From The Associated Press:
Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero issued the abrupt recall just hours after his government was sworn in, saying there was no sign the United States would meet his demand for United Nations control of the postwar occupation -- his ultimatum for keeping troops there.
Zapatero's Socialist party won the March 14 general election amid allegations that outgoing Prime Minister Jose Maria Aznar, by backing the war in Iraq, had provoked commuter-train terrorist bombings that killed 191 people three days before the vote.
Its sad this had to happen. 1,400 soldiers is a lot of man-power to lose at a crucial time like this. Unfortunately, Zapatero's asking price for continued Spanish support in Iraq was just too high. We can't risk allowing the U.N. to take control of Iraq and let it sink back into the clutches of dictators and terrorists.
Its disheartening to see Spain appease the terrorists in this way. Islamic extremists are banking on the world's politicians losing their nerve when it comes to Iraq. The way the terrorists see it, all they have to do is make things ugly long enough so that the people of the free world will declare the efforts to liberate Iraq a "quagmire" and move on.
Its like the terrorists are children throwing a temper tantrum in order to get their way. They think that if they scream and cry long enough the world will give them a big fat lollipop. What's sad is, countries like Spain are inclined to give them that "lollipop" by pulling their troops out.
This is the wrong message to be sending the terrorists in Iraq. We shouldn't be telling them that they can get their way if they kill enough people. We should be telling them that every time they hit us, we'll hit back ten times harder.
We have to win in Iraq.
Update:
Reuters headline:
It seems as though Reuters is trying to imply that those U.S. troops died specifically because the Spanish troops are pulling out.
I doubt that's the case.