before, now Eli Lake, reporter for the NY Sun, has just written a damning article on the countries that participated in the UN’s Oil for Food Program (AKA: UN’s Oil for Security Council Vetoes Program). A major element of Lake’s article pertained to the Charles Duelfer’s CIA report [pdf], which documented—among other things—particular government officials, particular state industries and particular UN officials that Saddam saw fit to enrich.
Coincidently, Duelfer’s report also “connects the dots” regarding these payoffs and refusal to join Bush’s coalition to remove Saddam’s regime. The connection between these dots is apparently invisible to Kerry’s naked eye since he persists in claiming that it was “Bush’s failed diplomacy” that drove these potential allies away; not their preexisting defacto alliance with Saddam.
Of course this report is having diplomatic repercussions. Here’s a fragment from Lake’s article:
“A diplomatic nuclear bomb” huh? Excellent! I’m beginning to have high hopes for this report.
Actually, on second though, I prefer think of this as a diplomatic neutron bomb, that is, a weapon of diplomatic mass destruction that diplomatically eradicates weasel nations while leaving Bush’s coalition unharmed.
Duelfer’s report shows the utter vacuousness of John Kerry’s drivel regarding Bush’s purportedly “failed diplomacy”. Further, I know that John Kerry already knows that everything he is saying is drivel. How can I know this? Because it was already common knowledge among anybody that was following the antics of the weasel members of the UNSC—plus Russia and China—that these countries were doing everything possible to remove sanctions regardless of Saddam’s behavior.
Kenneth Pollack, who is former director of Gulf affairs for the National Security Council, detailed in his in his pre Gulf War II book The Threatening Storm, all of the reasons why Iraq’s sanctions were on the verge of collapse. Pollack uses 32 pages to pedantically discuss the history of Iraqi sanctions, the tireless efforts of the French, Russians, and Chinese to make the sanctions ineffective. Pollack then assigns blame for the impending total failure of the sanctions:
Notice that of the countries that Pollard held to be blameless includes coalition members such as Great Britain, Australia, Holland, and Japan. Also notice that the nations that Pollard identifies as the primary reason why sanctions were both failing to the verge of collapse are the same countries identified in Duelfer’s report as the primary beneficiaries of the UN’s corrupted Oil for Food program.
Of course beneficiaries of the UN’s corrupted Oil for Food program are also the same countries who strained to prevented the U.S. from removing Saddam.
These facts—whose general outline, if not the specific details—were well understood before the war. For campaign purposes John Kerry pretends not grasp that logical consequences of these facts indicate that the countries that benefited by the continued presence of Saddam would never give U.S. permission to remove Saddam. For example, the French would have to act against their immediate self-interest; an event that has never occurred in recorded history.
To be pedantic, an everlasting UN Oil for Food program would also mean everlasting bribe and kickback money for the French, Chinese, and Russians. These were also the same countries that opposed the U.S. pursuit of Saddam and one of these countries—France—was prepared to veto the last UNSC resolution so as to continue to benefit from an uninterrupted UN’s Oil of Food program.
If John Kerry can be believed, Kenneth Pollack and everyone else except John Kerry knew that France, Germany, Russia and China were never our allies and that they had every reason to oppose us; both then and now.
Coincidently, Duelfer’s report also “connects the dots” regarding these payoffs and refusal to join Bush’s coalition to remove Saddam’s regime. The connection between these dots is apparently invisible to Kerry’s naked eye since he persists in claiming that it was “Bush’s failed diplomacy” that drove these potential allies away; not their preexisting defacto alliance with Saddam.
Of course this report is having diplomatic repercussions. Here’s a fragment from Lake’s article:
One American diplomat told The New York Sun yesterday that the allegations were "a diplomatic nuclear bomb." The diplomat added, "Most of our ambassadors pleaded with the White House not to release the information." State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said "the report looked solid to us."
“A diplomatic nuclear bomb” huh? Excellent! I’m beginning to have high hopes for this report.
Actually, on second though, I prefer think of this as a diplomatic neutron bomb, that is, a weapon of diplomatic mass destruction that diplomatically eradicates weasel nations while leaving Bush’s coalition unharmed.
Duelfer’s report shows the utter vacuousness of John Kerry’s drivel regarding Bush’s purportedly “failed diplomacy”. Further, I know that John Kerry already knows that everything he is saying is drivel. How can I know this? Because it was already common knowledge among anybody that was following the antics of the weasel members of the UNSC—plus Russia and China—that these countries were doing everything possible to remove sanctions regardless of Saddam’s behavior.
Kenneth Pollack, who is former director of Gulf affairs for the National Security Council, detailed in his in his pre Gulf War II book The Threatening Storm, all of the reasons why Iraq’s sanctions were on the verge of collapse. Pollack uses 32 pages to pedantically discuss the history of Iraqi sanctions, the tireless efforts of the French, Russians, and Chinese to make the sanctions ineffective. Pollack then assigns blame for the impending total failure of the sanctions:
Americans like to blame themselves, or their domestic opponents, the failures of containment of Iraq. … However, to say that the United State could have handled containment better than we did is not to suggest that we were responsible for its demise. We weren’t. Indeed, we and a handful of other countries—Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Great Britain, Holland, Japan, and Australia come immediately to mind—are the only ones that are blameless in this tragedy. The culprits are the French, Chinese, Russians [emphasis mine—johnh], and every other country that not only walked away from the commitments they joined the international community in making in 1990-91 but actively worked to undermine them. The reason that we are now faced with such unpleasant choices regarding Iraq is not so much because of our own failures but because of the perfidy of others.
Notice that of the countries that Pollard held to be blameless includes coalition members such as Great Britain, Australia, Holland, and Japan. Also notice that the nations that Pollard identifies as the primary reason why sanctions were both failing to the verge of collapse are the same countries identified in Duelfer’s report as the primary beneficiaries of the UN’s corrupted Oil for Food program.
Of course beneficiaries of the UN’s corrupted Oil for Food program are also the same countries who strained to prevented the U.S. from removing Saddam.
These facts—whose general outline, if not the specific details—were well understood before the war. For campaign purposes John Kerry pretends not grasp that logical consequences of these facts indicate that the countries that benefited by the continued presence of Saddam would never give U.S. permission to remove Saddam. For example, the French would have to act against their immediate self-interest; an event that has never occurred in recorded history.
To be pedantic, an everlasting UN Oil for Food program would also mean everlasting bribe and kickback money for the French, Chinese, and Russians. These were also the same countries that opposed the U.S. pursuit of Saddam and one of these countries—France—was prepared to veto the last UNSC resolution so as to continue to benefit from an uninterrupted UN’s Oil of Food program.
If John Kerry can be believed, Kenneth Pollack and everyone else except John Kerry knew that France, Germany, Russia and China were never our allies and that they had every reason to oppose us; both then and now.
posted by johnh | 10:04 AM
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