The head of US forces in Iraq, Lt Gen David Petraeus, has told the BBC that fighting the insurgency is a "long term endeavour" which could take decades.
Speaking to the BBC's John Simpson in Baquba, Gen Petraeus said there was evidence that the recent troops surge was producing gains on the ground. But he warned that US forces were engaged in a "tough fight" which will get "harder before it gets easier". His comments come as US calls for a rapid troop withdrawal gather strength.
Gen Petraeus was keen to emphasise that the ongoing unrest in Iraq is not something he expects to be resolved overnight. "Northern Ireland, I think, taught you that very well. My counterparts in your [British] forces really understand this kind of operation... It took a long time, decades," he said. "I don't know whether this will be decades, but the average counter insurgency is somewhere around a nine or a 10 year endeavour."
He went on to say that more important than the length of time it would take to stabilise Iraq was the number of US troops which would be required to remain in the country. "I think the question is at what level... and really, the question is how can we gradually reduce our forces so we reduce the strain on the army, on the nation and so forth," he said.
He said everyone wanted the US forces to be able to leave, both Americans and Iraqis alike, but he said it was vital to ensure that "the gains that have been hard fought in places like Baquba and Ramadi could be sustained, maintained and even built on by Iraqi forces and Iraqi political leaders". In the last few weeks US forces have captured two big insurgent centres, Ramadi and Baquba, which was the main stronghold of al-Qaeda.
2007-07-09 11:28:11 · 16 answers · asked by zeca do trombone 5 in Politics & Government ➔ Military
Yes, the war on terror will probably involve your grandchildren. Terrorism is as much akin to crime as it is to warfare. Our enemies are teaching their 8 year olds how to make IED's while holding a pistol. They are breeding a hatred that will take generations to overcome.
I understand that the current western mind has a short attention span but we haven't called for the pullout of the police in our cities for the continuing murders by gangs. That's a pretty good analogy to what's going on in Iraq or in the war on terror in general.
2007-07-09 11:40:12 · answer #1 · answered by John T 6 · 2⤊ 0⤋
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2016-10-20 11:28:31 · answer #2 · answered by ? 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Only if they volunteer for the fight. As a parent, you should have the influence.
Any of you anti-war types that think that you will get out of this war just by electing a Democrat, you are sorely mistaken. This isn't a "Bush War" its a World War.
It will go on as long as it takes.
It may be unpopular to many, but it is necessary.
2007-07-09 11:39:46 · answer #3 · answered by Chef 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I'm 12, but I don't think EVERY child is going to choose to fight in this war.Many of us are interested in other careers. And after 9-11, many of us don't want to fight at all. Sure dreaming won't end the war, and some of us are pissed enough to fight, but it isn't logical at all based on the evidence you've given, to assume first of all that we'll all fight, and second that we'll all die.
If you only think of the bad possibilities, you'll only see them.Part of this is the media's fault. If they showed the whole story instead of their opinion, we'd all have better knowledge about this subject.
2007-07-09 11:43:40 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
It all depends on what the next few administrations do.
But the conflict in Iraq is not going to be resolved for decades, short of a nuke or genocide. Whether the US is or remains involved is entirely irrelevant and independent of that fact.
2007-07-09 11:38:22 · answer #5 · answered by coragryph 7 · 2⤊ 0⤋
If they volunteer, they could expect them to fight abroad. The casualty rates argue against a statistical expectation of them dying, though. Some will, obviously, it's just more likely that any given individual would come back alive.
2007-07-09 11:35:28 · answer #6 · answered by B.Kevorkian 7 · 2⤊ 0⤋
simply, yes i expect my son and daughter to serve thier county as did my great grand father,grand father, father, brother, and myself if that means dieing on the soil of another country, fine. it would be better than dieing in their front yard by a stray bullet from some punk a@@ gangbanger, or worse going to work and get blown to hell by some stupid terrorist who thinks he's going to heaven for doing it. Just a thought, what kind of animal straps a bomb vest to a 6 year old kid and sends him to blow up some soldiers? the kind that needs to go extinct.
2007-07-09 12:58:20 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
We have been in Korea since 1950, I think it has seen a few generations itself. Korea went on Red Alert regularly while I was stationed in Japan. I doubt it has changed that much.
2007-07-09 11:31:08 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 4⤊ 0⤋
If the next generation doesn't fight in Iraq, it will be some other 3rd world wasteland...Wars will always be with us...Deal with it.
2007-07-09 11:42:18 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
It looks like you used the maximum amount of characters possible.
The "war on terror" will never be over - and it's somewhat of an oxymoron. As long as there is war, there will be terror!
2007-07-09 11:36:41 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 0⤋