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Formal Paper

Imperial Life in the Emerald City: Inside Iraq’s Green Zone is a publication by Rajiv

Chandrasekaran. The 2006 release illustrates the civilian leadership during the reconstruction of

Iraq after the end of the American invasion. In the book, Chandrasekaran explains the

development, management, and the challenges that the leadership of the Coalition Provisional

Authority (CPA) experiences. The CPA program intended to facilitate civilian administration in

Iraq and to address the increasing threats of insurgency in the country. The book offers a

bureaucratic explanation about the first year after the American forces overthrew the

administration of Saddam Hussein. During this period, the American army was the legal

occupying authority that was responsible for the administration of Iraq. There was the need to

establish the CPA within the Baghdad palace to facilitate the administration activities.

The purpose of the CPA was to serve as a transitional government after the occupation by

the United States forces. The United States was the leader of the Multinational Force during the

invasion on March 19, 2003. The development of the CPA was due to the United Nations

Security Council Resolution 1483 of 2003. The purpose of the CPA was to facilitate judicial,

executive, and legislative roles and authority between April 21, 2003, and June 28, 2004

(Chandrasekaran 290). The program is essential in the history of the United States as it was a

creation of the United States Department of Defense. The administrator of the CPA transitional

government was a direct appointee of the Secretary of Defense. The structure of the CPA was in
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four broad categories. These are CPA North, CPA Central, CPA South Central, and CPA South

(Chandrasekaran 292). The operations in each region were semi-autonomous, but there were a

clear and shared mission and vision for the reconstruction of Iraq. CPA had the significant role

of managing the economy of Iraq. The United Nations Resolution 1483 gave CPA the authority

to regulate the financial resources of Iraq; for example, the oil revenues (Chandrasekaran 212).

CPA also had the role of privatization of the economy. As a result, foreign firms, most of the

American multinational corporations, got the opportunity to invest in the country

(Chandrasekaran 9). Even though the CPA had clear responsibilities, challenges arose in the

leadership and management of the resources of the nation.

The administration challenges are a significant factor for the failure of the CPA

transitional government. Paul Bremer was the administrator of the CPA between May 12, 2003,

and June 28, 2004. His role was challenging as he had the responsibility of deregulating the Iraq

economy, without worsening the social disruptions and encouraging a nascent insurgency

(Chandrasekaran 211). The primary failure of the program was the inability to get sufficient

foreign investments. Most multinational corporates consider Iraq as a politically unstable society.

Hence, it requires a lot of resources and risk to invest in the country. The Iraqi populace was also

curious about the activities of the foreign companies Chandrasekaran 290). In fact, popular

public opinion is that the United States has the sole interest of plundering the oil resources. There

were contradictions in the mission of Bremer. For example, the Iraqis were not ready to accept

the economic reforms as the CPA did not consider their input or opinions. The CPA had

insufficient staff and resources. As a result, the mission in Iraq was not successful. Even though

western civilization offers wealth and freedom, its realization in Iraq is through violence. The use

of military force to overthrow a communist government is undesirable due to the loss of life and
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the destruction of property and infrastructures. There is need to respect the dignity and create

understanding with the foreign partners.

Chandrasekaran explains the war on terror. It aims at improving the security of the

United States and the world. America has a lot of interests in other countries. Therefore, it is

essential to enhance the international security through partnership with other countries. The war

on terror increases homeland security. There has never been a terror attack on American society

since the 9/11 bombing. Also, American forces have been instrumental in preventing the

activities of terror organizations in the Middle East and African regions. However, the war on

terror must be sustainable to avoid the re-emergence of the terror groups like ISIS, Taliban, Al-

Qaeda, and Al-Shabaab. Involving the local authorities and communities is one effective method

of having a war on terror that is sustainable. There is need to address the conflicts and

disagreements between the key stakeholders in the war on terror (Chandrasekaran 290). For

example, the NATO allies should develop consensus to have a standard position on addressing

the terror challenges.

The American empire has challenges in convincing other countries to adopt its

ideologies, systems, and practices (Chandrasekaran 219). For example, it is wrong to use military

force to change the centralized-economic regime of Iraq, in favor of the free-market and

privatization processes (Chandrasekaran 292). It is necessary to involve the Iraqis in the

development of critical leadership and political leadership. The American empire has conflicting

interests, especially in the terror prevention activities. The Pentagon and the White House must

adopt the counterinsurgency program to hinder the re-emergence of the terror organizations.

In conclusion, the role of the United States during and after the Iraq invasion is

controversial. Some political experts support the use of the CPA in developing an effective
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civilian leadership to manage the sector of the economy. However, other political and economic

experts favor the involvement of the Iraqis in making the decisions that affect their political and

economic environments. The Iraq government should choose the policy to adopt for efficient

administration.
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Work Cited

Dekker, Martijn. "Imperial Life in the Emerald City: Inside Iraq's Green Zone‐by Rajiv

Chandrasekaran." Peace & Change 34.3 (2009): 292-294.