[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 106 (Thursday, July 17, 2003)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1498]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION EXPRESSING THE SENSE OF CONGRESS ON HOW TO 
                         WIN THE PEACE IN IRAQ

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. ALCEE L. HASTINGS

                               of florida

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, July 16, 2003

  Mr. HASTINGS of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to introduce a 
Resolution that is similar to an amendment that passed unanimously in 
the Senate last week. My Resolution encourages the President to reach 
out to our allies in NATO, the United Nations, and the Organization for 
the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) for help in post-war Iraq. I 
believe that we can achieve our goals in Iraq, but not without the full 
cooperation of the international community.
  My Resolution urges the President to do two things.
  First, consider requesting assistance from NATO to raise a force for 
post-war Iraq similar to Afghanistan, Bosnia, and Kosovo. Even though 
some NATO members, Great Britain, Spain, Italy and Poland, are already 
contributing troops to our effort in Iraq, American troops make up 90 
percent of coalition forces.
  And second, consider calling on the United Nations member states to 
provide both military forces and civilian police to aid in promoting 
stability and security in post-war Iraq. Conditions in Iraq continue to 
pose a serious threat to U.S. and coalition forces, who are being 
attacked between 10 and 25 times a day. Increasing the number of troops 
and police from other countries will reduce the risks to U.S. and 
coalition forces currently in Iraq. International armed forces and 
police must assume some of the responsibilities for maintaining law and 
order in Iraq while a domestic police force and reformed military is 
trained and established. Pentagon officials estimate that it will take 
a year to train one division of 12,000 Iraqi troops.
  My Resolution also calls on the Organization for the Prohibition of 
Chemical Weapons, along with other international and nongovernmental 
organizations to provide assistance to the coalition partnership in 
Iraq.
  Mr. Speaker, it's time to move past any negative feelings concerning 
countries that opposed our attempts to secure a U.N. endorsement for 
the war. We must repair our strained relations with our allies. We will 
only be successful in post-war Iraq, and in the global war on 
terrorism, if we restore our relationships with these nations.
  Our ultimate goal for the Iraqi people is a multi-ethnic, multi-
religious Arab state that is capable of self-rule. This goal can only 
be achieved with the help and support of the vast global community.
  Mr. Speaker, United States and coalition forces managed to liberate 
Iraq in a mere 3 weeks, and I would certainly be remiss if I did not 
take the opportunity to commend those brave men and women for their 
efforts to date. However, the goals we have set, from restoring 
critical infrastructure, to establishing an interim government, to 
maintaining law and order in Iraq, simply cannot be achieved alone. 
We've won the war, now we have to win the peace.

                          ____________________