We removed the minority Sunni Arabs who backed Saddam Hussein from power and waged war against them during the Iraq War insurgency phase until they saw no choice but to switch to our side in the Awakening.
And now they worry we'll (again) leave Iraq:
Sunni Iraqi leaders who spearheaded a bloody insurgency against the 2003 US-led invasion are now the most nervous about a possible withdrawal of American troops, considered a counterweight to Iran.
Fancy that. Yet Western leftists insist America is horrible in how we wage war.
And it isn't like our past enemies tend to hold burning grudges against America.
We revolted against Britain and fought them again in the War of 1812. Now? NATO ally.
Toss in Canada who we invaded in the War of 1812. Now? NATO ally and USMC trade deal partner.
We fought the Quasi-War against France. Now? NATO ally.
We fought Mexico. Now? Friendly with major USMC trade deal.
We fought Spain. Now? NATO ally.
We fought Germany (twice). Now? NATO ally.
We fought (and nuked) Japan. Now? Major-non-NATO ally.
We fought Italy. Now? NATO ally.
We fought North Vietnam. Now? Partners in resisting Chinese expansionism.
And yes, we fought Iraq twice and yet now they are an unrecognized ally against jihadis.
North Korea remains an outlier.
The article is wrong that Iraq's parliament voted to oust America from Iraq. It was symbolic only, and the Iraqi government is quietly working to keep America in Iraq, as I noted in this data dump:
Iraq's prime minister is quietly working to keep American troops in Iraq despite his public call to talk about the details of withdrawal. He knows Iraq needs to balance Iran's influence. I did say that Iraq is unlikely to choose poorly on this issue. At the most cynical level, corrupt Iraqi politicians know they get a better price when they play one outsider off against another to start a bidding war.
Which is the best course of action to defend our interests in the region.
