Benchmark: Easy to occupy a country, but not to govern it

July 24:  HISTORY has taught us that with superior military forces it is easy to conquer a foreign country but difficult to govern it afterwards

What more of a country with its own culture, customs, language and religion to be occupied by a foreign power that is completely alien to everything that the people of the conquered country respect and cherish.

Afghanistan was invaded by the Soviet forces in 1979, which occupied it for 10 years. The Afghans resisted the occupation with incessant querilla warfare. That country never became communist. Indeed, after the retreat of the Soviet forces, the country was governed by the extremist Taliban.

The invasion and occupation of Iraq by the US and Britain has brought ruin and lawlessness to the cradle of civilisation. The US forces raced to Baghdad from Kuwait in a matter of days. The speed of the conquest of a country larger than France should have been a forewarning of things to come.

During the 12 years of sanctions on Iraq following the first Gulf War of 1991, the US and Britain bombed and destroyed Iraqi radar installations and anti-aircraft batteries to give air superiority to the invading forces.

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