Iran and Iraq-problems-outlook-discussion

[Lief Erikson]

Originally Posted by Eärniel

I'm afraid I don't share your optimism. All depends on the existance of those future improvements and at this point we are miles away from realising them. If you ask me the very idea of future improvements is at this time even unrealistic.

Also, if the only thing achieved after years of causing so much long-lasting damage, is a couple of oil barrels more than before, then the current focus for repairing Iraq is disgracefully askew. Oil is a lousy choice of priority.

On the contrary, it is one of the most important priorities possible to have, because it is Iraq's most important source of revenue. The Iraqi economy depends upon oil. The major interest of international companies in Iraq is oil. The ability of laborers to get a job in Iraq is very dependent on the state of the economy, and thus on the state of Iraq's oil production. So I strongly disagree. This is crucial to the reconstruction of Iraq.

Obviously, reconstruction of Iraq has been very much delayed by internal violence. Thus security has been the number 1 priority for our forces in Iraq. In the months since our troop surge this year, violence has diminished significantly in the country. That is not a future improvement but a current improvement with current consequences for the Iraqi people.