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The Guardian: US commanders admit: we face a Vietnam-style collapse

An interesting article in the Guardian says that General Petraeus and his staff have concluded that the US faces a collapse of political and public support for the war in Iraq within the next six months. In addition, due to low morale, poor readiness and the high morale and level of experience of the resistance groups, the US faces a military collapse similar to the French collapse in Viet Nam in March-May 1954 or the collapse of US forces in Korea in October-December 1950.

US commanders admit: we face a Vietnam-style collapse

Elite officers in Iraq fear low morale, lack of troops and loss of political will

Simon Tisdall
Thursday March 1, 2007
The Guardian

An elite team of officers advising the US commander, General David Petraeus, in Baghdad has concluded that they have six months to win the war in Iraq – or face a Vietnam-style collapse in political and public support that could force the military into a hasty retreat.The officers – combat veterans who are experts in counter-insurgency – are charged with implementing the “new way forward” strategy announced by George Bush on January 10. The plan includes a controversial “surge” of 21,500 additional American troops to establish security in the Iraqi capital and Anbar province.

But the team, known as the “Baghdad brains trust” and ensconced in the heavily fortified Green Zone, is struggling to overcome a range of entrenched problems in what has become a race against time, according to a former senior administration official familiar with their deliberations…

US commanders admit: we face a Vietnam-style collapse The Guardian

Battle of Chosin Reservoir (wikipedia)
Battle of Dien Bien Phu (wikipedia)

Copyright © 2007 Henry Edward Hardy

1 March, 2007 Posted by scanlyze | Algeria, Bush, collapse, David Petraeus, Dien Bien Phu, Guardian, guerilla warfare, Iraq, Korea, Korean War, media, military, peace, politics, resistance, revolt, scanlyze, strategy, war | 2 Comments