Iranians view US troop build-up in Iraq as failure
Iraq-Iran-USA, Politics, 1/13/2007

Iran's Member of National Security and Foreign Policy Commission of parliament Soleyman Jaafarzadeh said today that the US troop build-up in Iraq signals US failure in the country.

"Had the Americans and westerners had a successful presence in Iraq, they should have cut their troops in the country instead of increasing them. Therefore, increase in the forces means their failure there," said Jaafarzadeh today.

He said that the US cannot fulfills its promises including liberation of Iraqis and letting them decide their own fate.

He added that the US has failed to restore security to Iraq and it has become a grave problem for American forces themselves.

The lawmaker went on to say that through his new strategy, the US President George W. Bush wants to lead the world into believing that it has the power to restore security to the region and the world.

He said the US wants to say Iraq is in a complicated and sensitive situation. "If Americans leave the country, Iraqis will be able to run their country better and restore security there." Another Iranian lawmaker said today that the Bush's initiative for dispatch of 21,500 US troops to Iraq indicates a new scenario in the country.

"Some new developments in Iraq, accusing Iran and Syria of having a role in those developments and attack on Iran's consulate in Erbil are other aspects of the new scenario of the Bush administration," member of the parliament's National Security and Foreign Policy Commission Elham Aminzadeh said.

Aminzadeh said the US has not learned lessons from problems it had already faced in Iraq and has taken a new decision to implement its so-called new Middle East plan.

In an effort to make up for its failures in the Middle East, Bush has decided to send more troops to Iraq, she added.

She said among other objectives of the US' new initiative are more domination over Iraq's natural resources, tighter control of Baghdad's security conditions and giving more power to the US forces to counter Iran and Syria.

She added that the US plans to attract world public opinion towards itself and shift word nations' focus on the Middle East.

Another parliament member, member of Parliament's Fundamentalists Faction, Moussa Qorbani, said today that the new strategy of Bush is against the interests of the Middle East, Iraq and the US itself.

He said that such a strategy will just make things more complicated in Iraq. "It seems that the US officials do not attach importance to their own reputation, or to the message of the American people.

"In response to the call of the American people on their president that they are against war and occupation of Iraq, Bush accepted the call but did not act accordingly," he added.

He said that President Bush not only ignored the message of his people, but decided to dispatch 20,000 more soldiers to Iraq perhaps to compensate his past mistakes. "To make up for his mistakes in the region, Bush is trying to raise charges against Iran to draw the attention of the world to this country to facilitate the likely achievement of his goals.

"However, such a measure is doomed to failure and will only be against the US interests," said Qorbani.

Member of Combatant Clergies Assembly, Majid Ansari, said today that the new US strategy based on the dispatch of more new forces to Iraq proves deterioration of the situation in that country and Middle East as well as Washington's failure to achieve its goals.

Ansari said that in the first place, this strategy shows the Americans' unfavorable position in Iraq, indicating that despite all its claims, the US has failed to provide security, tranquility and democracy for Iraqi people.

Turning to the continuous presence of US troops in Iraq, he said that their extensive and long stay in the country along with their allies have only resulted in genocide, great insecurity and major disasters facing the Iraqi people.

As head of Imam Khomeini Research Center, he said that the US forces sink more deeply into the quagmire they themselves have created in Iraq.

A parliamentarian said here Saturday that US President George W Bush's new strategy in Iraq, announced last Wednesday, could be his last chance at finding a solution to save the country.

A member of the Majlis National Security and Foreign Policy Commission, Hamid-Reza Haj-Babaei, predicted the new US strategy was doomed to fail. "In the wake of all his (Bush's) failures in Iraq and the negative US public opinion of the war, Bush now launches a new strategy to compensate for his failures. This new strategy involves the dispatch of another 20,000 US troops to Iraq," he said.

The MP from the western city of Hamedan pointed out that two distinct responses have emerged with regard to the new US strategy for Iraq. "One view put forward by the Iraqi nation is similar to that of Iran's and takes into account the two countries' cultural and religious commonalties. The idea centers purely on the need to uphold Iraq's freedom and independence." He said public opinion in Iraq supports the above-stated view. The other idea is premised on Iraq being highly dependent on US support. It basically presumes US continued backing of Iraqi forces to end the violence, he said.

The idea, backed by the US, is going to be isolated, he predicted. US troops do not have the resources to continue in Iraq," the MP said.

He said the US intends to change the soft strategy of dialogue among proponents of various ideas into a violent confrontation using more military power, as shown in its raid on Iran's consulate in Erbil.

"But Bush's new strategy in Iraq will not succeed through increased use of military power. The more President Bush insists on the strategy, the stronger will be the opposition he will face abroad and domestically," Haj-Babaei said.

Tehran's substitute Friday Prayers Leader Ayatollah Ahmad Jannati said "The US and the UK are supporting terrorists in Iraq."
Speaking in the second sermon of the Friday Prayers, Ayatollah Jannati said, "The United States of America has failed in its policies."

The ayatollah called September 11 event a "Puppet Show", which had been planned by Americans, themselves." He went on to say, "The Americans used such a pretext to bring up the slogans of fighting terrorism and promoting democracy and then took advantage of these against the Islamic countries. However, in reality, they have failed in Iraq, Afghanistan, Palestine and Lebanon and their slogans have lost their effectiveness.

"When they recognized that their policies in Iraq were inefficient, the US and UK changed their policies and now are trying to make people fight against each other calling it "new policy".

Tehran's substitute Friday Prayers leader called the spreading of discord among Shiite and Sunni in Iraq and the world as a weapon of the US and UK and stressed that "such weapons must be taken out of their hands."

Meantime, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad here on Friday regretted that the trend of Washington making incorrect decisions is continuing.

The president was remarking at a session of his cabinet ministers held prior to his departure for a three-nation tour of South America which includes Venezuela, Nicaragua and Ecuador.

Iran's president Ahmadi-Nejad said today referring to Bush's "humiliating" admission of failure in his policies in Iraq could be a starting point for the US president to move forward.

"Independent countries and their nations had, from the very beginning, opposed the unilateral and illegal policies of Washington in Iraq and had warned against their consequences," he pointed out. Washington could have changed course after it found them to be wrong, but did not, he regretted.

The main problem of the US at present is that it ignores the rights, interests and sovereignty of the Iraqi nation, he said, adding that policies which disregard these inherent qualities of statehood are doomed to fail. "We believe that the only way of rescuing Iraq from its current crisis is to respect the rights and independence of the people and to let them administer their own affairs as well as to give due attention to the demands of regional nations," Ahmadi-Nejad said.

Previous Stories:
  Iran: US, UK foment sectarian differences in Iraq   (1/6/2007)
  Iran calls for US policy change in Iraq, hints at assistance   (12/16/2006)
  Major cleric: US should leave Iraq   (12/9/2006)

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