US Withdrawal From Iraq Is A Beginning, Not An Ending -- Simon Tisdall, The Guardian
Unfinished business in the Middle East will be brought sharply into focus as the sound of American boots fades away.
The idea that the Iraq war is over is attractive but deeply misleading. Barack Obama, visiting the troops at Fort Bragg today, will scatter soil on the coffin of a conflict he never supported. The remaining US troops will be home for Christmas, thankful not to be carried back along with 4,500-plus American dead. British forces and other coalition allies have long since departed – or given up the ghost. For the record, the gravestone marking this calamitous misadventure will duly read: "Iraq, 2003-2011. RIP."
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Commentaries, Opinions, And Editorials
Victory in Iraq! -- Kori Schake, Foreign Policy
Iraq after US pullout – not a doomsday scenario -- Judith S. Yaphe and Denise Natali, Christian Science Monitor
Iraq: retreat from Baghdad -- The Guardian editorial
The US victory in Iraq -- Amir Taheri, New York Post
Pakistani democracy headed for life support -- James Zumwalt, UPI
Hezbollah’s Hypocritical Resistance -- Larbi Sadiki, New York Times
Beware Arab Spring -- Arnaud de Borchgrave, UPI
Why Congo's elections matter so much to neighbors -- Elizabeth Dickinson, Christian Science Monitor
China’s human rights regression -- Rep. Christopher H. Smith, The Washington Times
Russia's Plan to Disrupt U.S.-European Relations -- Lauren Goodrich, Real Clear World, Stratfor
EU melodrama may still turn into a tragedy -- Gideon Rachman, Business Day
Four Ways to End the Euro’s Crisis of Confidence -- Peter Kurer, Bloomberg
Euro zone sovereign debt crisis: Six lessons for the US -- Michael Moran, Global Post
This slump won’t end until 2031 -- Matthew Lynn, Market Watch