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| Iraq | |||
| Iraqis blast US congressmanÂ’s war repayment idea | |||
| 2011-06-13 | |||
| BAGHDAD: The suggestion by a US congressman that Iraq repay the United States for the money it has spent in the country has stirred anger, with an Iraqi lawmaker ridiculing the idea as “stupid” and others saying Iraqis should be compensated for the hardships they’ve endured. Rep. Dana Rohrabacher, a Republican from California, suggested during a trip to Baghdad with fellow lawmakers Friday that once Iraq becomes a rich and prosperous country it should repay the US.
Al-Dabbagh said the government was also upset by comments from the six-member congressional delegation about an Iranian opposition group based in Iraq. The American lawmakers came to Iraq to investigate the deaths of 34 members of the PeopleÂ’s Mujahedeen Organization of Iran during an April 8 Iraqi army raid on the groupÂ’s headquarters, known as Camp Ashraf.
But it was Rohrabacher’s comments about repayment that resonated most with Iraqis who have suffered through years of war. The head of the Iraqi Parliament’s foreign affairs committee, Humam Hmoudi, called his comments “stupid” and said it is the Iraqi people who should be demanding compensation. “This provokes us and the Iraqi people as well to demand compensations for losses Iraq suffered during the invasion,” he said. Another lawmaker from one of the main political blocs, Etab Al-Douri, called the repayment idea a “humiliation.” “We are the ones who should ask for compensation and not them, and we demand the occupiers withdraw now,” she said. The blowup comes at a particularly sensitive time in the US-Iraq relationship. Iraq is weighing whether to ask US troops to stay in the country longer. There are currently about 47,000 American troops in Iraq, and US officials have been pushing Iraq to decide if they want a US military presence past Dec. 31. US Defense Secretary Robert Gates has said he thinks the US would agree to staying longer in Iraq if asked. Al-Dabbagh played down the suggestion that Rohrabacher’s comments would have any long-term effect on US-Iraq relations. He described Rohrabacher’s comments as a personal statement from a congressman who was trying to make himself “famous.” The US Embassy in Baghdad sought to distance itself from Rohrabacher’s comments. In a statement Saturday, embassy spokesman David J. Ranz said the embassy has a responsibility to host congressional visitors but that their views do not necessarily reflect those of the administration or a majority of Congress. | |||
| Posted by:Steve White |
| #2 I don't think the US should have to pay Iraq anything, we have spent a lot. For those trying to make money off the US, this kind of pre-empts any attempts that America will give it away freely. I'm glad it was only a low level congressman who blurted it out. |
| Posted by: Griting Smith6978 2011-06-13 01:29 |
| #1 Dana Rohrabacher, they do not owe us for our invasion. They had no choice. If you would like nice friends in Iraq or anywhere else for that matter, then shut the hell up. |
| Posted by: newc 2011-06-13 00:46 |