From
Patrick Cockburn:
The Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA), signed after eight months of rancorous negotiations, is categorical and unconditional. America’s bid to act as the world’s only super-power and to establish quasi-colonial control of Iraq, an attempt which began with the invasion of 2003, has ended in failure.
I knew there had been some pushback, but hadn't appreciated that the end result was a complete rollover.
Astonishingly, this momentous agreement has been greeted with little surprise or interest outside Iraq. On the same day that it was finally passed by the Iraqi parliament international attention was wholly focused on the murderous terrorist attack in Mumbai. ... The White House was so keen to limit understanding of what it had agreed in Iraq that it did not even to publish a copy of the SOFA in English. Some senior officials in the Pentagon are privately criticizing President Bush for conceding so much to the Iraqis, ...
The US dollar's status as the reserve currency stems in part from the US' ability to project military power. Who needs gold backing when you've got nuclear backing, etc. In this regard, the image of the US in wholesale retreat likely won't bolster confidence.
Posts
