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Iran and Iraq Together Again For the Very First Time In a discussion over at [1]The Left Coaster I offered the suggestion that the recently announced alliance between Iran and Iraq could give the American left lots to cheer about: increased stability in Iraq improving the lives of the people and allowing us to bring our troops home AND Bush and the neocons coming out of it looking horrible! Steve Soto asked for some further elaboration, and here is what I came up with. I think that the Iraqi government is starting to recognize that the United States is not capable of giving them security in either the short- or long-term. While they are happy that they are now in power and not Saddam, they don't see any road to stability in their country that involves the US. They will either find their own way to democracy, which the presence of US troops complicates, or they will find a new strongman. They are discovering that culturally they are more comfortable with Iranians than Americans. While we have done some good, we have also caused much harm. I think that it is far harder for the average Iraqi to believe in the fundamental goodness of Americans than, say, the average Australian. I also think they have seen up-close much of the hypocrisy of our leadership, which certainly can't help matters. At this point it is really unclear what Iraqi national interest would be served by close alignment with the US. It's been over two years and they still aren't really seeing reconstruction or security. I also think that they have very shrewdly realized that doing something overt like this places the US in a very awkward position. If we interfere in the alliance it puts the lie to our belief in Iraqi sovereignty. Furthermore, they probably understand that there are unlikely to be negative repercussions from the Americans. So, what is there for them to lose? The US could step in, thus making it clear that the government is a puppet, and fuel a whole new insurgency. Or we can stay out, look stupid, and wait to see what happens. In any case, I think that the alliance is a clear show of lack of respect by the Iraqis for Bush and the neocons. They are indicating that the Iraqi understanding and vision for regional alliances and security are more valid than ours. It is also an indication that they believe there to be far more important things they need to worry about than Democracy. References: 1. http://www.theleftcoaster.com