Joseph R. Biden and Chuck Hagel

The 2003 war on Iraq was preceded by sharp debate within the United Nations; the international body ultimately failed to endorse America and Great Britain’s decision to wage war. In the following viewpoint written during that conflict, two U.S. senators, both supporters of military action against Iraq, write that the United Nations needs to be involved in securing peace and rebuilding Iraq once the fighting stops. An effort to internationalize the postwar effort to secure and rebuild Iraq would benefit not only Iraq, but the United States as well; U.S. security alliances and ties have been weakened in part because America’s willingness to wage war without UN approval has caused many to question U.S. motives in Iraq, they contend...