Posted on 01/30/2005 8:23:03 PM PST by West Coast Conservative
Messages of support poured in from around the world today as Iraqis voted in a landmark election hailed by both supporters and opponents of the US-led war as a key step towards restoring Iraqi sovereignty.
US President George W Bush called the vote a resounding success.
"There's more distance to travel on the road to democracy, yet Iraqis are proving they are equal to the challenge," Bush said at the White House 22 months after US-led forces invaded Iraq to oust Saddam Hussein.
"Today the people of Iraq have spoken to the world, and the world is hearing the voice of freedom from the centre of the Middle East," he said.
"The Iraqi people themselves made this election a resounding success.
"Terrorists and insurgents will continue to wage their war against democracy, and we will support the Iraqi people in their fight against them," he promised.
The United Nations, Middle Eastern and European leaders voiced the hope the polls would usher in a speedy return to self-rule in the war-torn country.
British Prime Minister Tony Blair, Bush's closest ally in Iraq, said the election was "a blow right to the heart of the global terrorism that threatens destruction not just in Iraq but in Britain and virtually every major country around the world."
He said the "force of freedom had been felt throughout the country."
UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan praised the Iraqis who turned out despite the simmering insurgent violence, which left at least 37 people dead and dozens wounded in suicide attacks on voting centres.
"The Iraqis who turned out today are courageous, they know that they are voting for the future of their country," Annan said.
"We must encourage them and support them to take control of their destiny."
In Brussels, the European Union's foreign policy chief Javier Solana congratulated the Iraqi people for their "courage and determination" after polls closed, calling the election "an important step forward".
"Despite the many difficulties that lie ahead, the elections mark progress towards a transition to a democratic, free and peaceful Iraq," Solana said.
NATO Secretary-General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer also hailed the conduct of the vote, and pledged that alliance would increase its role in training the new Iraqi security forces in the coming months.
"These elections were a milestone, but there is still a long road ahead," he said.
"The Iraqi people must build a democracy that meets their needs and their desires."
The French government, which was one of the fiercest opponents of the US-led invasion of Iraq, hailed the vote as a "great success for the international community" and called the high voter turnout "good news".
"France never stopped saying, in unison with the international community, that this was a crucial step," a government spokesman said.
In Berlin, the German government hailed the election as "an important step on the path to (the) construction of democratic structures".
The active participation, especially in Kurd and Shi'ite regions, was a sign of "the firm determination of the majority of Iraqis to take the fate and the future of their country in their own hands," said a government spokesman.
Germany believed that "all the country's ethnic and religious groups should now be associated with the political process".
Italy's Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi said the Iraqi people had "confirmed their will to fight terrorism, to achieve freedom and democracy".
"This day is also a success for us," added Berlusconi, whose country has 3,000 troops stationed as part of the US-led force in southern Iraq.
Polish Defence Minister Jerzy Szmajdzinski said the successful conduct of the elections would enable Warsaw to press ahead with plans to reduce its contingent in Iraq by 800 troops.
In Iraq's Shi'ite neighbour Iran, parliamentary deputy Alaeddin Boroujerdi hailed the vote as a "great step for Iraqis towards an independent and popular regime".
But former Iranian president Akbar Hasemi Rafsanjani warned Washington may "rig the results" or stage a coup to prevent Iraq from becoming a country that is "free and independent and that does not stand next to America and Israel".
Arab nations anxiously awaited the results to see if the vote would mark a further step towards democracy, or the start of civil war.
"One eye filled with fear, the other with hope" was the headline of a commentary in the London-based Saudi daily Al-Sharq Al-Awsat, setting the overall mood.
In Iraq's neighbour Jordan a government spokeswoman said: "We hope that holding elections in these very difficult conditions will help achieve stability in Iraq, reflect the will of all the Iraqi people and help Iraq recover its sovereignty."
The president of the OPEC oil cartel, Kuwaiti Oil Minister Sheikh Ahmad Fahd al-Sabah, said: "I think this is the first step for a stable Iraq".
The Vatican's secretary of state, Cardinal Angelo Sodano, said the Iraqi polls were a "sign of its people's maturity" and that "the international community hopes this day may signify a future of peace."
A speedy return to self rule? What has it been, 50 years since they held a contested election in Iraq? They aren't returning, they are leading.
Ah! We hear from Berlusconi! I was hoping to hear from him. A good ally. Poland and Britain solid as well.
The rest are laughable in this list.
I'd also like to give a shout out to Aznar. Sure, his people disappointed him and his successor is worse than Chirac but Azner shares rightly in the glory of the day as well as the troops that shared the buren initially.
Checkmate
Wonderful list! I'm always afraid to signal some out because I don't wish to diminish the contributions of others. All deserve praise.
Glad you included Aznar's spain and troops.
I'd also like to thank those that "technically" are not involved in the effort because it would cause more tension than necssary, but are helping behind the scenes. Israel for example.
ok...I'm stupid! I don't get it. Can you explain? ;-)
And I say if ANYONE can't get absolutely thrilled with how the US military surgically removed the scourge from Iraq and most to the scourge from Afghanistan in just a little over 36 months and got free and fair elections in the two nations east and north of Iran... well, like the pukin loser from Taxachewsetts, they are totally un-American in my opinion and don't deserve honor by ANYONE!!!
Are you familiar with "The Little Red Hen"?
http://www.bres.boothbay.k12.me.us/wq/nnash/WebQuest/little_red_hen.htm
Cast the US/Coalition as the Little Red Hen and France, Germany, Belgium, the UN as the other animals. Their sudden praise and enthusiasm for Iraq is just like the greedy, lazy animals appetite for the bread they had no hand in preparing. Sadly, the US WILL share the bread.
None of this means any thing until we hear from Teddy.[/sarcasm]
Thanks for posting this, hope you can hear me cheering all the way across the Pacific Ocean.
God Bless GWB & our Brave Troops.
I think it's interesting that the media doesn't differentiate the death count and note that 9 of the deaths were homicide bombers.
Wow, thats a freat list!
Israel does indeed deserve thanks for her contribution the war on terror. It's a shame that anti-Semitism is so widespread and hatred of Jews is virulent among Muslims that it was safer to Israeli contribution to remain unofficial. Typing that, there's an immediate feeling of "we can handle it, we're used to it", but deeper down, it does gall
Well, I say to hail with them! They're more than a day late and more than a few billion short!!!
They may have swallowed bitter medicine, but far too many of "them" ripped off the Oil For Food UN scandal instead of doing "the right thing!" Even Jimmy Carter is all mixed up in this monstrousity of a world class rip-off!!!
For some reason I have never heard of this cute little sorry. If I did, I don't remember it.
But it is a cute story and now I understand why you posted it. It makes perfect sense now.
sorry=story. I pressed the change button on the spell checker by mistake. ;-)
France: Sacre Merde!
My pleasure to introduce the story to you. I'm guessing you missed it because you're pretty young. The Little Red Hen is rarely found in children's books of the past 25yrs...too politically incorrect for the liberal set and totally at odds with LBJs Great Society!
Apparantly, they didn't get the DNC blast fax.
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