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Brown says decision to attack Iraq right move
Source: Agencies |
March 6, 2010, Saturday
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Print Edition
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BRITISH Prime Minister Gordon Brown insisted yesterday that the decision to invade Iraq was correct, testifying to an inquiry on the war that deposing Saddam Hussein was justified -- despite the loss of lives.
In testimony before a looming national election in the UK, Brown praised the sacrifices of soldiers and civilians, but acknowledged mistakes had been made by leaders in Washington and London over the 2003 United States-led invasion. He sharply criticized the US for failing to heed British warnings over postwar chaos, and dismissed claims he choked military budgets, sending British soldiers to war without adequate equipment.
Brown immediately addressed a critical question: did he agree with the decision of his predecessor, Tony Blair, to go to war?
"Nobody wants to go to war, nobody wants to see innocent people die, nobody wants to see their forces put at risk of their lives, nobody would want to make this decision except in the gravest of circumstances, where we were sure that we were doing the right thing," Brown said. "I think it was the right decision and made for the right reasons."
Brown, who served as Treasury chief from 1997 to 2007 and approved military spending, was giving four hours of evidence to the five-person panel. His testimony posed a challenge, as he acknowledged his central role in decision making on the unpopular war, while attempting to distance himself from the most catastrophic mistakes.
The inquiry is Britain's third and widest-ranging examination of the conflict, which triggered huge protests in the UK and left 179 British troops dead before the country's forces withdrew from Iraq last year. The inquiry won't lay blame or establish liability, but will offer recommendations on how to prevent errors in future conflicts.
Brown's evidence followed that in January by Blair.
Unlike Blair, who defiantly stood by the invasion and argued Saddam was a threat to the entire world, Brown said he believed the war was justified because Baghdad had breached international rules in failing to abide by UN resolutions.
He repeatedly insisted that Iraq had posed the first serious test to the post-Cold War world, claiming that any failure to topple the Iraqi leader would have emboldened other dictators across the globe.
In testimony before a looming national election in the UK, Brown praised the sacrifices of soldiers and civilians, but acknowledged mistakes had been made by leaders in Washington and London over the 2003 United States-led invasion. He sharply criticized the US for failing to heed British warnings over postwar chaos, and dismissed claims he choked military budgets, sending British soldiers to war without adequate equipment.
Brown immediately addressed a critical question: did he agree with the decision of his predecessor, Tony Blair, to go to war?
"Nobody wants to go to war, nobody wants to see innocent people die, nobody wants to see their forces put at risk of their lives, nobody would want to make this decision except in the gravest of circumstances, where we were sure that we were doing the right thing," Brown said. "I think it was the right decision and made for the right reasons."
Brown, who served as Treasury chief from 1997 to 2007 and approved military spending, was giving four hours of evidence to the five-person panel. His testimony posed a challenge, as he acknowledged his central role in decision making on the unpopular war, while attempting to distance himself from the most catastrophic mistakes.
The inquiry is Britain's third and widest-ranging examination of the conflict, which triggered huge protests in the UK and left 179 British troops dead before the country's forces withdrew from Iraq last year. The inquiry won't lay blame or establish liability, but will offer recommendations on how to prevent errors in future conflicts.
Brown's evidence followed that in January by Blair.
Unlike Blair, who defiantly stood by the invasion and argued Saddam was a threat to the entire world, Brown said he believed the war was justified because Baghdad had breached international rules in failing to abide by UN resolutions.
He repeatedly insisted that Iraq had posed the first serious test to the post-Cold War world, claiming that any failure to topple the Iraqi leader would have emboldened other dictators across the globe.
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