A MORAL OBLIGATION

No matter what we decide our strategy in Iraq will be, we have an obligation to protect those Iraqis who have worked with us. Anthony Cordesman and the Center for American Progress have pointed this out and now George Packer has done the same in a New Yorker article. Here's the relevant excerpt:

If, after a large-scale American withdrawal, Iraq becomes unlivable for such people, then it would be in America’s interest to evacuate those who request it, and contingency plans for mass airlifts and expatriation should be made before a crisis comes. This evacuation should go well beyond the current, sluggish process of resettling Iraqis here who worked directly for the U.S. in Iraq. It should be a much more ambitious effort to save the core of what perhaps someday could become a more decent society in Iraq, including military officers, local politicians, and the many thousands of other Iraqis (and their families) who have worked closely and well with Americans. U.S. officials and officers should begin making lists for evacuation. Most Iraqis would be settled in neighboring countries, but as many as a hundred thousand should be brought here, especially if Iraq begins to resemble Cambodia in 1975 or Rwanda in 1994. Beyond the humanitarian imperative, the United States would be salvaging what’s left of its enormous investment in Iraq and preserving the seeds of a better future.

As a side note, Hilary Clinton has observed that taking care of the Iraqis who have worked with us must be part of our withdrawal plan.