Iraq:America's most expensive war
04 November 2008 à 00h19
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Among all wars carried out by the United States, the current war in Iraq remains the most expensive. America has already paid nearly 400 billion dollars in five years for a conflict that still seems endless.
When the United States started the war in Iraq, they laid down objectives: ending Weapons of Mass Destruction, stabilizing the Middle East and creating a stable democracy. But how much does it cost?
In 2008, the American defence budget was nearly 4.2% of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP). In comparison, defence respectively represented maximum 14.2% and 9.4% of the GDP for the entire length of the wars in Korea and Vietnam.
In his book “ The three trillion dollar war: the true cost of Iraq ”, Joseph Stiglitz, the winner of the 2001 Nobel Prize for Economy, explains that this conflict won’t end for a long time yet –thus, it would cost the trifling sum of 3,000 billion dollars in 2017. Stiglitz takes into account several elements, such as the no-claims bonus offered to attract and preserve recruits in the army, the health care coverage for veterans, the renewal of military equipment, the impact of the conflict on the rise in oil prices….
An assertion that the Pentagon doesn’t accept: Joseph Stiglitz “takes into account anything and everything in his calculation”. The Department of Defence says that from September 2001 to December 2007, the fight against terrorism only cost 527 billion dollars, including 406.6 billion for Iraq.
The war had consequences on the US army. In February 2008, George Casey, chief of the Army General Staff, explained to the Senate that “the effects of six years of war in Iraq and Afghanistan unbalanced, exhausted the Army and limited its capacity of preparation for other missions”.
Source : http://tempsreel.nouvelobs.com
When the United States started the war in Iraq, they laid down objectives: ending Weapons of Mass Destruction, stabilizing the Middle East and creating a stable democracy. But how much does it cost?
In 2008, the American defence budget was nearly 4.2% of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP). In comparison, defence respectively represented maximum 14.2% and 9.4% of the GDP for the entire length of the wars in Korea and Vietnam.
In his book “ The three trillion dollar war: the true cost of Iraq ”, Joseph Stiglitz, the winner of the 2001 Nobel Prize for Economy, explains that this conflict won’t end for a long time yet –thus, it would cost the trifling sum of 3,000 billion dollars in 2017. Stiglitz takes into account several elements, such as the no-claims bonus offered to attract and preserve recruits in the army, the health care coverage for veterans, the renewal of military equipment, the impact of the conflict on the rise in oil prices….
An assertion that the Pentagon doesn’t accept: Joseph Stiglitz “takes into account anything and everything in his calculation”. The Department of Defence says that from September 2001 to December 2007, the fight against terrorism only cost 527 billion dollars, including 406.6 billion for Iraq.
The war had consequences on the US army. In February 2008, George Casey, chief of the Army General Staff, explained to the Senate that “the effects of six years of war in Iraq and Afghanistan unbalanced, exhausted the Army and limited its capacity of preparation for other missions”.
Source : http://tempsreel.nouvelobs.com
