Jordanian prince: America ‘got it all wrong’ by invading Iraq

Prince Talal bin Mohammad also said during Naples speech that American troops shouldn’t leave until Iraq is stable

By PETE SKIBA

NAPLES — An Arab prince pulled no punches while speaking in Naples Wednesday.

Prince Talal bin Mohammad of Jordan said America “got it all wrong” by invading Iraq. Speaking as a friend in the Arab world, the British-accented adviser to King Abdullah II, said a withdrawal of American troops is another mistake.

“I would not want America to withdraw until there is a stable Iraq. If you withdraw now you will have to go back later,” Talal said. “But you (the United States) have inadvertently made more enemies. Every single thing done since 2003 is as if you followed a manual written by your enemies.”

Talal spoke before an audience of about 800 at the 26th annual Naples Town Hall Distinguished Speakers series.

Speaking for himself, not his government or king, Talal said that the mistakes made in the war included but were not limited to disbanding the Iraqi army, which could have helped stabilize the country and forming a police force which is heavily influenced by Iran.

“Ninety percent of the police fought with Iranians (against Iraq),” Talal said. “Their loyalty is not to the Iraqi state. To stabilize Iraq, America must ally itself with non-Iranians.”

The problems of the Middle East cannot be dealt with in a rational way until there is a change of attitude in America, Talal said. Having spent five years studying at Georgetown University, watching American movies and studying its culture, Talal said he feels as if he knows the country well.

The way of the world is that America’s friends know a great deal about America, but so do America’s enemies, Talal said. Americans should learn more about Arab culture so they could better understand what motivates people in the Middle East.

“There is more to us than oil and (the conflict with) Israel,” Talal said. “You should understand there is nothing more valuable to us than our religion.”

At least one person in the audience wondered what the Muslim nations were doing to stabilize the region.

“What are you doing to clean up your own house?” asked Louis Owen, 85, of Naples. “It seems we are bearing the brunt of it.”

Talal’s voice carried a tinge of sorrow as he said the Muslim nations are doing “nothing.”

Offering a solution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, Talal said peace could come only when there is a Palestinian country, occupied by Palestinians. That land, he said, should encompass the Gaza Strip and the area around Jerusalem to the east of the June 1964 Israeli border.

This probably cannot be accomplished until America begins to educate itself about the interests of all the peoples in the area, Talal said. Diplomacy should be about the interests of the people in the area, not just the domestic interests of America.

“To have someone speak as openly and fully is a rarity,” said Jon Leach, a Naples businessman. “I had no problem with his point of view and I’m a conservative.”