Source:
The GuardianWednesday May 2, 2007
A catalogue of errors over planning for Iraq after the invasion, and an inability to influence key figures in the US administration, led to anarchy in Iraq from which the country has not recovered, the British defence secretary during the invasion admits today.
In an exclusive interview with the Guardian, Geoff Hoon reveals that Britain disagreed with the US administration over two key decisions in May 2003, two months after the invasion - to disband Iraq's army and "de-Ba'athify" its civil service. Mr Hoon also said he and other senior ministers completely underestimated the role and influence of the vice-president, Dick Cheney.
"Sometimes ... Tony had made his point with the president, and I'd made my point with Don
and Jack had made his point with Colin and the decision actually came out of a completely different place. And you think: what did we miss? I think we missed Cheney."
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Of the summary dismissal of Iraq's 350,000-strong army and police forces, Mr Hoon said the Americans were uncompomising: "We certainly argued against . I recall having discussions with Donald Rumsfeld, but I recognised that it was one of those judgment calls. I would have called it the other way. His argument was that the Iraqi army was so heavily politicised that we couldn't be sure that we would not retain within it large elements of Saddam's people."
Mr Hoon, now minister for Europe, accepted that the sacking of so many Iraqis in possession of weapons and military training had been catastrophic, allowing "Saddam's people to link up with al-Qaida and to link up ultimately with Sunni insurgents" in fomenting suicide attacks and sectarian violence.
Read more: http://www.guardian.co.uk/Iraq/Story/0,,2070256,00.html?gusrc=rss&feed=1