US embassy cable - 05SANTIAGO1554

UNCLAS SANTIAGO 001554 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR R/MR, I/PP, WHA/BSC, WHA/PDA, INR/IAA, PM, 
STATE FOR INL, INR/R/MR, NEA/PDA 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: KMDR, KPAO, OPRC, PTER, CI, IZ 
SUBJECT: MEDIA REACTION - IRAQ 
 
 
On July 19, center-left "Diario Siete" (circ. 23,000) 
carried a signed article by political scientist Boris 
Yopo entitled, "Bush's Failure in Iraq."  Quote: 
 
"The strategy followed by Bush's foreign policy team 
(in Iraq) was wrong from the beginning.  The 
intervention was illegal from the viewpoint of 
international law...and has generated greater 
insecurity at the global level, proof of which are the 
recent bombings in Madrid and London.  The intervention 
has also added credibility to the belief in the Muslim 
world that the U.S. is the `great Satan' and that there 
is a `new Christian crusade' against Islam.... 
"Perhaps the main lesson from all this is that, 
regardless of U.S. technological and military 
superiority,...small groups cannot only plan attacks in 
their own land (Afghanistan and Iraq), but can also 
attack the centers of power of the U.S. and its close 
allies....  The fight against terrorism calls for a 
joint, long-term international effort...but also an end 
of those elements that give these groups legitimacy: 
unilateral interventions, the enormous social inequity 
that persists in many parts of the world, and support 
the creation of a Palestinian state and promote 
civilized dialogue to strengthen moderate Islamic 
sectors....  The situation in Iraq will take a few 
years to stabilize.  However...it is in the interest of 
the international community to avoid a civil war 
there...by contributing to the creation of institutions 
and the election of authorities who have sufficient 
legitimacy to propose a new national project, giving 
room to social and religious diversity." 
 
YAMAUCHI