Kerry's plan for Iraq WILL fail

Washington Times

For months, Mr. Kerry and his advisers have clung to the notion that France and Germany might ride to the rescue in Iraq — despite the near-total absence of evidence that this could happen. A participant in discussions, held in Berlin in June between Kerry adviser Richard Holbrooke and Mr. Schroeder, said that the German leader "asked Holbrooke what Kerry would do if he were elected. Holbrooke replied that one of the first things would be to get on the phone and invite him and President Jacques Chirac to the White House. The chancellor laughed out loud. Then he said, 'That's what I'm afraid off,'" the newspaper reported.

NATO has agreed to set up a training academy for 300 Iraqi soldiers. But, led by France and Germany, the alliance has remained firm in rejecting all American requests for troops on the ground — whether the request was made by Mr. Kerry or Mr. Bush.

In the end, Mr. Kerry is left with this: He says he wants to start pulling American troops out of Iraq by next summer, with a goal of withdrawing all of them by the end of his first term. His European "friends" have essentially told him to go jump in a lake, making it clear that they have no intention of doing anything to help him. The reasons for this are not terribly difficult to understand. Under M. Chirac, France forged an intricate web of political, economic and military ties with Saddam; it remains angry and embittered by his demise. As for Mr. Schroeder, he would not have been re-elected two years ago if he had not run a demagogic anti-Bush campaign focusing on Iraq. Mr. Kerry's fantasies aside, no matter who is elected president, don't look for substantial help from Europe.