The War on Terror Has Been Counterproductive Essay Sample

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“One by one we’re traveling to happen them and patch by piece we’ll tear their terrorist web apart. ” These words by George W Bush were the preliminary to the US led invasion of Afghanistan. an invasion that would get down arguably the most controversial war of our clip and split public sentiment for old ages to come. The war on panic is used to depict this international military run that started as a reaction the September 11 terrorist onslaughts on the United States. The term “war on terror” was ab initio used to depict the station 9/11 war in Afghanistan against Al Qaeda and the Taliban but was nevertheless expanded in 2003 to include the Iraq war. But this inclusion of the war in Iraq which had no links to the Taliban or Al Qaeda makes the term much more stretched and combative. The war in Iraq has frequently been criticised on the statement that the war in Iraq has in fact fostered planetary terrorist act instead than forestalling it. An of import effect of the war on panic that is frequently overlooked is the impact it has had on the policies of the United States. This is shown by the much more reticent attack of recent by the Obama disposal in the wars in Libya and Syria.

It is of import to gain from the beginning that the war on panic is focused on battling terrorist act about entirely through the usage of difficult power. Technologically superior ground forcess have been used to contend insurrectionists that while non needfully arising from the state of contending are populating in and amongst the population ensuing in a state of affairs of asymmetric warfare. There have been significant military triumphs in both Iraq and Afghanistan which despite their success have non resulted in politically stable and successful provinces that are opposed to the spiritual extremism that creates terrorist act. The existent response to these military actions was the creative activity of local terrorist opposition to the observed “occupation” doing many to beat up around spiritual extremism. This “new war” manner of combat is why a entirely military method was ever doomed to neglect without indispensable development and substructure undertakings to give the population a better option to terrorist act. That said nevertheless the armed forces has learnt from the yesteryear and has evolved its methods with the “surge” in Iraq doing a alteration in the outlook of the Sunni minority in Iraq doing a bend on the Jihadists that ended any important opposition that they had. And in Iraq recent efforts to re-establish a healthy economic system has been successful with growing rates of 11 per centum in 2012.

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A decease rate from force of 4500. which seems bad but when it is considered that it is a post war state with many of the population armed and compares favorably to Venezuela of comparable size with a one-fourth of the deceases. Iraq is frequently viewed as the posting kid for the failure of the war on panic with outstanding critics such as Mehdi Hasan saying “it is undeniable that Iraq increased the panic menace and acted as a recruiting sergeant for al-Qaeda and its Alliess across the world” . This has happened by radicalising an already disillusioned youth steering them and giving them the “will. purpose. intent and political orientation to act” . This would do the war in Iraq counterproductive to forestalling terrorist act particularly when it is considered that pre-war Iraq despite being under a absolutism was in fact hostile to Al Qaeda and other terrorists. Besides when compared to its neighboring rival Iran it would hold been easy to compare it in a positive visible radiation with Saddam more focussed on domestic instability instead than making regional instability. This demonstrates how “Operation Enduring Freedom” in Iraq took out a relatively stable state which is a rare and valuable thing in the Middle East. Besides as ex-MI5 foreman. Eliza Manningham-Buller argues “the war was… a distraction from the chase of al-Qaeda” .

Because of the immense resources required to tumble the Baath’s government it meant cut downing the combat force in Afghanistan. a decrease that allowed the return of the about defeated Taliban into southern Afghanistan which has since become a hotbed for terrorist act. This one time once more shows how the war in Iraq has been a catalogue of failures for many grounds most of which can be grouped into one chief point ; the war in Iraq did non hold at its bosom the purpose of cut downing terrorist act. The “other wars” arguably haven fallen to a similar destiny of accomplishing its initial military triumph but neglecting to make a long permanent peace. As a consequence of the grounds listed above the Iraq war has destroyed America’s credibleness in the Middle East making farther bitterness ensuing in more terrorist act but most significantly has lost America valuable Alliess in the war against terrorist act further impeding its attempt to level Al Qaeda. The position that Iraq was a ruinous failure despite being common topographic point is non a consensus nevertheless with many politicians or observers such as John Rantoul supporting America’s actions in Iraq. They point out the effects of the improbable but possible completion of Iraq’s atomic plan.

The effects of a isolated atomic arm could hold been ruinous and on an impossible graduated table compared to theSeptember 11 onslaughts. So in halting a possible cubic decimeter arge scale terrorist onslaught a relatively desirably one has been created bespeaking that the Iraq was the best of a bad set of options. Afghanistan the other of the two major wars in the war on panic is similar to Iraq in that the war is apparently unwinnable with a ne’er stoping supply of terrorists to fall in the Taliban and fight the “imperial invaders” . This may be because a similar attack has been followed to that of Iraq with non adequate focal point on development and substructure. However the run has achieved its initial aims of taking Al Qaeda from the state which while non eliminating the administration has well removed power from Al Qaeda by forestalling them from set uping a base of operations. Ultimately whether Afghanistan suffers the same destiny as Iraq depends on ability for the Afghan security forces to run independently to ISAF forces.

Because Afghanistan is a legitimate war with widespread international support it will ne’er be every bit detrimental as Iraq was and the remotion of Al Qaeda has been instrumental in the war on panic intending the benefits will arguable outweigh any costs of the Invasion The nature of globalization itself means that there will ever be victors and also-rans ensuing in a state of affairs whereby there will ever be those who are dissatisfied with the consequences. doing the war on panic non the true cause for the ongoing terrorist act and has non had the consequence that many people argue. Olivier Roy a New York Times columnist argues that the war on panic is “both a mirror of and a signifier of retaliation against the globalisation that has made them what they are” . Take. for case. the motive for 9/11 in the first topographic point non because of Iraq or Afghanistan but because of disintegration with the universe order. He makes strivings to indicate out that the “Americans went to Iraq and Afghanistan after 9/11. non before. Mohamed Atta and the other pilots were non driven by Iraq or Afghanistan. ” Samuel Huntingdon’s “Clash of Civilisations” thesis despite being written pre-war on panic goes somehow to explicating the ongoing beginning of terrorist act by reasoning that that the mass unemployment in the Arab universe and disintegration with western liberalism would take to spiritual bitterness towards the West.

This has of class turned into a world and has led to the mobilization of Islamic extremists in an attempt to retain their cultural individuality in the face of a culturally homogenising globalizing universe. This shows that it isn’t our wars in Afghanistan and Iraq that have fuelled the ongoing struggle between Islam and the West but preexistent bitterness rooted in globalization doing Oliver Roy persuasively inquire “why are there virtually no Afghans. Iraqis or Palestinians among the terrorists” . However while this point goes somehow to turn outing that the ongoing war on panic is non the cause of the deep frozen bitterness it has a side consequence exposing the possibility that the war on panic can non be won and that while there is globalization at that place will ever be terrorist act. This point is backed up by grounds. after the wars in the Middle East are coming to a decision there is a new forepart opening up in Northern Africa with the recent intercession in Mali. So this begs the inquiry can the war on panic be anything but unproductive A little but of import effect of the war in panic waged by George W Bush is the alteration in American sentiment and subsequent alteration in foreign policy. a alteration which has resulted in more successful methods countering and destructing Al Qaeda.

First it is the realization of the bounds to intercession with a much more forced attack to the Arab Spring restricting intercession to a no-fly zone which removed any hazard of “getting stuck” . Second the usage of drone warfare has been highly effectual in leveling Al Qaeda’s concatenation of bid in Pakistan. particularly the in the Pakistani country of Waziristan. While many question the morality of utilizing drone work stoppages due to civilian casualties. it is undeniable that to hold a similar consequence in taking Al Qaeda without the usage of drones would hold caused many more casualties and stretched the US forces by perpetrating to another war In decision many facets of the war on panic have been instrumental in destructing the western repute in the Middle East impeding its hereafter ability to battle terrorist act.

The Iraq war has without a uncertainty had more negative effects than positive effects with the creative activity of a new enlisting tool for Al Qaeda at a clip when Al Qaeda was on the tally and unable to efficaciously enroll in the Numberss required to defy the West. However its consequence is frequently overstated with the underlying cause of terrorist act lying in the nature of the planetary order and side effects from globalization. The ability to larn from errors is an highly utile excessively and finally the result of the war on panic will rest on this ability particularly with the “second chance” the US has been given in Northern Africa. But as has been shown by the war in Africa to make nil is merely non adequate and is more counter-productive than moving.

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