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From The Charter September 2008
Book Review: The Iraq Commission Report
Review by Michael Dawson
Report by The Foreign Policy Centre
Free download from:
http://fpc.org.uk/fsblob/861.pdf
On July the 14th this year, The Foreign Policy Centre, a London think tank launched “under the patronage of Tony Blair”, released the comprehensive report of its Iraq Commission. This tripartisan Commission had almost enough peers on its masthead to constitute a quorum in the House of Lords. Its Co- Chairs, for example, were: Lord Ashdown of Norton-sub-Hamdon, also known as Paddy Ashdown, former leader of the Lib.Dems. Baroness Jay of Paddington, or Margaret Jay, responsible, as leader of the Lords, for the removal of most of its hereditary members. Lord King of Bridgwater, Tom King, former Conservative MP for Bridgwater in Somerset, and former Secretary of State for Northern Ireland. The nine-member Commission was not without its luminaries either, e.g. the likes of Lord Hannay of Chiswick, Sir Pail Lever and Lt. Gen. Andrew Ridgway.
The Commission interviewed 58 witnesses, who were also among the great, the good, and the expert, e.g. General Sir Michael Jackson. The point of rather boringly rabitting on like this, dropping all these names, is to show that this Report is a very serious effort, by some very competent people, to suggest a way for HM to sort out its role in the Iraq mess. They make 34 separate recommendations, which they have mercifully reduced to eight in the Executive Summary. We will try to be equally merciful and summarise this summary of recommendations to HMG as follows:
- Preserve and underpin the territorial integrity of the Iraqi state.
- Support a strong federal internal structure
- Promote the constructive engagement of Iraq’s neighbours.
- Keep al Qaeda out of Iraq
- The promotion by the UK of a political effort, under UN Security Council auspices,
and involving Iraq’s neighbours, to provide international treaty protection for Iraq’s
borders.
- A new high level UN envoy to facilitate reconciliation
- The refocusing by the UK of its activities away from military operations and training, regardless of the prevailing security situation.
- An economic road map with emphasis on the liberalization of the Iraqi economy.
- Support of the UNHCR in addressing the refugee problem.
This is a well-written report, and therefore easy to follow. If you read the four-page summary, you are likely to know more about the UK’s stance on Iraq than anyone else in the room at any given time. If you carefully read the whole report, then you are an automatic expert, you will qualify to be a witness in any future studies - and you may well be awarded a peerage.
-- Michael Dawson
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