Why are we looking to the UN to stabilize Iraq?
Yes, we need to somehow turn the American military occupation into a reconstruction project, preferably one widely regarded as legitimate and just. That much I understand. What I don't understand is how more French, Russian, Norwegian or Japanese troops on the ground are supposed to accomplish this.
You're bright enough to spot the first problem here: the recent debate over increased "UN" involvement seems largely to be a proxy for increased
European involvement; it's as if the US administration is only looking to the UN because NATO can't plausibly deploy troops outside of Europe, and the G8 isn't in the troop-deploying business.
This leads us to the second problem. With the American occupation becoming a magnet for jihad, drawing mercenaries from throughout the Muslim world, why on earth are we scrambling to put more
infidel troops in there? Is the Bush administration's goal to transform a local ongoing battle between the US and radical Islam into a local ongoing battle between radical Islam and all of the West?
What Iraq could really use, it seems, are Muslim peacekeeping forces, preferably forces that are Muslim without being percieved as sectarian. There are, of course, Islamic states in the UN, but from what I've heard, recent "UN" negotiations are not aimed at soliciting the help of those states.
What has the Arab League been up to lately?
Their web site isn't all that helpful, at least as far as opinion on Iraq goes. Oh, yes, I realize bringing in Arab nations would be a diplomatic challenge, what with the Arab League's preoccupation with Israel, and its opposition to US involvement in Iraq from the start, but what diplomat worth his salt couldn't make the case for Arab military involvement in Iraq?
For all I know, of course, there might already be just such an effort underway, all quiet-like, and I'm quite sure there are diplomatic intricacies and complications involved that I'm utterly oblivious to, so I can't go and accuse the State Department of ignoring an opportunity.
I'm just not convinced that "UN" involvement in, or even control over, the Iraqi occupation will hasten the day when that occupation is no longer necessary. Changing the makeup of the forces in Iraq should be sought for better reasons than just sending home a few American troops, damn it.
