Special to WorldTribune.com

Former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld recently pointed to an avalanche of mistakes the U.S., UN and the international community made that has contributed to the devastation of the Middle East and opened the way for Russian expansionism.

Rumsfeld, in an interview with The Times of London, said George W. Bush mistakenly sought to institute democracy after removing Saddam Hussein from power in Iraq.

“I’m not one who thinks that our particular template of democracy is appropriate for other countries at every moment of their histories,” Rumsfeld said. “The idea that we could fashion a democracy in Iraq seemed to me unrealistic. I was concerned about it when I first heard those words.”

Rumsfeld said U.S. President Barack Obama has failed to show any kind of leadership in the global arena and that opened the door for Russian President Vladimir Putin to grab Crimea from Ukraine.

The former defense secretary said removing Libyan strongman Moammar Gadhafi from power, occurring on the watch of Obama and then Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, was another contributing factor to Middle East destabilization.

Rumsfeld went on to say that the international community was not prepared to handle Islamic extremism, particularly the rise of Islamic State of Iraq and Levant (ISIL).

“The movement for a caliphate, the movement against nation states is central and fundamental,” he said. “And no one’s talking about it. Have you ever heard anyone at the UN begin to think about that concept?”

Rumsfeld said the war against Islamic fundamentalism will last decades and that it is vital for Western leaders to make clear the seriousness of the threat.

“If leaders aren’t willing to do it, why the hell should a guy with a wife and kids in the community put himself at risk?” he asked.

“You begin to look at this thing not like a war but more like the Cold War … you’re not going to win this with bullets, you’re in a competition of ideas.”

  Barack Obama, Donald Rumsfeld, George W. Bush, Iraq, Rumsfeld: Wrong to push democracy on Iraq, WorldTribune.com, wrong to not even discuss militant Islam, wrong to oust Gadhafi