By IRNA
London : Five years since US invasion of Iraq, presidential candidate John McCain said Friday that an “early” military pull-out will cause “genocide” and represent a defeat for the American government.
“If we do that then al-Qa’eda wins, we have chaos and genocide throughout the region and they will follow us home,” McCain said, believing calls for the US to get out of Iraq will be one of the debate at the presidential elections in November.
“I believe we would lose the war if we withdrew,” he said in an interview with the Daily Telegraph, stating that this argument would remain his position when contesting the election for the Republicans against either Hillary Clinton or Barrack Obama for the Democrats.
Despite the political risk of placing support for an unpopular war at the core of his campaign, the senator and Vietnam War veteran said he will not be diverted from his course or his support for a continued heavy troop presence.
“Unlike the years of frustrating we are succeeding and as the American people feel we are succeeding they will tolerate this conflict,” he said.
The 71-year-old former naval pilot, who is due to meet Prime Minister Gordon Brown in London next week, also expressed fears of the consequences of the British troops withdrawal from Basra.
“With all due respect, I remain concerned about the situation in Basra. There are different factions that have taken over certain areas in Basra city and province. Everybody knows that, it’s not a secret,” he said.
But McCain also said that he respected the decision the British government made and was “grateful for the things they have done.” He said he looked forward to “working together in other areas, particularly Afghanistan.”