TEHRAN (FNA)- Marcus Papadopoulos, British journalist and publisher, says Iraqis should follow the people of Iran and force America out of their territory.
In an exclusive interview with FNA, Dr. Papadopoulos said, “[American presence in Iraq] is not solely confined to the US military in the country… Americans, following their illegal invasion of Iraq, took control of the country's organs and continue to manage them to this day.”
Dr. Marcus Papadopoulos is an international affairs analyst and the Editor of Politics First magazine, the official publication of the UK Houses of Parliament.
Below is the full text of the interview:
Q: The US Administration cast doubt on the notification letter by the Chief Commander of US forces in Iraq to the Iraqi Prime Minister’s office, noting that the US forces would soon leave the Arab country. Why did it happen?
A: The matter is a challenging one to comment on, unless, of course, you are one of the parties privy to what happened. Perhaps the letter was just poorly and ambiguously worded, or, perhaps, the letter was a ruse, aimed at deceiving and confusing Iraqi officials. Either way, the letter distracted peoples' attention away from the murder of Qassem Soleimani and the dangerous precedent that the Americans established by murdering a general of a country which they are not at war with, in a conventional sense. Alas, the event which led to the aforementioned letter being written should be the focus of citizens of the world; namely, that the Americans murdered a commander whose role in the defeat of ISIS in Lebanon, Syria and Iraq was indispensable, and that Washington set an alarming precedent by murdering the general of an armed forces which the American military is not involved in hostilities against.
Q: The Iraqi parliament has approved a bill which requires the US forces to leave the Arab country. How do you view this decision by the Iraqi parliament?
A: I urge caution regarding the decision of Iraq's parliament. The Americans have been in Iraq for some 17 years now and during this time they have not been idle; they have, in fact, been extremely active, having penetrated key Iraqi institutions, all so that America's position in Iraq can be safeguarded indefinitely. Washington penetrated Iraq's civil service (which is absolutely crucial to the Americans maintaining their presence in the country), armed forces, intelligence agencies, police force, economic sphere and media. In addition to those is how the Americans have either coerced or co-opted many Iraqi politicians to help defend and strengthen the US position in Iraq. So when we discuss the American presence in Iraq, we must remember that this is not solely confined to the US military in the country. As they did in Serbia, following the American-backed overthrow of Slobodan Milosevic there, the Americans, following their illegal invasion of Iraq, took control of the country's organs and continue to manage them to this day. That is why the Americans are not going to leave Iraq any day soon. Indeed, the only way that the Americans will depart from Iraq is if there is a popular uprising in the country which leads to the US being expelled, by force, from Iraqi territory, as the Cuban people so magnificently and conclusively succeeded in doing in Cuba, or how the Iranian people so decisively and splendidly accomplished in Iran. So that is how the Americans will be ejected from Iraq.
Q: “Military reprisal is not enough, the US should leave region”, Iran says. Why does Iran see the West Asian region without American troopers a bigger punishment for the US than direct military attacks on Washington troops in reprisal for the assassination of Lieutenant General Qassem Soleimani?
A: Understandably, Iran views the American military presence in West Asia as the lynchpin to US power in the region, and it is certainly the case that American forces on the ground in countries from Iraq to those on the Arabian Peninsula is a crucial element in Washington's dominance there. However, there are other crucial factors accounting for America's control over countries such as Iraq or Kuwait or Qatar, and we have to remind ourselves that Washington withdrew its forces from Saudi Arabia but retains immense clout within the Kingdom. One of those decisive factors is America's control of the civil service in, for instance, Iraq; if you control the civil service in a country, then you effectively control the day-to-day running of the concerned country. So I contend that the American penetration and subsequent control of the Iraqi civil service is as important, in terms of safeguarding the US' influence in Iraq, to the stationing of American soldiers on Iraqi soil.
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