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LeFigaro original article -Richard Perle interview. pg http://www.lefigaro.fr/international/20030828.FIG0225.html IRAK Dans un entretien exclusif au «Figaro», le mentor intellectuel des néoconservateurs américains estime que des «erreurs ont été commises» Richard Perle : «L'administration de l'Irak par l'ONU est une mauvaise idée» Ancien sous-secrétaire à la Défense du président Ronald Reagan et, à ce titre, père du programme de la «guerre des étoiles», Richard Perle est considéré aujourd'hui comme le «penseur» du mouvement des néoconservateurs aux Etats-Unis. Née au milieu des années 70 dans l'entourage du sénateur Jackson, cette idéologie s'est fait connaître en se démarquant de la diplomatie traditionnelle, fondée sur l'équilibre des puissances et la realpolitik. Les néoconservateurs sont des «unilatéralistes» : ils estiment que le meilleur des mondes possible est celui où l'Amérique utilise sa puissance pour imposer partout ses vues et son modèle d'organisation sociale, quoi qu'en pensent les autres nations. Les néoconservateurs dominent actuellement le Parti républicain. En 2000, Richard Perle s'était engagé pour le candidat Bush aux élections présidentielles, mais, en 2001, il a refusé tout poste ministériel, afin de garder sa liberté de parole. Il avait en revanche accepté la présidence du Defence Policy Board, l'influent organisme consultatif du Pentagone, comptant notamment Henry Kissinger parmi ses membres. En pleine guerre contre l'Irak, Richard Perle, accusé par certains journaux de conflit d'intérêts, a dû démissionner de son poste de président, tout en restant membre du Board. C'est dans sa résidence secondaire du midi de la France que le mentor intellectuel des néoconservateurs américains, qui achève actuellement l'écriture d'un essai sur la guerre en Irak, a reçu l'envoyé spécial du Figaro. Propos recueillis par Renaud Girard [28 août 2003] ----- Original Message ----- From: "ppg" <ppg@nyc.rr.com> To: <casi-discuss@lists.casi.org.uk> Sent: Wednesday, August 27, 2003 4:58 PM Subject: [casi] Perle .."mistakes have been made" > Unbelievable. Yesterday Bremer concedes it will take $$ billions and years > to restore Iraqi infrastructure, and today Perle says- whoops, so sorry- but > it's not our problem - "mistakes have been made"..but we're outta here. > (except for some low-sulpher wells and our military bases) > > http://tinyurl.com/leet Reuters > > Perle Cites Errors in Iraq, Urges Power Transfer > > PARIS (Reuters) - Richard Perle, a leading Pentagon adviser and architect of > the U.S. war to topple Saddam Hussein, said the United States had made > mistakes in Iraq and that power should be handed over to the Iraqis as fast > as possible. > > In an interview with the Le Figaro daily newspaper to be published Thursday, > Perle defended the U.S.-led war in Iraq and restated his belief that France > had been wrong to lead international opposition to the conflict. > > "Of course, we haven't done everything right," said Perle, according to the > French text of the interview. "Mistakes have been made and there will be > others. > > "Our principal mistake, in my opinion, was that we didn't manage to work > closely with the Iraqis before the war, so that there was an Iraqi > opposition capable of taking charge immediately," he said. > > "Today, the answer is to hand over power to the Iraqis as soon as possible," > he added. > > Perle resigned in March as chairman of the Pentagon's Defense Policy Board > over alleged conflicts of interest, but remains an influential figure in > neo-conservative circles. > > He also renewed criticism of President Jacques Chirac's refusal to back the > war. Chirac wanted more time for U.N. inspectors to search for any banned > weapons. > > The United States and Britain said Saddam had deliberately foiled the > inspections and failed to provide evidence that it had scrapped its > chemical, biological and nuclear programs. > > "You have to understand that since September 11, the United States cannot > allow the most terrible weapons in the world to be in the hands of the worst > regimes in the world," Perle told Le Figaro, referring to the 2001 hijacked > airliner attacks on U.S. landmarks that killed some 3,000 people. > > Washington and London used the weapons charge, dismissed by Iraq as a > pretext to wage war, to justify military intervention against Saddam. To > date, no such weapons have been found. > > > > > > > > > > > _______________________________________________ > Sent via the discussion list of the Campaign Against Sanctions on Iraq. > To unsubscribe, visit http://lists.casi.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/casi-discuss > To contact the list manager, email casi-discuss-admin@lists.casi.org.uk > All postings are archived on CASI's website: http://www.casi.org.uk _______________________________________________ Sent via the discussion list of the Campaign Against Sanctions on Iraq. To unsubscribe, visit http://lists.casi.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/casi-discuss To contact the list manager, email casi-discuss-admin@lists.casi.org.uk All postings are archived on CASI's website: http://www.casi.org.uk