US forces could learn from Irish peacekeepers

IRELAND first acceded to a request from the United Nation’s Security Council to send UN Monitoring Officers to Lebanon in 1955 and since that time the respect of the international community for the Irish method of peacekeeping has been unanimous.

The Americans should be taking a long, hard look at what the Irish have achieved in this field and be putting this into operation on the streets of Iraqi towns and villages. In fact, I believe that each major American unit on the ground in Iraq should have a small number of experienced Irish troops attached to them for the eventualities that they will inevitably meet.

America’s failure and their already obvious gung-ho policy towards Iraqi civilians will further alienate the civilian population and this will lead in turn to more American casualties.