February 7, 2004

Fighting terror with a forceful neo-con stick
Frum and Perle say U.S. must 'force European governments to choose between Paris and Washington'

Adam Daifallah
National Post

AN END TO EVIL: HOW TO WIN THE WAR ON TERROR
By David Frum and Richard Perle
Random House, 288 pp., $37.95

"There is no middle way for Americans: It is victory or holocaust." When authors use language like that to open up a book, it is a safe bet that what follows will be rather stark and forceful. Such is the case in David Frum and Richard Perle's An End to Evil, which is best described as a dummies' guide to the neo-conservative view of the war on terror.

In their manifesto, Frum and Perle -- two men of unrivalled hawkish credentials -- offer a candid assessment of the post-9/11 actions of the United States. They chart various mistakes that have been made, review present challenges and offer counsel for the future.

There is nothing really new in the way of policy prescriptions in An End to Evil ; most of the ideas have already been put forward on the opinion pages of The Wall Street Journal or in the Weekly Standard magazine or other conservative publications. But it is nonetheless useful to have these ideas summarized in one short book.

Frum and Perle certainly cannot be accused of being dovish. Among the authors' suggestions for next steps in the war on terror: more overt support for the democratic forces in Iran (a neoconservative hobby horse for years); adopting a more "stern and uncompromising" stance toward the Baathist regime in Syria; a "four-point checklist" for North Korea, including the closing of its missile bases and planning for a pre-emptive strike against its nuclear facilities, and a more realistic and frank relationship with America's putative ally, Saudi Arabia. Indeed, An End to Evil's excoriation of the House of Saud is one of its more useful sections, because it takes the United States to task for turning a blind eye toward the kingdom's egregious human rights abuses, its support for and incitement of terrorism and the exporting of its puritanical brand of Wahhabi Islam to every corner of the globe. (Republicans and Democrats are equally guilty.)

Also useful is An End to Evil's examination of the deficiencies of various arms of the U.S. government -- particularly the State Department and the CIA, whose shortcomings were so damaging to the Bush administration in the lead-up to the Iraq war. The CIA's intelligence gathering was, as we now know since this book's publication, way off-base on Iraq's weapons capabilities. The agency was never fully on board with President Bush's plans for Iraq in the first place, preferring instead to cling to their years-old pipe dream of overthrowing Saddam Hussein in a coup.

Just as harmful were the antics of State, a department whose hallways are still dominated by status quo Arabists out-of-touch with Mr. Bush's vision. As the authors note, Foggy Bottom's senseless recalcitrance toward working with exiled Iraqi democrats like the Iraqi National Congress contributed to the chaos after Baghdad fell. Frum and Perle call for the abolition of regional bureaus at State and a sharp increase in the number of political appointees there. (Unless the entire swamp is drained, it is unclear whether that would make much of a difference.)

Frum and Perle are pertinacious in their view that the United States must reassess its international relationships, including those with Europe and in particular with France. America's relationship with France must be calibrated "to reflect French behaviour" and the United States should "force European governments to choose between Paris and Washington." The authors also urge aiding Britain in maintaining its independence from Europe. (This is going to be difficult to achieve, given Tony Blair's obvious preference for further integration into the European Union and eventual adoption of the euro.) The authors' antipathy toward France is understandable given its recent behaviour. But it does seem unproductive to actively oppose France and to pursue a policy that would further alienate Paris, especially at a time when the United States is looking for friends in Iraq.

An End to Evil also calls for quite sensible reforms to ensure the survival of the United Nations. The UN is not this reviewer's or the authors' favourite body. But changes such as amending the UN's Article 51 to give states the right to defend themselves against threats other than an "armed attack" (which it currently does not do) might allow that institution to remain viable. If it does not, it will go the way of the League of Nations.

This book does not call for invading a host of countries -- the authors know that the American military, with more than 100,000 troops in Iraq, is already stretched thin. It does not call for an American empire. It is not a Muslim-bashing screed. It is definitely idealistic, and perhaps over-ambitious. But it provides an articulate and well-argued case for an uncompromisingly strong United States, and for democratization of the Middle East as the only way to eradicate Islamic terrorism.

The usual chorus of so-called experts are already out dismissing this book as being shrill and extreme. But what if an al-Qaeda terrorist does detonate a dirty bomb in a New York subway? What if a Syrian-coddled jihadi blows himself up in a Los Angeles bistro? What if North Korea decides to lob a nuclear-tipped missile at Japan?

One hopes none of these things will happen, but if they ever should, this book's detractors will have egg on their faces, and Frum and Perle will be vindicated.

Adam Daifallah is a member of the National Post's editorial board.