Bush Sr warning over unilateral action

THE first President Bush has told his son that hopes of peace in the Middle East would be ruined if a war with Iraq were not backed by international unity.

Drawing on his own experiences before and after the 1991 Gulf War, Mr Bush Sr said that the brief flowering of hope for Arab-Israeli relations a decade ago would never have happened if America had ignored the will of the United Nations.

He also urged the President to resist his tendency to bear grudges, advising his son to bridge the rift between the United States, France and Germany. “You’ve got to reach out to the other person. You’ve got to convince them that long-term friendship should trump short-term adversity,” he said.

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UPDATE After being challenged on the accuracy of this article, I searched for a more respected source and failed to find one. Bush Sr definitely made a speech, defending the reasons why he did not take Bagdad in 91 Gulf war, but I think the above source read more into his words than were spoken. Sorry if this misled anyone else...