No Truth, No Plan on Iraq War

No Truth, No Plan on Iraq War

A series of British government papers from 2002, written by high ranking officials including the Foreign Minister and the British ambassador to the U.S., reveals that even our closest ally had serious misgivings about the Bush administration's justification for war in Iraq. The British government repeatedly warned the Bush administration about the need for a viable post-war strategy for Iraq. Moreover, the newly-released Briefing Papers provide additional evidence that the intelligence in Iraq was “fixed” around the administration’s policy – the key allegation of the Downing Street Memo, a transcript of the minutes during the British Prime Minister's meeting on July 23, 2002.

• The Bush administration wanted war and manipulated intelligence to make the case. The Downing Street minutes alleged that the intelligence on Iraq was being “fixed” around Bush’s policy of attacking Iraq. The new papers reveal that the British knew the Iraq intelligence was weak, concluding: “There is no greater threat now that [Saddam] will use WMD than there has been in recent years, so continuing containment is an option.” Another memo by British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw said, “There has been no credible evidence to link Iraq with UBL (Usama bin Laden) and Al Qaida.”
  
  
• The British knew the White House and Pentagon had no plan for post-war Iraq. The Washington Post reported this weekend on another British memo written on July 21, 2002, approximately around the time of the Downing Street Minutes, that warned the Bush administration had given “little thought” to “the aftermath [of war in Iraq] and how to shape it.” The claims in the new British memo demonstrate that the Bush administration, to the detriment of our troops and national security, simply chose to ignore the recommendations of its key ally.
  
  
• The rush to war—despite the facts—has had devastating consequences on the U.S. military, our relations with key allies, and our ability to fight against global terrorism. Manipulating the U.S. public and the world community into entering an unnecessary war has been disastrous for America’s national security. Facing a fierce insurgency—essentially enabled by the Bush administration’s complete failure to plan for the post-war period—the U.S. military is stretched beyond its means. America’s global authority has been severely eroded and our capacity to fight real terrorists greatly diminished. The Bush administration’s deceptions will leave America in a dangerous position for years to come.

Click here to read the full text of all of the pre-war British briefing papers.