How Iraq affects U.S. ties to Britain
June 12, 2007| By DeEtte Chatterton
The United States and Britain “share a fundamental national interest in remaining in Iraq” and an early withdrawal from the region would have “catastrophic implications for the future,” according to Heritage foreign policy expert Nile Gardiner. These consequences include a dangerous increase in Iranian power and a likely civil war between Sunni and Shi’a groups.
Gardiner, director of Heritage’s Margaret Thatcher Center for Freedom, explains that the U.S-U.K. Special Relationship has been one of the “most successful and enduring in modern history”. America and Britain have stood together against Nazism and communism, and today are at the forefront of international efforts to prevent Iranian nuclear capability and to fight international terrorism.
But by voting for a timetable for withdrawing American troops from Iraq—a timetable vetoed by President Bush—Congress threatens to undermine that historic alliance, Gardiner continues. The British Parliament, by contrast, has refused to adopt such a timetable for retreat. And although British troop numbers in Iraq were reduced earlier this year, additional troops were deployed to Afghanistan, signaling no change in British support for the defeat of terrorists like al-Qaeda.
The international coalition in Iraq remains strong, Gardiner points out, with 25 members supporting the U.S.-led effort. And this coalition will remain strong as the U.S. and U.K. continue to lead the fight for freedom in Iraq by refusing to pullout allied forces until the region is secured and safe.
DeEtte Chatterton is an intern at The Heritage Foundation.
