Fred Kagan on Iraq

Fred Kagan, in an interview with Hugh Hewitt disputes the claim, made by many on the Left, that our involvement in Iraq is creating more jihadis. That is something we cannot know. But, he points out, what is important is that Iraq is concentrating the jihadi effort, and once the US withdraws from the current conflict, the jihadis will be free to do other things.

I know for sure that it’s attracting them to the most obvious battlefield. Is it making more of them? I’m not sure. But if you take a look at the example of Afghanistan in the 1980’s, there was a situation where the Soviet presence, that was definitely manufacturing terrorists. And as long as the Soviets were there, they were fighting the Soviets in Afghanistan. As soon as the Soviets left, the terrorists didn’t just go home and take up gardening. They left, they moved all around the world, and then they started attacking us. That’s how we got al Qaeda. So the question really is, if we were to leave Iraq tomorrow, what would happen with these guys? And the answer for sure is that they would find other ways to attack and kill us elsewhere.

As President Bush has reminded us time and time again, Iraq is the best place to confront the jihadis, and it is there that they must be defeated. The jihadis thrive on success. They claim to have defeated the Soviets, and to have driven the US out of Lebanon and Sudan. Each withdrawal simply strengthens them. They must be met with determined force and defeated or else they will continue to grow. Iraq offers us the best bet for achieving that victory -- if, of course, the Democrats are willing to allow us to win.

Read a transcript here.