Retired war hero speaks out: one of our nation's most highly decorated combat veterans offers his thoughts on the current war against Iraq, including why "we should get out fast!".(Andrew Gatsis)(Interview)

Brigadier General Andrew Gatsis is one of our nation's most highly decorated veterans. Awarded numerous medals for bravery in combat during both the Korean and Vietnam Wars, he retired from active duty in 1975 after more than three decades of service in the U.S. Army.

THE NEW AMERICAN sought him out for his thoughts about the current war against Iraq, and he minced no words. "We never should have gone in there in the first place since we weren't immediately threatened," he thundered. "There were no weapons of mass destruction; Saddam Hussein's regime had no connection to Osama bin Laden and al-Qaeda, and wasn't responsible for the attacks on the Pentagon and the World Trade Center; and there wasn't any evidence to back up the claim that Iraq was building nuclear weapons capability. All the reasons given by the administration to justify this war have been shown to be false."

The general is angry at what the president and his administration have done. They originally claimed the attack on Iraq was needed to fight terrorism and now insist that the effort is needed "to build democracy" in Iraq. He wants to know: "Who are we to tell the Iraqi people what kind of government they should have?" Further: "Our efforts are not resulting in freedom for the Iraqi people anyway. It is becoming increasingly clear that Iraq is becoming a radical Islamic regime aligned with Iran."

"We invaded a country that posed no threat to us," says the general. "What's different about what we have done in Iraq and what Hitler did when he sent his forces into Czechoslovakia in 1939? This war in Iraq has already cost the lives of 2,200 Americans, wounded over 15,000 more, and left at least 30,000 Iraqis dead, most of whom were non-combatants caught in crossfires or victimized by Islamist terrorists. And look at the billions of dollars being poured into this flawed effort. It saddens me to see all of this happen to our troops--and all for an unjust cause."

"Declare Victory" and Leave

Asked what he believes the Bush administration should do, he declared, "We should get out fast! We should declare victory and leave, maybe leaving a few advisers to help the Iraqis reconstruct their government and their country."

Andy Gatsis served during the Korean War that began in 1950. He knows what war is all about, and he argues that it should never be conducted unless we are attacked or there is a clear and provable threat that we will be attacked. Echoing General Douglas MacArthur, whom he reveres as a genuine hero, Gatsis believes, "No good can come from a partial effort. What kind of a war is it when there are no lines of combat and our troops have to watch out not only in front but behind and to their left and right? Not only that, our very presence as invaders has stimulated terrorist activity against our forces and against any Iraqis who are deemed friendly to America. And the situation has only worsened after almost three years of bloodletting."