Adnan Pachachi Speaks Up

Pre-Saddam foreign minister Adnan Pachachi, the State Department's uderperforming Iraqi prot?g?, objects that only a democratically elected government should be handing out the contracts to rebuild Iraq. Grain of salt: In a recent Financial Times essay on postwar Iraq, Pachachi speculated that it could be two years before such a democratic government could be elected, so the obvious question is who should be awarding contracts in the meantime. Still, the principle that the occupiers should not be making decisions about what longterm debts the new nation incurs is pretty sound. Which may amount to a hill of beans, since Pachachi has declined invitations to join in the next government.

Elsewhere, the Baltimore Sun drops in on Pachachi and some of the other exiles grousing that they weren't able to attend Tuesday's Ur conference. This raises a question: Is the door now open for any Iraqi who wants to return to Iraq? I really can't figure out why any of these exiles would still be sitting in London or Washington—except for the obvious Willy Sutton reason.

Comments

[Douglas Fletcher]

Let's award the rebuilding contracts to the Democratic National Committee & see how well they can do. It would at least give them something serious to do for the next three or four years, which is probably more than they'll have going on here in the USA during that time. After rebuilding Iraq they might actually be qualified to deal with someplace like, say, Washington, DC.

[S. Weldon]

Having for the first time seen Tim Cavanaugh's snide comments about who should hand out contracts to rebuild Iraq, I refer him to the UN Charter, which the US is party to. It includes such statements that the member countries will not invade others, & recognize that member countries do not have the right to, & agree not to, take over the assets of another country.
The US president is breaking that pledge & dishonoring us all.