The Situation in Iraq and the Middle East As you know, the NSC has become increasingly concerned about the events in Iraq and the rest of the Middle East over the last two months. Our military planners did a commendable job in winning the war, but are struggling with the task of 'winning' the peace.
In NSC Memorandum 011504/NSC, the Council cautioned that the U.S. military was not trained or equipped to be successful in the role of nation builders. The recent escalation of violence in Iraq seems to prove this analysis to be correct. In the same memorandum, the NSC cautioned that the United Nations, and in particular certain member states that opposed the invasion, would be reluctant to become involved after the war in the role of peacekeepers. That analysis also has proven to be accurate. According to Faye Bowers and Dan Murphy, the presence of the militias - some with
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