http://news.yam.com/afp/international/200803/20080320917380.html
伊拉克戰爭五年 布希矢言堅定立場終將獲勝
法新社╱盧瑞珠 2008-03-20 09:20
（法新社華盛頓十九日電）美國總統布希今天在國防部發表伊拉克戰爭五週年紀念演說時，為發動入侵伊拉克戰爭辯護，誓言美軍終將平息伊拉克境內暴亂勢力。
布希指出：「開戰五年來，國內對這場戰役究竟是否值得打、是否值得贏和到底能不能贏等問題的爭辯，都是可以理解的。但答案對我來說非常清楚。」
提到前伊拉克獨裁者海珊時，布希堅稱：「推翻海珊是一個正確的決定，這是一場美國能夠也必須贏的戰爭。」
就在他發表演說的同時，許多反戰示威者在幾條街外集會，高聲呼籲終止這場戰爭。伊拉克戰爭已經造成大約四千名美軍死亡，並造成近數十萬計伊拉克平民百姓喪生。
布希於二零零三年三月十九日晚間九時三十分發動「自由伊拉克行動」，美軍部隊大規模空襲當時正值清晨五時三十分的巴格達，構成「震憾與威懾」的作戰主軸。
五年的時間過去了，在他只剩下十個月的任期，民調聲望也盪到谷底的同時，兩個總統任期的政績已經被定義且籠照在衝突的陰影下。
伊拉克和美軍部隊現在每天都要面對來自動亂幫派和伊斯蘭激進份子的攻擊，以及伊拉克境內擁兵自重的遜尼派和什葉派的互鬥。
布希在演說中表明不會改變他的政策，目前在伊拉克仍有十五萬八千名美軍，持續對抗血腥暴動，面對一場自越戰以來美國所進行的第二長時間戰役。
布希警告：「我們已經得到教訓，如果提早撤軍會造成什麼後果，恐怖份子和激進份子會馬上進去。」
「他們會趁亂填補空隙，建立避風港，並利用這個避風港擴展混亂與浩劫。」
根據最保守的估計，美國已經在伊拉克戰爭中付出四千億美元，諾貝爾經濟學獎得主史提格里茲認為，總支出將會超過三兆美元。
布希在演說中也承認，這場戰役已經付出慘重的「生命和財產代價」。
布希表示：「在伊拉克還有許多艱難的工作仍待完成，目前所獲致的成果仍很脆弱、不穩。但值此週年之際，美國人應該知道，自從開戰以來，伊拉克的暴力事件已經明顯降低、平民百姓的死亡率下降、派系間的殺戮也變少了。」
伊拉克總統塔拉巴尼今天發表聲明表示，儘管國內仍有暴動不安的情勢，伊拉克戰爭已經結束海珊政權數十年殘暴、黑暗的統治，新的時期已經展開。
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20080319/pl_afp/iraqwar5yearsus_080319134205
Bush defends Iraq record amid protests, five years on
by Laurent Lozano
Wed Mar 19, 9:42 AM ET
WASHINGTON (AFP) - US President George W. Bush will on Wednesday defend his decision to invade Iraq five years ago, vowing no retreat from a conflict he says now promises a major victory in the "war on terror."
Nearly 4,000 US soldiers have died in the conflict, and although the ailing economy is increasingly distracting Americans, widespread anti-war protests are expected Wednesday and the issue remains a top concern for US political leaders.
Bush leaves office in January, bequeathing to his successor the intractable military and political stalemate that started with the first US bombings launched on March 19, 2003, in the United States and March 20 in Baghdad.
In a speech to the Pentagon Wednesday, the president will acknowledge the war has "come at a high cost in lives and treasure," but will defend both the decision to invade and to boost the number of US troops there last year.
"The answers are clear to me: removing Saddam Hussein from power was the right decision -- and this is a fight America can and must win," he will say.
According to pre-released extracts, Bush will argue the so-called troop "surge" was in response to growing violence that "could eventually have reached genocidal levels," and insist it has succeeded in turning the tide.
More than that, he will say that it "opened the door to a major strategic victory in the broader war on terror," making Iraq a place where Arabs fight alongside Americans to drive Al-Qaeda out.
He will warn against a rapid withdrawal of troops, something both Hilary Clinton and Barack Obama, the Democratic contenders for the White House, have pledged to do. The Republican nominee, John McCain, strongly backs the surge.
Bringing the 155,000 US troops in Iraq home too soon would create a vacuum, let "the terrorists and extremists step in ... establish safe havens... and use them to spread chaos and carnage," Bush will say, adding it could also embolden countries such as Iran.
Bush will also thank the US soldiers who have fought in Iraq, where he has dispatched Vice President Dick Cheney this week.
While the president is defending his strategy, however, anti-war activists have pledged to ensure that the anniversary of "Operation Iraqi Freedom" is accompanied by as much noise and fuss as they can organize.
"The war was based on lies. One million Iraqis have died, five million have been made into refugees, tens of thousands of US soldiers and marines have been killed or wounded," said Brian Becker with one well-known protest group, the ANSWER Coalition.
Anti-war groups have planned hundreds of events during the week as well as larger rallies in Washington, New York, Miami, Chicago, Los Angeles and San Francisco to demand an immediate withdrawal of US troops and mourn those killed in the conflict.
Although attendance at anti-war demonstrations has declined in recent years, organizers said they were confident of attracting large crowds.
"This war needs to end and it needs to end now," Leslie Cagan, national coordinator of United for Peace and Justice, told AFP. "I think people are looking for new ways to express their opposition."
Moveon.org planned more than 850 candlelight vigils nationwide, including one outside the White House, the group said.
Demonstrators in the US capital planned to "blockade" the Internal Revenue Service, while in New York, protesters from the Granny Peace Brigade were to hold a "knit-in" at the Times Square military recruitment center.
A rally was planned in Chicago, and in Louisville, Kentucky, protestors will read aloud the names of some of the troops and Iraqi civilians killed.
US national security spokesman Gordon Johndroe, meanwhile, said Bush would hold a series of meetings next week with State Department officials and military advisors, as he crafts his Iraq policy during his final months in office.
In April, the US leader has meetings planned with Washington's ambassador in Iraq Ryan Crocker, and the top US military commander there, General David Petraeus.
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