Dear ladies and gentlemen, today we will discuss the issue of the war in Iraq. The war in Iraq, also known as the Second Persian Gulf War lasts for already six years. The weapons of mass destruction (WPD) and the Hussein’s dictatorship were considered to be the cause for the war. However, there is an opinion that those were only the pretexts for the conflict. The need in the conflict is thus regarded as the real cause of the war. We will discuss whether we should be in Iraq and what the consequences this might have.
This question is of utmost importance, and as far as we are American citizens we are also responsible for it. Our country was one who has started this war and our country continues it. Though we can’t influence the decision of the government, we can think more about this and form our opinion.
I support the opinion that we should not have ever been there, and therefore – we should leave Iraq and put an end to this senseless war. The confrontation of interests between America and Saddam Hussein gave an impulse to the war. The interests we are talking about were not in the sphere of morality of the UN Charter, they were about oil and financial interests (The Wall Street Journal, 2002). There was no WMD ever found in Iraq (Pitt 2002). Indeed, Hussein was a dictator, but he ruled the country long before 2003 (Pitt 2002), so America had much time to decide. The proponents of the Iraq war can claim that everything has its end, and America was just waiting for the UN interference; but as far as the world community kept silence, America had to respond to the sufferings of the civilian Iraqi population and to the threat of Hussein’s invasion to neighboring countries. However, I would like to mention that the UN has to deal with such issues. One country, even so powerful as the US cannot decide for the whole world. Too many issues are involved here.
Nevertheless, we should also discuss the opposing view – that is, why we should be in Iraq. Some of the arguments have been already provided. Here are some more: the proponents of Iraq war claim that the US troops should stay there, and even more, military bases should be built there (Ricks 2006). According to them, this will improve the opportunities of the US to struggle effectively against the Islamic terrorism which is a real problem nowadays. Constant presence in Iraq will allow American forces to control the Muslim countries. Therefore, the mission of America in Iraq is essentially peaceful-making. This can hardly be accepted as an argument, because people are dying there (Morales 2003). Greater violence in response to violence can hardly be considered as the reasonable decision. Nevertheless, the proponents of the war in Iraq still believe that all losses are reasonable, because they will help to secure the peace in the world (Gibson 2005).
If we accept peace security as the reason for the invasion, the achievement of this aim seems to be unreachable. There will always be some power which would like to rule the world and would think that its rule will be more beneficial for the world. Such decision should be accepted by the world community, or at least by the United Nations Organization. The proponents of the war claim that too many people have died in this war, and this makes withdrawal completely unreasonable (Gibson 2005). Besides, terrorist threat is rather material and something should be done about that.
The war in Iraq has been raising much controversy. The main claim of the opponents of the war is that it was unjust from the very beginning. The main aim of the invaders is the oil and financial benefit, not the peace-making. The proponents of war argue that too much soldiers have died and the matter should be led to the end. Though we are not to decide, we have to make the opinion, because it deals with the world we live in. The way American government has chosen is close to the totalitarianism which cannot be beneficial. There will always be the power striving to dictate its will. This means no end to wars. It’s up to you to decide on which side you are. But remember that in case of referendum your voice will mean a lot. Make your choice!
