The missed road

We are approaching the fifth anniversary of the September 11 attacks. A whole tranche of programmes will no doubt appear.

When the cause of the attacks was discovered the decision was made to remove Al-Qaeda and the Taliban regime. And I supported that decision, I still do. No government can allow its people to be attacked in such manner.

Afghanistan is a hard place. Ask the Russians ask the British Empire of the 19th century, armies break on the place. What should have happened is that the most powerful armed forces in history and its Nato allies should have swamped the place. They should have put the infrastructure in place to make life better for ordinary Afghans. They should have driven the Taliban out.

September 11 gave the US immense goodwill. This goodwill left the US and Bush in a position to sort out the key middle east question Israel and Palestine. This fault line has fractured the region for 60 years.

Of course, as we know, they didn't do this. For some reason they went into Iraq. And what did they do? They destroyed the armed forces and allowed law and order to disintegrate, they allowed the infrastructure to disintegrate.

To keep law and order they either had to swamp the place with troops (something that the Generals on the ground wanted - it was the polticians who wanted a "smart war") or they had to keep the Iraqi Army in place. Ok get rid of the Generals, the Colonels etc but keep the junior officers on the ground in place. It would not be perfect, but could it be any worse than what we have now? I think not.

To me the tragedy of September 11 2001 is made considerably worse by the mistakes and missed oportunities.

There was a real chance to establish a lasting peace in the middle east by flushing out Al-Qaeda and the Taliban and by establishing a lasting peace between Israel and the Palestinians.

Instead Bush went on the misguided path into Iraq. He has stoked anti-western feeling and the path to peace seems more distant than ever.