Correction appended
Peter Galbraith refused to beat-around-the-Bush during his lecture on America's involvement in Iraq on Wednesday, calling the war a mistake and a failure in front of 100 students and faculty members who gathered in Silverman Hall to hear his speech.
Galbraith, the former United States ambassador to Croatia, delivered a decisive and resounding seminar for 45 minutes. While his presence provided intrigue and excitement for the listeners, his message was all-too-familiar to those who have followed the War, but wanted further light shed on the subject.
"The consequences of the Iraq war, in particular, the way in which it was carried out, has been catastrophic to United States interests," said Galbraith, author of the book, The End of Iraq: How American Incompetence Created a War Without End.
"The fact is that this is a disaster, not only for the Bush administration, but for the country," Galbraith added.
A graduate of Harvard, Oxford and Georgetown, Galbraith has served in various political posts. Besides ambassador, he served on the United States Senate Foreign Relations Committee from 1979 to 1993, served as United Nations ambassador in East Timor and taught at the National War College in 1999 and from 2001 to 2003.
"We are in what is generally known as a quagmire," he said. "The problem, however, is 'what happens when the U.S. wants to withdraw?'"
Galbraith spoke at length about Iraq being broken up and engaging in a civil war between Sunni and Shiite factions. He also talked about the division between independent Kurdistan and the Iraqi security forces, who are more sectarian than the population because those placed in peace-keeping positions are officers from different political movements.
"They are not mutual guarantors of public security, they are sectarian, in fact, mostly Shiites," Galbraith said.
Chris DeNicola, a second-year law student, was one of many in attendance to hear Galbraith on his assessment of America's involvement in Iraq, and he said he expected to come away more enlightened about foreign policy and American politics.
"I hope to learn more about the situation in Iraq from someone who is a practitioner in the field," he said.
Sara Anderson, a third-year law student, felt Galbraith's message echoed her own sentiments.
"I support his views and I think the American government has made a mess in Iraq," she said.
Galbraith also demonstrated a sense of humor during the question and answer session, despite his lecture's serious tone.
"I don't know if you're any wiser, but you're all certainly older," he said.
Correction: The subhead with this article inadvertently listed Peter Galbraith's first name as Andrew. This has been changed in the online version.
