International Affairs Forum Interview: September 29th 2004 By Dimitri Neos and Jasen Zubcevik

Ambassador Marc Ginsberg – U.S. Ambassador to (1994-1998), chair of the Alliance for American Leadership, and a Foreign Affairs Analyst for Channel. Ambassador Marc Ginsberg has several decades’ experience involving U.S. foreign, economic, and defense policy in the . He is often a guest on CNN, Fox News and MSNBC.

International Affairs Forum: The Bush did not do anything about it. Diplomacy administration and the Iraqi Prime was failing as France, China and Russia Minister Ayad Allawi stated that the were all increasingly violating the UN violence in Iraq will not delay the imposed sections. Furthermore, the elections scheduled for January 2005. international civil servants working to How realistic is their claim? ensure that the sanctions are effective were either incompetent or corrupt. I Ambassador Marc Ginsberg: There are a am strongly in favor of holding Saddam lot of security problems in Iraq Hussein accountable for the gross especially in the “Sunni Triangle”. The human rights violations and for the continued violence raises serious violations of the UN resolutions. questions. This may alter the elections. But even if the elections are not perfect, IA-Forum: Does this mean that you I would rather see Iraqis having support President Bush’s decision to elections than not having elections at invade Iraq? all. To make blank accusations that the elections will be completely successful Mr. Ginsberg: I would have gone about or unsuccessful is engaging in a lot of it a very different way. The wishful or unwishful thinking. complications that arose since the end of the invasion are huge. I was in favor IA-Forum: In your opinion, was the war of having the UN inspectors complete in Iraq worth it? their process of inspection and slowly escalate punitive actions against Mr. Ginsberg: Saddam Hussein has Saddam’s army. These actions should violated sanctions and United Nations have been conducted by air-strikes resolutions for over 12 years. The UN only. This would have increased the pressure on Saddam. The Bush interest for Iraq to be a stable administration rushed into a war. I democracy. The consequences of a honestly feel that Secretary of State failed Iraqi state will be on both regional Powell appeared in front of the United and world security. This should be the Nations believing that he had solid bases on which we should cooperate evidence that Iraq had and was trying to with our allies. We and our allies should develop weapons of mass destruction. overcome the disagreements that arouse Now we know that the intelligence was from the Bush administration’s completely wrong. There was no unilateral decision to invade Iraq. The “smoking gun”. should also change some of its policies in order to win back some IA-Forum: Senator Kerry recently our allies. This has been a consistent stated that the Bush administration failure of the Bush administration. policy in Iraq isolates the US from its allies rather than isolating the IA-Forum: According to Western terrorists. Can Kerry improve the US analysts, the number of Muslims relations with France and Germany? around the world espousing radical beliefs is growing rapidly. Did the global Mr. Ginsberg: This is the testament to war on terror and the war in Iraq fuel the failure of the Bush administration the perception that Islam is under policies. These wrong policies and attack by the West? actions alienated many of our good friends. But even if Kerry is elected Mr. Ginsberg: I do not subscribe to the president, I don’t think the French and view that the occupation of Iraq was the the Germans will do anything to beginning of a great resurgence of substantially change their attitude radical Islam. That was well under way towards Iraq. The French President before the invasion of Iraq. However, the Chirac had a politically incestuous US invasion of Iraq helped to exacerbate relationship with Saddam before the the situation. The fact is that even invasion and was opposing any actions before we invaded Iraq there were from the start. What is more important, 30,000 to 40,000 thousand Al-Qaeda is our relationship with other European jihadists worldwide, planning and allies and our relationship with our working on the destruction of the West. allies in the Middle East. In my Even if we open a dialogue with the judgment, Kerry’s election will radical Islamists nothing is going to significantly improve the US relations change their view. This war is a struggle with our allies in the Meddle East. for the “Islam soul” and we are caught up in the middle of it. IA-Forum: Should the international community get involved in Iraq? IA-Forum: Many Western political Shouldn’t the US and Britain be solely analysts and government officials call responsible for finishing the work they for moderate Muslims in Iraq and started? elsewhere to step up and support the democratization favored by the West. Mr. Ginsberg: After the invasion, Iraq Why should moderate Muslims support has become a jihadists magnet. It is the West? crystal clear that Iraq must not become a failed state. It is in everyone’s best Mr. Ginsberg: It’s the Muslims who question is also whether radical have to decide whether or not their Islamists will be able to intimidate legacy of the 21st century will be moderate Muslim leaders by democratic reform or radical Islam. assassinations and internal civil Radical Islamists will never destroy the unrests. That is what this struggle is United States or Europe. They want to about. resurrect Islamic radicalism in the Middle East. The moderate Muslims IA-Forum: Ambassador Ginsberg, who do not want to see oppressive thank you very much for the interview. religious governments should step up. It is mainly their struggle, not ours. The Mr. Ginsberg: Thank you.