Qoutes

I found another interesting set of quotes, one duringthe First World War as it pertained to Iraq and onefrom President Bush at the end of Operation IraqiFreedom. It will be noted, the first quote references thecampaign where a British force liberated what is nowIsrael and forced the Turkish army to abandon Iraq. Asan ally of Germany and posing a threat to Britishcommerce via the Dardanelles, Britain had fought acostly and ineffectual battle on the Gallipolipeninsula in 1915 against the Turks and had shiftedthe area of operations to the Egyptian theater. Illsupported and out generall'ed, the Turks and Germansretreated.

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British General F. S. Maude to the people ofMesopotamia, March 19, 1917, as
quoted by NiallFerguson in "Hegemony or Empire," Foreign Affairs(September
2003):
Our armies do not come into your cities and lands asconquerors or enemies, but as liberators. ... It is[not] the wish of [our] government to impose upon youalien institutions. ... [It is our wish] that youshould prosper even as in the past, when your landswere fertile, when your ancestors gave to the worldliterature, science, and art, and when Baghdad citywas one of the wonders
of the world. ... It is [our]hope that the aspirations of your philosophers and writers shall be realized and that once again thepeople of Baghdad shall flourish, enjoying theirwealth and substance under institutions which are inconsonance with their sacred laws and their racialideals.

George Bush, April 4, 2003:
The government of Iraq, and the future of yourcountry, will soon belong to you. ... We will end abrutal regime ... so that Iraqis can live in security.We will respect your great religious traditions, whoseprinciples of equality and compassion are essential toIraq's future. We will help you build a peaceful andrepresentative government that protects the rights ofall citizens.
And then our military forces will leave.Iraq will go forward as a unified, independent, andsovereign nation that has regained a respected placein the world. You are a good and gifted people -- theheirs of a great civilization that contributes to all humanity.

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I won't pretend to know the greater strategic goals ofthe campaign in Iraq nor of the greater consequencesdown the road.