US military had different strategy ahead of Iraq war: documents

[cal04]

Four years before armored columns moved into Iraq, the US military produced a secret blueprint for what it saw as a successful occupation of the country, but many of its key elements have never seen the light of day.

The newly declassified plan, obtained by the National Security Archive and released to the public Saturday, calls into questions repeated assurances by President George W. Bush that he strictly follows recommendations by US generals in his quest for success in Iraq.

"I trust our commanders on the ground to give the best advice about how to achieve victory," the president told reporters late last month.

But the plan drafted by the US Central Command in June 1999 as a result of interagency wargames contained a set of recommendations that got mysteriously "forgotten" once Operation "Iraqi Freedom" got under way.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20061105/wl_mideast_afp/usiraqbushmilitary_061105092909

[Selatius]

1. Even if we sent in 400,000 to 500,000 troops, the country could've shattered anyway.

The thing that could not be controlled was ethnic/religious tension boiling over. People love to forget that Iraq was partitioned in the manner it currently appears by the retreating British Empire. If you want to know what the Empire's record is of partitioning, just look at India and Pakistan today.

[Briar]

2. It's not losing the war that is disgraceful

it's fighting it in the first place. This invasion should never have taken place, whatever plan was used.