I should have written: "the US would like nothing LESS]..."
gmat: are you saying that the middle east is a stable region? I mean, with its own problems, or course.
Attacking the US will not prevent the US from depending on outside countries for oil, but if the ME is "more stable" and more "democratic", then the price of this oil would drop, which will lower the trade imbalance. I've already mentionned that the US depends on outside countries for 40% of its oil.
So the problem is that Saddam is using oil profits to wage war on neighbouring countries (Kuwait) and funds terrorism. He is an immediate threat not only to the US, but to the rest of the world as well.
Maybe I was too harsh in my choice of words: the UN is not in a position to either: fix all of the problems with Iraq or not in a position to allow itself to sanction an act that would have repercussions outside of its mandate.
That's the problem with the US: they can't openly admit that what they propose has repercussions outside of what the UN will allow, and I guess they're trying to find a compromise, one of which is to instaure a temporary government made up of representatives from various countries.
About Cuba, I meant to say that, although it is a dictatorship, it is represented at the UN. Wether its citizens are mistreated or not, is up to Cuba to answer, through their representative at the UN. They are already facing sanctions, and they've opted to do nothing and suffer. That's their (Fidel's) choice. It certainly isn't over, and it will come up again.
I don't believe that the UN has it as a mandate to promote democracy.
I do believe that the US has promoted democracy through its "contributions" to third world countries, in the form of "restrictions". An example would be to offer a 3W country a complete aqueduct system (built locally), but with the provision that the water be sold, not freely given. It serves two purposes:
1) it helps ensure that the aqueduct will have funds for maintenance
b) it imposes an economic structure that is capitalistic, and therefore democratic.
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