*Ø* Secret papers show Blair was warned of Iraq chaos
The Telegraph:
"Tony Blair was warned a year before invading Iraq that a stable post-war government would be impossible without keeping large numbers of troops there for 'many years', secret government papers reveal.
"The documents, seen by The Telegraph, show more clearly than ever the grave reservations expressed by Jack Straw, the Foreign Secretary, over the consequences of a second Gulf war and how prescient his Foreign Office officials were in predicting the ensuing chaos ...
"The documents further show that the Prime Minister was advised that he would have to 'wrong foot' Saddam Hussein into giving the allies an excuse for war, and that British officials believed that President George W Bush merely wanted to complete his father's 'unfinished business' in a 'grudge match' against Saddam.
"But it is the warning of the likely aftermath -- more than a year in advance, as Mr Blair was deciding to commit Britain to joining a US-led invasion -- that is likely to cause most controversy and embarrassment in both London and Washington ...
"Mr Straw predicted in March 2002 that post-war Iraq would cause major problems, telling Mr Blair in a letter marked 'Secret and personal' that no one had a clear idea of what would happen afterwards. 'There seems to be a larger hole in this than anything.' ...
"Sir David Manning, Mr Blair's foreign policy adviser, returned from talks in Washington in mid-March 2002 warning that Mr Bush 'still has to find answers to the big questions', which included 'what happens on the morning after?'.
"In a letter to the Prime Minister marked 'Secret - strictly personal', he said: 'I think there is a real risk that the administration underestimates the difficulties." Full text [all emphasis mine - N]
The Telegraph:
"Tony Blair was warned a year before invading Iraq that a stable post-war government would be impossible without keeping large numbers of troops there for 'many years', secret government papers reveal.
"The documents, seen by The Telegraph, show more clearly than ever the grave reservations expressed by Jack Straw, the Foreign Secretary, over the consequences of a second Gulf war and how prescient his Foreign Office officials were in predicting the ensuing chaos ...
"The documents further show that the Prime Minister was advised that he would have to 'wrong foot' Saddam Hussein into giving the allies an excuse for war, and that British officials believed that President George W Bush merely wanted to complete his father's 'unfinished business' in a 'grudge match' against Saddam.
"But it is the warning of the likely aftermath -- more than a year in advance, as Mr Blair was deciding to commit Britain to joining a US-led invasion -- that is likely to cause most controversy and embarrassment in both London and Washington ...
"Mr Straw predicted in March 2002 that post-war Iraq would cause major problems, telling Mr Blair in a letter marked 'Secret and personal' that no one had a clear idea of what would happen afterwards. 'There seems to be a larger hole in this than anything.' ...
"Sir David Manning, Mr Blair's foreign policy adviser, returned from talks in Washington in mid-March 2002 warning that Mr Bush 'still has to find answers to the big questions', which included 'what happens on the morning after?'.
"In a letter to the Prime Minister marked 'Secret - strictly personal', he said: 'I think there is a real risk that the administration underestimates the difficulties." Full text [all emphasis mine - N]
Nora posted item above at 11:06 PM | Permalink
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