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Donald Trump Fast Facts(CNN)Here's a look at the life of Donald Trump, the 45th president of the United States.Personal:Birth date: June 14, 1946Birth place: New York, New YorkBirth name: Donald John TrumpFather: Fred Trump, real estate developerMother: Mary (Macleod) TrumpMarriages: Melania (Knauss) Trump (January 22, 2005-present); Marla (Maples) Trump (December 1993-June 1999, divorced); Ivana (Zelnicek) Trump (1977-1990, divorced)Children: with Melania Trump: Barron, March 20, 2006; with Marla Maples: Tiffany, October 13, 1993; with Ivana Trump: Eric, 1984; Ivanka, October 30, 1981; Donald Jr., December 31, 1977Education: Attended Fordham University; University of Pennsylvania, Wharton School of Finance, B.S. in Economics, 1968Photos: Donald Trump's riseOther Facts:As Trump evolved from real estate developer to reality television star, he turned his name into a brand. Licensed Trump products have included board games, steaks, cologne, vodka, furniture and menswear.He has portrayed himself in cameo appearances in movies and on television, including "Zoolander," "Sex and the City" and "Home Alone 2: Lost in New York."Trump's slogan, "Make America Great Again," was first used by Ronald Reagan while he was running against President Jimmy Carter.For details on investigations into alleged Russian meddling in the 2016 election, visit 2016 Presidential Election Investigation Fast Facts.For updates on Trump administration departures and firings, visit Who has left Trump's administration and orbit.Timeline:1970s - After college, works with his father on apartment complexes in Queens and Brooklyn, New York.1973 - Trump and his father are named in a Justice Department lawsuit alleging Trump property managers violated the Fair Housing Act by turning away potential African-American tenants. The Trumps deny the company discriminates and file a $100 million countersuit, which is later dismissed. The case is settled in 1975, and the Trumps agree to provide weekly lists of vacancies to black community organizations.1976 - Trump and his father partner with the Hyatt Corporation, purchasing the Commodore Hotel, an aging midtown Manhattan property. The building is revamped and opens four years later as the Grand Hyatt Hotel. The project kickstarts Trump's career as a Manhattan developer.1983-1990 - He builds/purchases multiple properties in New York City, including Trump Tower and the Plaza Hotel, and also opens casinos in Atlantic City, New Jersey, including the Trump Taj Mahal and the Trump Plaza. Trump buys the New Jersey Generals football team, part of the United States Football League, which folds after three seasons.1985 - Purchases Mar-a-Lago, an oceanfront estate in Palm Beach, Florida. It is renovated and opens as a private club in 1995.1987 - Trump's first book, "Trump: The Art of the Deal," is published and becomes a bestseller. The Donald J. Trump Foundation is established in order to donate a portion of profits from book sales to charities.1990 - Nearly $1 billion in personal debt, Trump reaches an agreement with bankers allowing him to avoid declaring personal bankruptcy.1991 - The Trump Taj Mahal files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.1992 - The Trump Plaza and the Trump Castle casinos file for bankruptcy.1996 - Buys out and becomes executive producer of the Miss Universe, Miss USA and Miss Teen USA pageants.October 7, 1999 - Tells CNN's Larry King that he is going to form a presidential exploratory committee and wants to challenge Pat Buchanan for the Reform Party nomination.February 14, 2000 - Says that he is abandoning his bid for the presidency, blaming discord within the Reform Party.January 2004 - "The Apprentice," a reality show featuring aspiring entrepreneurs competing for Trump's approval, premieres on NBC.November 21, 2004 - Trump Hotels & Casino Resorts Inc. files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.2005 - Establishes Trump University, which offers seminars in real estate investment.February 13, 2009 - Announces his resignation from his position as chairman of Trump Entertainment Resorts. Days later, the company files for bankruptcy protection.March 17, 2011 - During an interview on ABC's "Good Morning America," Trump questions whether President Barack Obama was born in the United States.June 16, 2015 - Announces that he is running for president during a speech at Trump Tower. He pledges to implement policies that will boost the economy and says he will get tough on immigration. "When Mexico sends its people, they're not sending their best...They're sending people who have lots of problems," Trump says. "They're bringing drugs, they're bringing crime, they're rapists, and some, I assume, are good people."June 28, 2015 - Says he's giving up the TV show "The Apprentice" to run for president.June 29, 2015 - NBCUniversal says it is cutting its business ties to Trump and won't air the Miss USA and Miss Universe pageants because of "derogatory statements by Donald Trump regarding immigrants."July 8, 2015 - In an interview with CNN's Anderson Cooper, Trump says he "can't guarantee" all of his employees have legal status in the United States. This is in response to questions about a Washington Post report about undocumented immigrants working at the Old Post Office construction site in Washington, which Trump is converting into a hotel.July 22, 2015 - Trump's financial disclosure report is made public by the Federal Election Commission.August 6, 2015 - During the first 2016 Republican debate, Trump is questioned about a third party candidacy, his attitude towards women and his history of donating money to Democratic politicians. He tells moderator Megyn Kelly of Fox News he feels he is being mistreated.August 7, 2015 - The controversy continues, as Trump tells CNN's Don Lemon that Kelly was singling him out for attack, "You could see there was blood coming out of her eyes, blood coming out of her wherever."September 11, 2015 - Trump announces he has purchased NBC's half of the Miss Universe Organization, which organizes the annual Miss USA and Miss Universe pageants.December 7, 2015 - Trump's campaign puts out a press release calling for a "complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States until our country's representatives can figure out what is going on."May 26, 2016 - Secures enough delegates to clinch the Republican Party nomination.July 16, 2016 - Introduces Indiana Governor Mike Pence as his running mate.July 19, 2016 - Becomes the Republican Party nominee for president.September 13, 2016 - During an interview with CNN's Jake Tapper, New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman says his office is investigating Trump's charitable foundation "to make sure it's complying with the laws governing charities in New York."October 1, 2016 - The New York Times reports Trump declared a $916 million loss in 1995 which could have allowed him to legally skip paying federal income taxes for years. The report is based on a financial document mailed to the newspaper by an anonymous source.October 7, 2016 - Unaired footage from 2005 surfaces of Trump talking about trying to have sex with a married woman and being able to grope women. In footage obtained by The Washington Post, Trump is heard off-camera discussing women in vulgar terms during the taping of a segment for "Access Hollywood." In a taped response, Trump declares, "I said it, I was wrong and I apologize."October 9, 2016 - During the second presidential debate, CNN's Cooper asks Trump about his descriptions of groping and kissing women without their consent in the "Access Hollywood" footage. Trump denies that he has ever engaged in such behavior and declares the comments were "locker room talk." After the debate, 11 women step forward to claim that they were sexually harassed or sexually assaulted by the real estate developer. Trump says the stories aren't true.November 8, 2016 - Is elected president of the United States. Trump will be the first president who has never held elected office, a top government post or a military rank.November 18, 2016 - Trump agrees to pay $25 million to settle three lawsuits against Trump University. The deal keeps the President-elect from having to testify in a trial in San Diego that was set to begin November 28. The settlement ends a suit brought by Schneiderman, as well as two class action suits in California. About 6,000 former students are covered by the settlement.December 24, 2016 - Trump says he will dissolve the Donald J. Trump Foundation "to avoid even the appearance of any conflict with my role as President." A spokeswoman for the New York Attorney General's Office says that the foundation cannot legally close until investigators conclude their probe of the charity.January 10, 2017 - CNN reports that intelligence officials briefed Trump on a dossier that contains allegations about his campaign's ties to Russia and unverified claims about his personal life. The author of the dossier is a former British spy who was hired by a research firm that had been funded by both political parties to conduct opposition research on Trump.January 20, 2017 - Takes the oath of office from Chief Justice John Roberts during an inauguration ceremony at the Capitol and delivers an inaugural address centering on the populist themes that fueled his candidacy.January 23, 2017 - Trump signs an executive action withdrawing the United States from the Trans-Pacific Partnership, a 12-nation trade deal negotiated by the Obama administration and awaiting congressional approval.January 27, 2017 - Trump signs an executive order halting all refugee arrivals for 120 days and banning travel to the United States from seven Muslim-majority countries for 90 days. Additionally, refugees from Syria are barred indefinitely from entering the United States. The order is challenged in court.February 13, 2017 - Trump's national security adviser, Michael Flynn, resigns amid accusations he lied about his communications with Russian ambassador to the United States, Sergey Kislyak. Flynn later pleads guilty to lying to the FBI.February 28, 2017 - Nominates Neil Gorsuch to replace late Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia.March 4, 2017 - Alleges on Twitter, without offering evidence, that Obama wiretapped his phones ahead of the 2016 election. "Terrible! Just found out that Obama had my 'wires tapped' in Trump Tower just before the victory. Nothing found. This is McCarthyism!"March 16, 2017 - The Trump administration releases its budget blueprint, with increases in funding for the military and cuts for agencies including the State Department, the Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Agriculture.May 3, 2017 - FBI Director James Comey confirms that there is an ongoing investigation into ties between the Trump campaign and Russia during a hearing on Capitol Hill. Less than a week later, Trump fires Comey, citing a DOJ memo critical of the way he handled the investigation into Clinton's emails.May 2017 - Shortly after Trump fired Comey, the FBI opens an investigation into whether Trump "had been working on behalf of Russia against American interests," citing former law enforcement officials and others the paper said were familiar with the probe.May 17, 2017 - Former FBI Director Robert Mueller is appointed as special counsel to lead the probe into Russian meddling in the 2016 election, including potential collusion between Trump campaign associates and Russian officials. Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein makes the appointment because Attorney General Jeff Sessions recused himself in March from investigations into Trump's campaign.May 19, 2017 - Departs on his first foreign trip as president. The nine-day, five-country trip includes stops in Saudi Arabia, Israel, the Vatican, a NATO summit in Brussels and a G7 summit in Sicily.June 1, 2017 - Trump proclaims that the United States is withdrawing from the Paris climate accord but adds that he is open to renegotiating aspects of the environmental agreement, which was signed by 175 countries in 2016.July 7, 2017 - Meets Russian President Vladimir Putin in person for the first time, on the sidelines of the G20 meeting in Hamburg, Germany.August 8, 2017 - In response to nuclear threats from North Korea, Trump warns that Pyongyang will "face fire and fury like the world has never seen." Soon after Trump's comments, North Korea issues a statement saying it is "examining the operational plan" to strike areas around the US territory of Guam.August 15, 2017 - After a violent clash between neo-Nazi activists and counterprotesters leaves one dead in Charlottesville, Virginia, Trump holds an impromptu press conference in the lobby of Trump Tower and declares that there were "fine people" on both sides.August 25, 2017 - Trump's first pardon is granted to former Arizona sheriff Joe Arpaio, who was convicted of criminal contempt for disregarding a court order in a racial-profiling case. Trump did not consult with lawyers at the Justice Department before announcing his decision.September 5, 2017 - The Trump administration announces that it is ending the DACA program, introduced by Obama to protect nearly 800,000 undocumented immigrants brought to the United States as children. Trump calls on Congress to introduce legislation that will prevent DACA recipients from being deported. Multiple lawsuits are filed opposing the policy in federal courts and judges delay the end of the program, asking the government to submit filings justifying the cancellation of DACA.September 19, 2017 - In a speech at the United Nations General Assembly, Trump refers to North Korean leader Kim Jong Un as "Rocket Man" and warns that the United States will "totally destroy North Korea" if forced to defend itself or its allies.September 24, 2017 - The Trump administration unveils a third version of the travel ban, placing restrictions on travel by certain foreigners from Chad, Iran, Libya, North Korea, Somalia, Syria, Venezuela and Yemen. (Chad is later removed after meeting security requirements.) One day before the revised ban is set to take effect, it is blocked nationwide by a federal judge in Hawaii. A judge in Maryland issues a similar ruling.December 4, 2017 - The Supreme Court rules that the revised travel ban can take effect pending appeals.December 6, 2017 - Trump recognizes Jerusalem as Israel's capital and announces plans to relocate the US Embassy there.January 11, 2018 - During a White House meeting on immigration reform, Trump reportedly refers to Haiti and African nations as "shithole countries." He reportedly says that the United States should get more people from countries like Norway.January 12, 2018 - The Wall Street Journal reports that Trump had an alleged affair with a porn star named Stephanie Clifford, aka Stormy Daniels. The newspaper states that Trump's personal attorney, Michael Cohen, arranged a $130,000 payment for a nondisclosure agreement weeks before Election Day in 2016. Cohen denies that Trump had a relationship with Clifford.March 13, 2018 - Trump announces in a tweet that he has fired Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and will nominate CIA Director Mike Pompeo as Tillerson's replacement.March 20, 2018 - A New York Supreme Court judge rules that a defamation lawsuit against Trump can move forward, ruling against a July 2017 motion to dismiss filed by Trump's lawyers. The lawsuit, filed by Summer Zervos, a former "Apprentice" contestant, is related to sexual assault allegations.March 23, 2018 - The White House announces that it is adopting a policy, first proposed by Trump via tweet in July 2017, banning most transgender individuals from serving in the military.April 9, 2018 - The FBI raids Cohen's office, home and a hotel room where he'd been staying while his house was renovated. The raid is related to a federal investigation of possible fraud and campaign finance violations.April 13, 2018 - Trump authorizes joint military strikes in Syria with the UK and France after reports the government used chemical weapons on civilians in Douma.May 7, 2018 - The Trump administration announces a "zero tolerance" policy for illegal border crossings. Sessions says that individuals who violate immigration law will be criminally prosecuted and warns that parents could be separated from children.May 8, 2018 - Trump announces that the United States is withdrawing from the Iran nuclear deal. "This was a horrible one-sided deal that should have never, ever been made," he says in remarks that, at times, misrepresent the international agreement's provisions.May 31, 2018 - The Trump administration announces it is imposing tariffs on steel and aluminum imported from allies Canada, Mexico and the European Union.June 8-9, 2018 - Before leaving for the G7 summit in Quebec City, Trump tells reporters that Russia should be reinstated in the group. The annexation of Crimea in 2014 led to Russia's suspension. After leaving the summit, Trump tweets that he will not endorse the traditional G7 communique issued at the end of the meeting. The President singles out Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau for making "false statements" at a news conference.June 12, 2018 - Trump meets Kim in person for the first time during a summit in Singapore. They sign a four-point statement that broadly outlines the countries' commitment to a peace process. The statement contains a pledge by North Korea to "work towards" complete denuclearization but the agreement does not detail how the international community will verify that Kim is ending his nuclear program.June 14, 2018 - The New York attorney general sues the Trump Foundation, alleging that the nonprofit run by Trump and his three eldest children violated state and federal charity law.June 26, 2018 - The Supreme Court upholds the Trump administration's travel ban in a 5-4 ruling along party lines.July 16, 2018 - During a joint news conference with Putin in Helsinki, Trump declines to endorse the US government's assessment that Russia interfered in the election, saying he doesn't "see any reason why" Russia would be responsible. The next day, Trump clarifies his remark, "The sentence should have been, 'I don't see any reason why it wouldn't be Russia." He says he accepts the intelligence community's conclusion that Russia meddled in the election but adds, "It could be other people also."August 21, 2018 - Cohen pleads guilty to eight federal charges, including two campaign finance violations. In court, he says that he orchestrated payments to silence women "in coordination and at the direction of a candidate for federal office." On the same day, Trump's former campaign chairman, Paul Manafort is convicted on eight counts of federal financial crimes. On December 12 Cohen is sentenced to three years in prison.September 5, 2018 - The New York Times publishes an op-ed by an anonymous Trump administration official who claims that there is an ongoing effort to thwart the president's worst impulses. Trump says the person who wrote the piece is "gutless."September 11, 2018 - Bob Woodward's book "Fear: Trump in the White House" is published. Several administration officials say that they are misquoted in the book.November 20, 2018 - Releases a statement backing Saudi Arabia in the wake of the murder of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi, a Virginia resident, killed in October at a Saudi consulate in Turkey. Khashoggi was a frequent critic of the Saudi regime. The Saudis initially denied any knowledge of his death, but then later said a group of rogue operators were responsible for his killing. US officials have speculated that such a mission, including the 15 men sent from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, to murder him, could not have been carried out without the authorization of Saudi leader Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.December 18, 2018 - The Donald J. Trump Foundation agrees to dissolve according to a document filed in Manhattan Supreme Court. The agreement allows the New York attorney general's office to review the recipients of the charity's assets.December 19, 2018 - Trump declares that the US has defeated ISIS and orders a "full" and "rapid" withdrawal of US military from Syria.December 22, 2018 - The longest partial government shutdown in US history begins after Trump demands lawmakers allocate $5.7 billion in funding for a border wall before agreeing to sign a federal funding package.January 16, 2019 - After nearly two years of Trump administration officials denying that anyone involved in his campaign colluded with the Russians to help his candidacy, Trump lawyer and former New York City mayor, Rudy Giuliani, says "I never said there was no collusion between the campaign, or people in the campaign. I said the President of the United States. There is not a single bit of evidence the President of the United States committed the only crime you can commit here, conspiring with the Russians to hack the DNC."January 25, 2019 - The government shutdown ends when Trump signs a short-term spending measure, providing three weeks of stopgap funding while lawmakers work on a border security compromise. The bill does not include any wall funding.February 15, 2019 - Trump declares a national emergency to allocate funds to build a wall on the border with Mexico. During the announcement, the president says he expects the declaration to be challenged in court. The same day, Trump signs a border security measure negotiated by Congress, with $1.375 billion set aside for barriers, averting another government shutdown.February 18, 2019 - Attorneys general from 16 states file a lawsuit in federal court challenging Trump's emergency declaration.February 28, 2019 - Trump's summit with Kim ends with no joint agreement after Kim insists all US sanctions on North Korea be lifted. On the same day, Trump's former attorney Cohen testifies before the House Oversight Committee presenting an extensive set of Trump's possible criminal liabilities.

Q. What was Hmong General Vang Pao early life like before he joined the Vietnamese war?A. Early lifeGeneral Vang Pao was born on 8 December 1929, in a Hmong village named Nonghet, located in Central Xiangkhuang Province, in the northeastern region of Laos, where his father, Neng Chu Vang, was a county leader.Vang began his early life as a farmer until Japanese forces invaded and occupied French Indochina in World War II. His father sent him away to school from the age of 10 to 15 before he launched his military career, joining the French Military to protect fellow Hmong during the Japanese invasion. He became a sergeant in the French colonial army, and, in 1954, an officer in the army of the newly independent Laos.While taking an entrance examination, the captain who was the proctor realized that Vang knew almost no written French. The captain dictated the answers to Vang so he could join the army. Vang insisted the captain gave him the answers but did not actually guide his hand on the paper. Anne Fadiman, author of The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down, said Vang did not express any embarrassment over this cheating. Fadiman added "it is worth noting that in this incident, far from tarnishing Vang Pao's reputation — as, for example Ted Kennedy's fudged Spanish exam at Harvard University tarnished his — merely added to his mythology: this was the sort of man who could never be held back by such petty impediments as rules."A Fond Farewell for Vang Pao (time.com)Laos Hmong leader dies in exile (BBC.com)The life of General Vang Pao, Hmong guerrilla leader (csmonitor.com)Vang Pao, Hmong Leader And General Who Led Secret War In Laos, Has Died (npr.org)Vang Pao, Laotian General Who Aided U.S., Dies at 81 (nytimes.com)Vang Pao - WikipediaGeneral Vang Pao Monument > About GVPThe US Abandonment of the Hmong ContinuesA Fond Farewell for Vang Pao (time.com)John Dominis / Time Life Pictures / Getty ImagesHe was born in the Laotian jungle in 1929 and died Jan. 6 in suburban Clovis, Calif. Along the way, General Vang Pao, son of Hmong farmers, became a key, if controversial, American ally and the symbolic father of a persecuted people.Vang Pao, who was 81, is best known for his role in America's "secret war," a covert, CIA-backed campaign against Laos' Viet Cong-aligned leaders during the Vietnam War. In the lead-up to war, North Vietnamese forces cut tracks through the Laotian jungle, creating the supply route now known as the Ho Chi Minh Trail. Laos was also at war, split between the communist Pathet Lao and the Royal Lao forces. The Americans teamed up with the latter, working with Vang Pao and a band of guerrilla fighters to disrupt the North's network of trails. For Vang Pao's 15-year fight against Southeast Asia's communists, former CIA chief William Colby once called him "the biggest hero of the Vietnam War."But Vang Pao's relationship with the U.S. — as with his homeland — was always complicated. In 2007, after a lengthy investigation known as Operation Tarnished Eagle, the ex-CIA operative was arrested for plotting to overthrow the Laotian government. He was charged under the U.S. Neutrality Act, a security clause that prohibits actions on American soil against foreign governments with whom Washington is at peace. Federal prosecutors alleged Vang Pao, then 77, and several colleagues were funding guerrilla fighters living in Laos. Vang Pao didn't deny the charge but countered that the CIA was well aware of his plans to send American weapons to his former comrades in arms. The case against him, which drew outrage, was later dropped. Leaving Military Region II and Laos.It was not the first time the general felt he had been slighted by Washington. In 1975, after Saigon fell, Vang Pao and his fighters were all but abandoned. Thousands were killed, and tens of thousands took to the hills or traveled overland to camps in neighboring Thailand. Some languish there still. Vang Pao was among the 100,000 or so Hmong who eventually made it to the U.S., where they were "resettled," primarily in California, Minnesota and Wisconsin. But America's erstwhile allies were not welcomed as heroes — far from it. The government did not officially acknowledge Hmong fighters until 1997. That year, Washington recognized their heroism with a small copper plaque. Vang Pao and some 3,000 veterans attended the ceremony.Vang Pao's exile in America was spent advocating for Hmong refugees and bolstering the resistance movement in Laos. He helped found the United Lao National Liberation Front and spoke out against the forced repatriation of Hmong refugees living in Thai camps. At 80, he vowed to return to Laos to help broker peace between his people and the country's communist leaders; those leaders said they'd execute him if he tried. Vang Pao, like so many of the Hmong, never got to go home.Laos Hmong leader dies in exileImage caption Vang Pao, accused of subversion against Laos in 2007, was revered for his war recordVang Pao, the former general and leader of his Hmong ethnic group in Laos, has died in exile in the US, aged 81.He had been in hospital for about 10 days before his death late on Thursday.As a young man, he had fought against the Japanese during World War II, and with the French against the North Vietnamese in the 1950s.He led a 15-year CIA-sponsored secret war in Laos during the Vietnam War and, when it was lost, led tens of thousands of his people into exile.Thousands of ethnic Hmong are expected to attend his funeral in Fresno, California."He'll be remembered as a great general, a great warrior, a great Hmong soldier," his friend Charlie Waters told AFP news agency.However the response from the Laos government was muted. "He was an ordinary person, so we do not have any reaction," a government spokesman was quoted by AFP as saying.'Last of his kind'Gen Pao was a controversial figure, deeply loved by many Hmong - an ethnic minority in Lao that complains of persecution - for his insistence on freedom from foreign domination.Former Central Intelligence Agency chief William Colby once called Gen Pao "the biggest hero of the Vietnam War".But critics say that by allying himself with the US, Gen Pao caused his people untold suffering - something that he himself recognised."I lost 17,000 men, almost 10% of the total Hmong population. The Hmong sacrificed the most in the war and were the ones who suffered the most," he said at the Heritage Foundation think tank in 1987.Americans who first came into contact with him found a man skilled in warfare and with the charisma necessary to sustain a dangerous, 15-year operation in support of the US against the North Vietnamese.The CIA airline, Air America, carried Gen Pao and his fighters across the country.The HmongEthnic group that complains of marginalisation and persecution in Lao societyBacked the US in 1960s as conflict spread from Vietnam into Laos and CambodiaMany fled abroad in 1975 when the communists took power in LaosBig Hmong communities in California, Minnesota, Thailand and AustraliaThe general, in camouflage fatigues, with an American adviser and Thai officers near Long Tieng, Laos, circa 1969. Credit Vang PaoLaos' forgotten HmongOn the ground, he and his men disrupted Vietnamese supply lines and engaged in pitched battles to try to stave off the Vietnamese-backed communist victory in Laos.When that effort failed in 1975, Gen Pao led many thousands of Hmong into what are now well-established exile communities in the US.The Central Valley of California, Minneapolis and cities throughout Wisconsin have a Hmong presence of an estimated 30,000-40,0000.In his later years, Gen Pao was accused of leading rebellions or sponsoring subversion against the People's Democratic Republic of Laos.In 2007, he was charged along with nine others with plotting to use AK-47 rifles, missiles and mercenaries to overthrow the Lao government. Charges against him were later dropped.He was regarded by some as an exiled head of state."He's the last of his kind, the last of the leadership that carries that reverence that everyone holds dear," said Blong Xiong, a Fresno city councilman and prominent Hmong-American."Whether they're young or old, they hear his name, there's the respect that goes with it."BBC News website readers comments:General Vang Pao is our greatest leader and will remain this way. He was our beacon of hope and is the very reason why we are here in the US, our land of opportunity. He will forever be missed and no one will be able to replace him in our hearts, mind and community. He was a much loved leader that led his people. He wasn't one to be above anyone, but rolled up his sleeves and challenged our everyday struggles with us. He is a great hero that - even though was considered "exiled" - was truly not because his people followed him to the very end. Mao Lee, Fresno, California, USI cannot believe that there can be any celebration of someone who supported the US and the CIA in Vietnam/Laos. Your note that as a Community Leader he worked as a security guard at a supermarket in the USA says it all. The US should still be damned for the horror that they exercised on Vietnamese (and US) people in the Vietnam war - and in Laos and Cambodia. Mike, Cape TownIt's a tragic loss for the Hmong community. A historic Hmong leader has passed away. Neng Vang, St Paul, Minnesota, USGeneral Vang Pao will always be regarded as the Hmong people's saviour of the war. He negotiated our freedom from what would be certain death for many of us in Laos. It is too bad that young people, like me, will never fully understand the extent of his courage, and the charismatic nature of this man. I just wished that he had done more for the young people here in the US. Maybe now that the only "leader" we have known is gone, maybe the Hmong community can finally understand that a divided community is not as strong as one that is unified. I certainly hope his death will cause unification and not further separation. Gregory Yang, Merced, CA, USI met Vang Pao once in the refugee camp at Loei when he and Jerry Daniels were engineering the translocation of the entire tribe to America against the wishes of Congress. The visionary leadership at that point has become, and deserves to be, legendary. He could have just joined his relatives in Missoula but he stayed and engineered the future of hundreds of thousands of his people with craft and brilliance. With Jerry dead in 1984, the Hmong people have lost the last of the pair which worked together and alone created their destiny. I feel so proud to have met a man of his stature, may he be at peace in the presence of the Lord. Dan Pride, I.C.E.M Evacuation Officer Ampur LoeiAs we heard the news, my parents were crying. They couldn't sleep last night and they told me that they don't know what is going to happen to the Hmong people now that General Vang Pao is gone. He has been the father figure for the Hmong people and this is going to be a very hard time for our community. Our community leaders will meet together and get this funeral done first and then we will talk about what we are going to do next. Pao, St. Paul, MN, USGeneral Pao was the last of the Nationalist leaders from the Vietnam era. Men like him fought the Japanese and anyone else that wanted to dominate their country. We, in the US, could not tell the difference between a nationalist and a Communist. So we supported Catholics to rule a country of non-Catholics and other such stupidities. General Pao and the loyalty of his people is a good story with a semi-tragic ending in that most are far from home, the worst hell on earth for a nationalist. Mike Reid, Sheridan, Oregon, USThe life of General Vang Pao, Hmong guerrilla leaderVang Pao, a revered former general in the Royal Army of Laos who led thousands of Hmong guerrillas in a CIA-backed secret army during the Vietnam War, has died. He was 81.After immigrating to the United States once the communists seized power in Laos in 1975, Vang Pao was venerated as a leader and a father figure by the large Hmong refugee populations who resettled in California's Central Valley, Minneapolis and cities throughout Wisconsin.Xang Vang, the general's chief translator who fought by his side, said Vang Pao died Thursday night following a battle with pneumonia, which he caught while traveling in central California to preside over two Hmong New Year celebrations."I touched his hand, I called his name on his ear, and he opened his eyes briefly," Xang Vang said. "He had been getting better for the last few days, but last night he was getting worse and now he has left us."The general had been hospitalized for about 10 days, Clovis Community Medical Center Michelle Von Tersch spokeswoman said.As a teenager in World War II, Vang Pao fought the Japanese, who were attempting to take over Laos.In the 1950s, he joined the French in the war against the North Vietnamese who were dominating Laos and later worked with the CIA to wage a covert war there.Former CIA Chief William Colby once called Pao "the biggest hero of the Vietnam War," for the 15 years he spent heading a CIA-sponsored guerrilla army fighting against a communist takeover of the Southeast Asian peninsula.After his guerrillas ultimately lost to communist forces, Vang Pao came to the U.S., where he was credited with brokering the resettlement of tens of thousands of Hmong, an ethnic minority from the hillsides of Laos."He's the last of his kind, the last of the leadership that carries that reference that everyone holds dear," said Blong Xiong, a Fresno city councilman and the first Hmong-American in California to win a city council seat. "Whether they're young or old, they hear his name, there's the respect that goes with it."Xiong was at the hospital with a growing crowd of mourners. He said he spoke briefly with family members, who were planning a memorial service, but had no details on what caused Vang Pao's death.Regarded by Hmong immigrants as an exiled head of state, Vang Pao made frequent appearances at Hmong cultural and religious festivals and often was asked to mediate disputes or solve problems.In 2007, however, he was arrested and charged with other Hmong leaders in federal court with conspiracy in a plot to kill communist officials in his native country. Federal prosecutors alleged the Lao liberation movement known as Neo Hom raised millions of dollars to recruit a mercenary force and conspired to obtain weapons.Even after his indictment, he appeared as the guest of honor at Hmong New Year celebrations in St. Paul and Fresno, where crowds of his supporters gathered to catch a glimpse of the highly decorated general as he arrived in a limousine.The charges against Vang Pao were dropped in 2009, "after investigators completed the time-consuming process of translating more than 30,000 pages of pages of documents," then-U.S. Attorney Lawrence G. Brown said in a written statement. The government arrested the defendants before understanding all the evidence because they felt a threat was imminent, he said.In November, a federal judge in Sacramento threw out parts of the case against 12 other defendants. They include retired U.S. Army Lt. Col. Youa True Vang and 11 members of California's Hmong community, many of whom fought for the U.S. during the Vietnam War. All 12 have pleaded not guilty since their arrests in 2007."Vang Pao was a great man and a true American hero. He served his country for many years in his homeland, and he continued to serve it in America," said attorney William Portanova, who represents one of the remaining Hmong defendants. "To think that these elderly men would be in a position to try to overthrow a country is, on its face, almost laughable."Lauren Horwood, a spokeswoman for the U.S. attorney's office in Sacramento, said she had no immediate comment.Vang Pao had been a source of controversy for several years before the case was filed.In 2002, the city of Madison, Wis., dropped a plan to name a park in his honor after a University of Wisconsin-Madison professor cited published sources alleging that Vang Pao had ordered executions of his own followers, of enemy prisoners of war and of his political enemies.Five years later, the Madison school board removed his name from a new elementary school named for him, after dissenters said it should not bear the name of a figure with such a violent history.But such criticism meant little to Hmong families who looked to Vang Pao for guidance as they struggled to set up farms and businesses in the U.S. and assume a new, American identity. The general formed several nonprofits to aid the refugee communities and set up a council to mediate disputes between the 18 Hmong clans, whose president he hand-picked for decades."He's always been kind of the glue that held everyone together," said Lar Yang of Fresno, who featured an interview with Vang Pao last month in the Hmong business directory he publishes annually."He's the one that always resolved everything ... I don't think it can be filled by one person at this point. There will probably be a search for identity. There will be a lot of chaos for a little while, until things get settled."Vang Pao, Hmong Leader And General Who Led Secret War In Laos, Has DiedMARK MEMMOTTFormer Hmong Gen. Vang Pao (right) in May 2000 during a wreath-laying ceremony at the Vietnam Memorial in Washington, D.C.Luke Frazza /AFP/Getty Images"Gen. Vang Pao, an iconic figure in the Hmong community and a key U.S. ally during the Vietnam War, died Thursday afternoon in Clovis [Calif.] after spending days in the hospital with pneumonia and a heart problem," The Fresno Bee writes this morning. He was 81.As the Bee adds: "Over 100 people crowded into the outpatient care center at Clovis Community Medical Center to grieve the loss of a beloved leader, who some saw as the George Washington of the Hmong."The BBC reminds us that:"As a young man, he had fought against the Japanese during World War II, and with the French against the North Vietnamese in the 1950s.He led a CIA-sponsored secret war in Laos during the Vietnam War and, when it was lost, led many of his people into exile.Former Central Intelligence Agency chief William Colby once called [Vang] 'the biggest hero of the Vietnam War'."Time notes that the general's "relationship with the U.S. — as with his homeland — was always complicated":"In 2007, after a lengthy investigation known as Operation Tarnished Eagle, the ex-CIA operative was arrested for plotting to overthrow the Laotian government. He was charged under the U.S. Neutrality Act, a security clause that prohibits actions on domestic soil against foreign governments with whom Washington is at peace. Federal prosecutors alleged [that Vang], then 77, and several colleagues were funding guerilla fighters still living in Laos. Vang ... didn't deny the charge, but countered that the CIA was well aware of his plans to send American weapons to his former comrades in arms. The case, ... which drew outrage, was later dropped."Vang Pao, Laotian General Who Aided U.S., Dies at 81 (nytimes.com)Vang Pao, a charismatic Laotian general who commanded a secret army of his mountain people in a long, losing campaign against Communist insurgents, then achieved almost kinglike status as their leader-in-exile in the United States, died Thursday in Clovis, Calif. He was 81.His death was confirmed by Michael Bailey, a spokesman for the Clovis Community Medical Center.Vang Pao was a general in the official Laotian Army, the chief of a secret army financed by the Central Intelligence Agency and the undisputed leader of the varied factions of his people, the Hmong. Tens of thousands of them followed him in his flight to Thailand after the Communist victory in 1975. Later, in the United States, he was so revered that some of his people believed he had supernatural powers.“He is like the earth and the sky,” Houa Thao, a Hmong refugee, said in an interview with The Fresno Bee in 2007.That year, Gen. Vang Pao was charged with plotting to provide $10 million in arms to antigovernment forces in Laos in a conspiracy of such dimensions that American prosecutors compared it to the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on the United States. The charges were dropped two years later.Even before President Dwight D. Eisenhower’s vow in 1960 that Laos must not fall to the Communists, the country was immersed in bloody conflict. Its importance grew immensely during the Vietnam War, when most of the Ho Chi Minh Trail, the serpentine route that North Vietnam used to funnel supplies southward, ran through Laotian territory.Gen. Vang Pao in 1961. He was the chief of a secret army financed by the Central Intelligence Agency. Credit John Dominis/Time Life Pictures — Getty ImagesThe United States wanted to interdict the supply route, rescue American pilots shot down over Laos and aid anti-Communist forces in a continuing civil war, but was hampered in doing so publicly because Laos was officially neutral, so the C.I.A. recruited General Vang Pao for the job. At the time, he held the highest rank ever achieved by a Hmong in the Royal Laotian Army, major general.The Hmong are a tribe in the fog-shrouded mountains separating Laos from southern China, and they were natural allies for the C.I.A. because of their enmity toward Laotian lowlanders to the south, who dominated the Communist leadership.General Vang Pao quickly organized 7,000 guerrillas, then steadily increased the force to 39,000, leading them in many successful battles, often against daunting odds. William Colby, C.I.A. director in the mid-1970s, called him “the biggest hero of the Vietnam War.”Lionel Rosenblatt, president emeritus of Refugees International, in an interview with The New York Times Magazine in 2008, put it more bluntly, saying General Vang Pao’s Hmong were put “into this meat grinder, mostly to save U.S. soldiers from fighting and dying there.”Congressional committees discussed the war in secret sessions at the time it was being fought, and the press uncovered significant details. But the United States government did not officially recognize the Hmong’s contribution until 1997, when the Clinton administration authorized a plaque at Arlington National Cemetery saying that the valor of General Vang Pao’s troops would never be forgotten.General Vang Pao was born in December 1929 in a village in northeast Laos, had six years of sporadic schooling and worked as an interpreter for French colonial forces fighting the Japanese in World War II. He became a sergeant in the French colonial army, and, in 1954, an officer in the army of the newly independent Laos.Gen. Vang Pao in 2004. Credit Ingrid Young for The New York TimesWhen the C.I.A. approached him in 1960, he was already fighting Laotian Communists. The next year, he would also fight Communists from Vietnam after they had crossed the Laotian border. The Times in 1971 said that the C.I.A. did not command the general’s army at any level, because his pride and temper would have never permitted it.The general led troops into combat personally, suffered serious wounds and was known to declare: “If we die, we die together. Nobody will be left behind.” About 35,000 Hmong died in battle.General Vang Pao was also skilled at uniting the 18 clans of Hmong. One technique was to marry women from different tribes, as multiple marriages were permitted in Laos. He had to divorce all but one of his five wives when he went to the United States in 1975, settling on a ranch in Montana.His son Chu Vang told The Bee in 2007 that General Vang Pao had fathered more than 20 children and had more than 40 grandchildren. Complete information about survivors was not available.General Vang Pao lived more recently in Southern California and Minnesota, where many of the 200,000 Hmong that followed him to the United States or were born here live. His picture hangs in thousands of homes.Asked by the news agency Agence France-Presse to comment on his death, the Communist government of Laos said, “He was an ordinary person, so we do not have any reaction.”Vang Pao - WikipediaEarly lifeVang, an ethnic Hmong, was born on 8 December 1929, in a Hmong village named Nonghet, located in Central Xiangkhuang Province, in the northeastern region of Laos, where his father, Neng Chu Vang, was a county leader.Vang began his early life as a farmer until Japanese forces invaded and occupied French Indochina in World War II. His father sent him away to school from the age of 10 to 15 before he launched his military career, joining the French Military to protect fellow Hmong during the Japanese invasion.While taking an entrance examination, the captain who was the proctor realized that Vang knew almost no written French. The captain dictated the answers to Vang so he could join the army. Vang insisted the captain gave him the answers but did not actually guide his hand on the paper. Anne Fadiman, author of The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down, said Vang did not express any embarrassment over this cheating. Fadiman added "it is worth noting that in this incident, far from tarnishing Vang Pao's reputation — as, for example Ted Kennedy's fudged Spanish exam at Harvard University tarnished his — merely added to his mythology: this was the sort of man who could never be held back by such petty impediments as rules."General Vang Pao Monument > About GVPGeneral Vang Pao is considered a great leader and historic figure among the Hmong people as his extraordinary journey in life changed the destiny of the Hmong people and led them to a new frontier. He is well known as a legendary Hmong General and a loyal American Secret War hero during the Vietnam War. Former Director of the Central Intelligence Agency, William Colby, once acknowledged General Vang Pao as the biggest hero of the Vietnam War. General Vang Pao passed away on January 6, 2011 in Clovis, California due to illness; and with his death, the Hmong people lost their hero and inspiring leader.General Vang Pao launched his military career in his early teens; but it was not until he played a vital role in assisting the French in their efforts to occupy Laos that he became well known as a prominent military figure. Because of the bravery and brilliant skill he showed in helping the French, he was contacted by the United States Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) to assist in the CIA covert operations in Laos after the French withdrew from the country. The many accomplishments of Vang Pao and his troops resulted in his achievement of becoming and serving as the military commander for the Royal Lao Army for Military Region II and commander for CIA covert operations from 1961 to 1975.Lt. Col. Vang Pao talked to reporters about the cease-fire breaking at his mountain headquarter on May 16, 1961.As commander for the United States CIA operations during the Vietnam War, the General rallied the Hmong and other ethnic groups to support the United States as guerilla soldiers because of their experience with the terrain in Laos. His assignments in these operations were to (1) protect the United States Air Force Navigation Radar in Phou Pha Thi, (2) collect intelligence information along the border of North Vietnam and Laos, (3) direct air strikes and rescue American pilots who were shot down along the Lao-Vietnamese border, and (4) stop the flow of the North Vietnamese troops and supplies through the Ho Chi Minh Trail into Laos. General Vang Pao committed to his assignments and in his efforts saved many American lives. After the United States pulled out of Laos in 1975, the CIA evacuated General Vang Pao and thousands of his military leaders and families to Thailand. Consequently, they resettled in other countries including the United States, France, Canada, and Australia.General Vang Pao's ContributionsGeneral Vang Pao’s leadership changed the life of the Hmong people. Prior to General Vang Pao’s leadership, the Hmong people lived on the highlands of Laos, practicing slash-and-burn agriculture to survive with limited educational opportunities. Under his leadership, the life of the Hmong people changed drastically as he encouraged and introduced the Hmong to military, economic, and educational opportunities. Many Hmong people became pilots, military leaders, civil leaders, educators, and economically prosperous as a result of General Vang Pao’s guidance. He was responsible for the construction of roads to Hmong villages, the building of schools for Hmong children, and the teaching of Hmong people to engage and participate in society. He created opportunities for the Hmong people to learn, grow, and develop.While General Vang Pao’s military career ended after he resettled in America, the compassion and love he had for the Hmong people drove him to a new career of civil service. He found a new calling to help the Hmong people make a successful transition into American society. He started a new era of community service and through his leadership worked to establish community building efforts that would result in a strong and prosperous Hmong community.In 1978, with the support of other Hmong leaders, he founded the first Laotian non-profit organization, Lao Family Community, in Orange County, California, which reached out to many Hmong, Lao, and Mien communities to help them adjust to their new life in the United States. With a clear mission statement, Lao Family Community quickly expanded, opening numerous branches across the nation.In the early 1980s, General Vang Pao worked with other Hmong leaders to create the Lao Human Rights Council and the United Hmong International Council. The Lao Human Rights Council was created to advocate and educate the United Nations, elected officials, the media, and the general public about the Laotian refugee issues in Thailand and the humanitarian crises in Laos. The United Hmong International Council was created to keep the Hmong culture, traditions, and values alive and to provide alternative ways to settle Hmong disputes in a traditional manner.In the 1990s, with the support of many Hmong leaders, General Vang Pao formed the Lao Veterans of America and the Special Guerrilla Unit Veterans and Families of the USA to advocate for Laotian veterans and their families who fought bravely during the United States Secret War in Laos to defend against the aggression of Communism in Indo-China. Through his efforts and with the support of many others, the United States Congress passed several House Resolutions to recognize the Laotian veterans and their service.Besides founding these organizations, General Vang Pao traveled throughout the United States to meet with Hmong families and communities and encourage them to embrace the American ideals of freedom and democracy. He inspired with a vision of hope, offered his unwavering support, and always emphasized the importance of education. He always encouraged the Hmong people to pursue the American dream and to become productive American citizens. His legendary deeds will continue to inspire the Hmong people for generations to come.Feb-27-2010 22:06The US Abandonment of the Hmong ContinuesChuck PalazzoSalem-News.Com News from Salem Oregon and the surrounding region.The Hmong put themselves in great danger, but their loyalty to the US never wavered.From the book 'The Hmong and their stories by D.C. Everest Area Schools(DA NANG, Vietnam) - Why has the United States turned its back on some of the bravest and most loyal people that stood by our side during the Vietnam War?The so-called “Secret War”, which began during the early 1960’s, continues to remain secret in many ways – it is becoming more apparent to me, that the United States and especially the CIA has turned its back on The Hmong and they will face continued suppression at best, and possible genocide at worst. How better to keep a “secret” than to ensure the people that might have knowledge of same, quietly disappear?The CIA began to recruit and train the indigenous Hmong people in Laos to join the US in fighting the Vietnam War in the early 1960’s. Over 50% of The Hmong men in Laos were supported by the CIA to join fighting the “Secret War”. Their primary responsibility was to block the Ho Chi Minh Trail which was the main military supply route from the north to the south of Vietnam.The Hmong put themselves in great danger, but their loyalty to the US never wavered. They were indeed heroes, saving many Allied forces from capture, imprisonment and death. From 1967–1971, close to 4,000 Hmong soldiers were killed and over 5,000 injured and disabled.Between 1962–1975, over 12,000 Hmong died fighting against the Pathet Lao – what many consider to be the Lao equivalent to The Viet Cong, and who eventually took control of Laos. Following the US withdrawal from the region in 1975, we abandoned the Hmong.Men who say they fought a secret war for the C.I.A. are still on the run with their families in the mountain jungles of Laos. Credit Tomas Van Houtryve/The International Herald Tribune Old U.S. Allies, Still Hiding in LaosThey were left to escape their country of origin and most fled to Thailand where they have lived in UN refugee camps ever since. Still others continue to evade capture as they continue to live in the jungles and mountains as they are relentlessly hunted and apprehended by the local governments. A few have been able to escape and emigrate to western countries.During December, 2009, Thailand forced over 4,700 Hmong refugees back to the regime in Laos. Several hundred if not more, have been unaccounted for, and the worst is believed to be occurring - Hmong men have been beaten and have been subjected to food deprivation to ensure they sign confessions, presumably regarding their participation during the “Secret War” as well as to intimidate the other members of the Hmong and ensure they remain silent – about the war and certainly about the Lao Government and its officials.With signed confessions in hand, the Lao officials are probably hoping that this week’s delegation of US and Thai officials, as well as attendance and coverage by journalists, will go as planned – remain silent. In fact, it has been reported that The Hmong, who have been forcibly returned to Laos have had hundreds, if not more, removed from the “settlement camps” and scattered throughout Laos to remote prisons. Keep them silent?How better to keep any information from them from reaching the masses than to remove them from any possible contact with non-Lao officials or journalists?Perhaps to silence them permanently – which many fear has already begun. Approximately 8,000 members of The Hmong who have been forcibly repatriated to Laos from 2007-2009 are missing. Many of these brave men, women and children attempted to petition the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees at their Bangkok Headquarters for political asylum. The result? Forced back to Laos by the Thai Army against their wishes – but certainly favored by the Lao Government, and apparently the US, to keep the silenced silent.During July, 2009, a US Delegation led by the principal deputy assistant secretary for the State Department’s Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration, visited the Hmong in two refugee camps in Thailand.Nothing was resolved, and to make matters worse, mixed signals were sent to The Hmong People – they had indeed been given the impression that they would be granted asylum and allowed to enter the United States. What the Assistant Secretary did do, was to meet privately with Thai Military officers and a handful of The Hmong.He never met with the thousands of Hmong that were in the camps. Instead, upon his return to the US, he issued a press statement saying the US had no plans for a massive resettlement, but they would consider referrals on a case-by-case basis.The US delegation demanded an appropriate and transparent screening process to identify those detainees who may have protection concerns. “Those Lao Hmong who are found to be in need of protection should not be forcibly returned to Laos”, it said. The repatriation plan could not be enforced easily since it runs against the Hmong's freewill, notably those who claimed they are close associates of the CIA and fear suppression from the Lao government. The Lao Military dismissed any such allegations and “guaranteed that no Hmong would be punished upon return to Laos”.One interesting and alarming issue is this – it is estimated that several hundred of The Hmong who had close ties to the CIA are indeed in several of the many camps now, presumably back in Laos. The entire Hmong population is being held, however. Can the US not utilize its records and negotiate on behalf of those few hundred and have them as well as the entire Hmong people freed from Laos, refugee camps, or the jungles and mountains? There are many who seek asylum in the US for a variety of reasons.There are no other foreign people who deserve asylum in the US, or a western country of The Hmong’s choice, more so than the Hmong. In my opinion The Hmong have indeed a right to such protection, as a result of what they did to help their American allies during the Vietnam War. Let us not forget that Thailand also participated in the “Secret War”.In 1993, Vue Mai, a former Hmong soldier who had been recruited by the U.S. Embassy in Bangkok to return to Laos as proof of the repatriation program's success, disappeared in Vientiane. According to the U.S. Committee for Refugees, he was arrested by Lao security forces and was never seen again.According to Amnesty International, at least nine Lao protest leaders have disappeared in Laos following their arrest in Vientiane on November 2, 2009. “Guaranteed that no Hmong would be punished upon return to Laos”. Interesting comment. My definition of “guaranteed” is very different.There are not only those Hmong who have been placed into refugee camps, or perhaps “re-education” camps by now. There are in fact, many brave Hmong who continue to evade capture. An investigative reporter met and spoke with several Hmong in the mountains.The following quote, by a former CIA recruit is very telling. “I am CIA. In 1970 Mr. Jerry gave me this M79 and told me to shoot enemy," this Hmong fighter and former “secret war” recruit says in a perfect American accent, as he waves a battered grenade-launcher in the air. "We have lost thousands of troops for America – when the Laos soldiers kill us they feel like they have killed an America soldier. The CIA must come and save us." He continues “At least before, we thought we could escape to Thailand but now we have no place to run to," as he looks over to a mountain just three miles away."We can't keep running, soon we will all die here. Just over that mountain is where the enemy is and as we speak they are hunting us down with dogs – it's just a matter of time before they attack us again."The CIA had the wherewithal and all the resources required, to recruit the Hmong for the “Secret War”. Nearly 50 years later, they can certainly extract anyone they choose from any mountaintop or jungle.Not doing so for The Hmong, whether it be our CIA to perform extraction missions clandestinely, or the organized removal, with all Governments involved approval; for those Hmong in refugee camps and elsewhere, standing idly by and doing nothing is a disgrace.The US has clearly turned their backs on The Hmong who remain in Southeast Asia. What “secrets” remain preventing the US and the UN from performing the necessary humanitarian work to free all Hmong from ongoing persecution?Vang Pao Elementary School

Foreign policy tends to differ from one administration to the next. Most presidents have a Doctrine which is;A body of axioms fundamental to the exercise of a nation's foreign policy. Hence, "doctrine,' in this sense, has come to suggest a broad consistency that holds true across a spectrum of acts and actions.George H. W. Bush Middle East foreign policy- Wikipedia (1989 - 1993)Bush affirmed U.S. commitment to Israel,[210] and his support for Jews emigrating from the Soviet Union earned recognition from Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Shamir.[211] Bush suspended American dialogue with the Palestine Liberation Organization after its refusal to condemn the Palestinian guerrilla raid of an Israeli beach,[212] and lobbied against Israeli retaliation for Iraq launching a missile attack out of concern for the move possibly disillusioning Arab allies in the Gulf War,[213] pledging American efforts to seeking the suppression and destruction of the mobile Scuds.[214] Under Bush's tenure, the United States was criticized by Israel for not providing 400 million in housing loan guarantees for the purpose of Soviet Jewish immigrant resettlement in Israel and reimbursements for Israel's role in the Gulf War,[215][216] and saw strained relations with Israel over settlements and loan guarantees in 1992.[217][218]In reference to the Israeli–Palestinian conflict, during an April 7, 1989 conference, Bush stated he would become involved in pursuing Middle East peace in the event he felt "being immersed in it would help solve the problem of peace" there while acknowledging it was "not a time where a lot of high-visibility missions on the part of the President can be helpful in the process." He affirmed that the violence in the West Bank was of concern to the administration.[219] After Bush's June 1990 announcement of suspension of American discussions with the PLO, Bush admitted that the order, one he had made at the recommendation of Secretary of State Baker, would likely appease anti-American PLO hardliners that spearheaded the attack and cited this along with the negative effect it would have on peace negotiations as making the move a hard decision to make but insisted discussions between the US and PLO would resume immediately in the event that the PLO condemn the attack and punish the perpetrators.[220] On January 29, 1991, during a speech to the National Association of Religious Broadcasters, Bush pledged to lead efforts to bring peace to the Middle East following the conclusion of the Gulf War, administration officials saying the president's remarks "were intended to quiet Arab concerns about the mounting destruction in Iraq and to signal that once the fighting ends the United States will try to address the Israeli-Palestinian dispute."[221] On October 19, the US and Soviet Union jointly issued invitations Israel, neighboring Arabs and the Palestinians for a Middle East peace conference to held on October 30 in Madrid.[222] During a news conference on March 13, when asked if believed Israeli or Palestinian leaders were willing to make concessions on their long held positions, Bush stated that he believed the US was in a good position "than it has ever been to be a catalyst for peace" and that he was in favor of moving forward.[190]Bush became the first American president to meet with Syrian President Hafez al-Assad in over a decade,[223] and reversed the position of the Reagan administration by consulting with Syria.[224][225]Bush ordered American troops into Saudi Arabia during the Gulf War in the event the country become the target of Iraq.[226]On August 2, 1990, Iraq, led by Saddam Hussein, invaded its oil-rich neighbor to the south, Kuwait; Bush condemned the invasion[176] and began rallying opposition to Iraq in the US and among European, Asian, and Middle Eastern allies.[26] Secretary of Defense Richard Bruce "Dick" Cheney traveled to Saudi Arabia to meet with King Fahd; Fahd requested US military aid in the matter, fearing a possible invasion of his country as well.[176] The request was met initially with Air Force fighter jets. Iraq made attempts to negotiate a deal that would allow the country to take control of half of Kuwait. Bush rejected this proposal and insisted on a complete withdrawal of Iraqi forces.[26] The planning of a ground operation by US-led coalition forces began forming in September 1990, headed by General Norman Schwarzkopf.[176] Bush spoke before a joint session of the U.S. Congress regarding the authorization of air and land attacks, laying out four immediate objectives: "Iraq must withdraw from Kuwait completely, immediately, and without condition. Kuwait's legitimate government must be restored. The security and stability of the Persian Gulf must be assured. And American citizens abroad must be protected." He then outlined a fifth, long-term objective: "Out of these troubled times, our fifth objective – a new world order – can emerge: a new era – freer from the threat of terror, stronger in the pursuit of justice, and more secure in the quest for peace. An era in which the nations of the world, East and West, North and South, can prosper and live in harmony.... A world where the rule of law supplants the rule of the jungle. A world in which nations recognize the shared responsibility for freedom and justice. A world where the strong respect the rights of the weak."[177] With the United Nations Security Council opposed to Iraq's violence, Congress authorized the use of military force[176] with a set goal of returning control of Kuwait to the Kuwaiti government, and protecting America's interests abroad.[26]Bush meets with Robert Gates, General Colin Powell, Secretary Dick Cheney and others about the situation in the Persian Gulf and Operation Desert Shield, January 15, 1991Early on the morning of January 17, 1991, allied forces launched the first attack, which included more than 4,000 bombing runs by coalition aircraft.[178] This pace would continue for the next four weeks, until a ground invasion was launched on February 24, 1991. Allied forces penetrated Iraqi lines and pushed toward Kuwait City while on the west side of the country, forces were intercepting the retreating Iraqi army. Bush made the decision to stop the offensive after a mere 100 hours.[179][180] Critics labeled this decision premature, as hundreds of Iraqi forces were able to escape; Bush responded by saying that he wanted to minimize U.S. casualties. Opponents further charged that Bush should have continued the attack, pushing Hussein's army back to Baghdad, then removing him from power.[26] Bush explained that he did not give the order to overthrow the Iraqi government because it would have "incurred incalculable human and political costs.... We would have been forced to occupy Baghdad and, in effect, rule Iraq."[181]Bush's approval ratings skyrocketed after the successful offensive.[26] Additionally, President Bush and Secretary of State Baker felt the coalition victory had increased U.S. prestige abroad and believed there was a window of opportunity to use the political capital generated by the coalition victory to revitalize the Arab-Israeli peace process. The administration immediately returned to Arab-Israeli peacemaking following the end of the Gulf War; this resulted in the Madrid Conference, later in 1991.[182]Bill Clinton Middle East foreign policy - Wikipedia (1993 – 2001)On February 1996, the Clinton administration agreed to pay Iran US$131.8 million in settlement to discontinue a case brought by Iran in 1989 against the U.S. in the International Court of Justice after the shooting down of Iran Air Flight 655 by the U.S. Navy guided missile cruiser.[146]Capturing Osama bin Laden had been an objective of the U.S. government during the presidency of Bill Clinton (and continued to be until bin Laden's death in 2011).[147] Despite claims by Mansoor Ijaz and Sudanese officials that the Sudanese government had offered to arrest and extradite bin Laden and that U.S. authorities rejected each offer[148] the 9/11 Commission Report stated that "we have not found any reliable evidence to support the Sudanese claim".[149]In response to a 1996 State Department warning about bin Laden and the 1998 bombings of U.S. embassies in East Africa by al-Qaeda (which killed 224 people, including 12 Americans), Clinton ordered several military missions to capture or kill bin Laden, both of which were unsuccessful.[150] In August 1998, Clinton ordered cruise missile strikes on terrorist targets in Afghanistan and Sudan, targeting the Al-Shifa pharmaceutical factory in Sudan, which was suspected of assisting bin Laden in making chemical weapons, and Bin Laden's terrorist training camps in Afghanistan.[151]In Clinton's 1998 State of the Union Address, he warned Congress that Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein was building an arsenal of chemical, biological and nuclear weapons:Saddam Hussein has spent the better part of this decade, and much of his nation's wealth, not on providing for the Iraqi people, but on developing nuclear, chemical and biological weapons and the missiles to deliver them. The United Nations weapons inspectors have done a truly remarkable job, finding and destroying more of Iraq's arsenal than was destroyed during the entire gulf war. Now, Saddam Hussein wants to stop them from completing their mission. I know I speak for everyone in this chamber, Republicans and Democrats, when I say to Saddam Hussein, "You cannot defy the will of the world", and when I say to him, "You have used weapons of mass destruction before; we are determined to deny you the capacity to use them again.[163]Play media President Clinton, Israeli prime minister Ehud Barak and Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat at Camp David, July 2000Seeking to weaken Hussein's grip on power, Clinton signed the Iraq Liberation Act of 1998 into law on October 31, 1998, which instituted a policy of "regime change" against Iraq, though it explicitly stated it did not provide for direct intervention on the part of American military forces.[164][165] The administration then launched a four-day bombing campaign named Operation Desert Fox, lasting from December 16 to 19, 1998. At the end of this operation Clinton announced that "So long as Saddam remains in power, he will remain a threat to his people, his region, and the world. With our allies, we must pursue a strategy to contain him and to constrain his weapons of mass destruction program, while working toward the day Iraq has a government willing to live at peace with its people and with its neighbors."[166] American and British aircraft in the Iraq no-fly zones attacked hostile Iraqi air defenses 166 times in 1999 and 78 times in 2000.[167][168]After initial successes such as the Oslo Accords of the early 1990s, which also led to the Israel–Jordan peace treaty in 1994 and the Wye River Memorandum in October 1998, Clinton attempted an effort to end the Israeli–Palestinian conflict. He brought Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak and Palestinian Authority chairman Yasser Arafat together at Camp David for the Camp David Summit in July 2000, which lasted 14 days.[44] Following the failures of the peace talks, Clinton stated Arafat "missed the opportunity" to facilitate a "just and lasting peace". In his autobiography, Clinton blames Arafat for the collapse of the summit.[2][173] Following another attempt in December 2000 at Bolling Air Force Base, in which the president offered the Clinton Parameters, the situation broke down completely after the end of the Taba Summit and with the start of the Second Intifada.[44]Bush Doctrine - Wikipedia (2001 - 2008)The Bush Doctrine refers to various related foreign policy principles of the 43rd President of the United States, George W. Bush. These principles include unilateralism and the use of preventative war.Charles Krauthammer first used the phrase in June 2001 to describe the Bush Administration's "...unilaterally withdrawing from the ABM treaty and rejecting the Kyoto protocol."[1] After the 9/11 attack, the phrase described the policy that the United States had the right to secure itself against countries that harbor or give aid to terrorist groups, which was used to justify the 2001 war in Afghanistan.[1][2] The Bush Doctrine became strongly associated with the Bush administration's decision to invade Iraq in 2003.[3][4][5]Different pundits have attributed different meanings to the Bush Doctrine. It was used to describe specific policy elements, including a strategy of "preemptive strikes" as a defense against an immediate or perceived future threat to the security of the United States. This policy principle was applied particularly in the Middle East to counter international terrorist organizations and to justify the invasion of Iraq.Generally, the Bush Doctrine was used to indicate a willingness to unilaterally pursue U.S. military interests.[6][7][8] Some of these policies were codified in a National Security Council text entitled the National Security Strategy of the United States published on September 20, 2002.[9]The phrase "Bush Doctrine" was rarely used by members of the Bush administration. The expression was used at least once, though, by Vice President Dick Cheney, in a June 2003 speech in which he said, "If there is anyone in the world today who doubts the seriousness of the Bush Doctrine, I would urge that person to consider the fate of the Taliban in Afghanistan, and of Saddam Hussein's regime in Iraq."[10]On September 11, 2001, two hijacked planes were flown into and destroyed the World Trade Center in New York City, a third plane was aimed at the Pentagon and a fourth crashed in a field in Pennsylvania after being averted by passengers from its target, believed to be the U.S. Capitol. In reaction to this, the US led a NATO invasion of Afghanistan, instigating the "Global War on Terror". NATO forces scoured the region for 9/11 alleged mastermind Osama Bin Laden and his terrorist network Al-Qaeda and drove the fundamentalist Islamic Taliban regime, which was sheltering and providing sanctuary for Bin Laden and Al-Qaeda, from power. However once Bin Laden left Afghanistan and took up sanctuary in Pakistan, Bush said that he was "not that concerned about him" as the Al-Qaeda leader continued to plot attacks against America.[15]Major criticisms started to emerge from international human rights organizations about the United States policy of detaining alleged Taliban and Al-Qaeda combatants and refusing to grant these detainees their rights as prisoners of war as detailed in the Geneva Conventions. Other allegations stated that numerous captured Taliban fighters possessed no link to either Al-Qaeda or the Taliban. Instead these fighters had the misfortune of being forcibly recruited into the Taliban military during the American invasion. The practice of impressment was systematic of the Taliban regime which would raid villages for able bodied men to serve on the front lines for a specific time period.President Bush and his administration labelled the detainees as "unlawful combatants" deemed to pose a threat to the U.S. or to have information about terrorist structures, plans and tactics. The administration has said that such detainees can be held for "as long as necessary". Critics claim that anyone accused of a crime has a right to a fair trial and question whether people like Mullah Abdul Salam Zaeef, the former Taliban ambassador to Pakistan, can be called an "unlawful combatant". In the case of Zaeef, they claim he cannot be a "combatant" because he was crippled during the Soviet occupation and that he wasn't "unlawful" because he was ambassador of his country. The Bush Administration and its supporters claim that the war against America by Al-Qaeda is ongoing, that it is unconventional, and that the "battlefield" extends into the U.S. itself.[16][17] According to the declassified April 2006 National Intelligence Estimate, "United States-led counterterrorism efforts have seriously damaged the leadership of Al-Qaeda and disrupted its operations; however, we judge that al-Qa’ida will continue to pose the greatest threat to the Homeland and US interests abroad by a single terrorist organization. We also assess that the global jihadist movement—which includes Al-Qaeda, affiliated and independent terrorist groups, and emerging networks and cells—is spreading and adapting to counterterrorism efforts."Although the Bush administration released over 100 detainees and authorized military tribunals for the rest, the legal framework governing them has been slow in the making. According to Human Rights Watch, as of January 2004, "the public still [did] not know who the detainees are, what they [had] allegedly done, and whether and when they will be charged with crimes or released. There [had] been no hearings to determine the legal status of detainees and no judicial review—in short, no legal process at all."[16] In February 2002 the United States began releasing several dozen detainees to their home countries, including many British and Pakistani nationals. The British detainees were briefly investigated and cleared of any British charges within 24 hours of their arrival.The domestic political equation changed in the U.S. after the September 11, 2001 attacks, bolstering the influence of the neoconservative faction of the administration and throughout Washington. The conflict in Afghanistan, and the events that had launched the war, coincided with a reassessment of foreign policy by the administration, which President Bush articulated in his first State of the Union message on January 29, 2002. Previously, September 11 had underscored the threat of attacks from terrorist groups like Al-Qaeda, as opposed to nation-states, and U.S. military intervention in Afghanistan targeted the ruling Taliban militia for having harbored al-Qaeda sponsor Osama bin Laden. Now speaking of an "axis of evil" comprising Iran, North Korea, and Iraq in his address to Congress, Bush claimed that he was preparing to open a new front in the U.S. global "war on terrorism". Bush declared, "Iraq continues to flaunt its hostility toward America and to support terror." Announcing that he would possibly take action to topple the Iraqi government, he claimed, "The Iraqi regime has plotted to develop anthrax, and nerve gas, and nuclear weapons for over a decade."[18]Beginning with the Iraq Liberation Act signed into law by President Bill Clinton in 1998, the U.S. government officially called for regime change in Iraq. The Republican Party's campaign platform of 2000 called for "full implementation" of the act and removal of Iraqi president Saddam Hussein, with a focus on rebuilding a coalition, tougher sanctions, reinstating inspections, and support for the Iraqi National Congress.In November 2001, Bush asked Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld to begin developing a plan for war. By early 2002 Bush began publicly pressing for regime change, indicating that his government had reason to believe that the Iraqi government had ties to terrorist groups, was developing weapons of mass destruction and did not cooperate sufficiently with United Nations weapons inspectors. In January 2003, Bush was convinced that diplomacy was not working and started notifying allies such as Saudi Arabia that war was imminent.Although no agreement on authorizing force could be found within the United Nations Security Council, the war was ultimately launched in March 2003, after Bush, in a speech on March 17 effectively had declared war on Iraq, along with a declaration of his objectives as "assuring [the] national security" of the United States, and "no more poison factories, no more executions of dissidents, no more torture chambers and rape rooms."[19]Saddam Hussein was deposed and went into hiding on April 10 when Baghdad was captured, and was subsequently located and arrested in December. The occupation would ultimately prove difficult, with many Iraqis and foreigners launching attacks on U.S. forces stationed in the country. Eventually, the U.S. death toll in the post-war occupation surpassed that of the actual war itself. Thousands of civilians were killed during the invasion and by resistance fighters. Nevertheless, Bush remained optimistic, hailing the "victory" and such developments as the signing of the Iraqi Constitution.Throughout the course of the Iraq war, Bush was often the target of harsh criticism. Both in the U.S. and in the rest of the world there were numerous anti-war protests, particularly before the war's onset. See Popular opposition to war on Iraq, and Protests against the 2003 Iraq war. Even before the invasion it was clear to many observers that insufficient planning had been made for the stability of post-war Iraq.Criticism also came from the governments of many countries, notably from many on the United Nations Security Council, who argued that the war broke international law.[20] (Article VI of the U.S. Constitution states that "...all Treaties made, or which shall be made, under the Authority of the United States, shall be the supreme Law of the Land..." and that "...all executive and judicial Officers, both of the United States and of the several States, shall be bound by Oath or Affirmation, to support this Constitution...", while Article III states that the judicial power of the US Supreme Court extends to "all ... Treaties made". This makes a violation of international law also a violation of the "supreme Law of The Land" of America, and withholds immunity from government officials, including the president.) See Worldwide government positions on war on Iraq and The UN Security Council and the Iraq war. For its part, the U.S. administration soon presented a list of countries called the coalition of the willing which supported its position. A later aspect of the criticism has been the death toll in Iraq; over 100,000 Iraqi civilians and 4000 U.S. soldiers have been killed since the beginning of the war mainly during the ensuing insurgency and civil war.[21][22] In 2004, public assertions by Bush's former Secretary of the Treasury Paul O'Neill and counter-terrorism expert Richard Clarke raised questions about the credibility of the Bush administration's pre-war claims. Both presented evidence that questioned how focused the Bush administration was on combating Al-Qaeda (which was operating out of Afghanistan, not Iraq) before September 11. Specifically, O'Neill presented classified and unclassified documents indicating that planning for a war with Iraq and the subsequent occupation began at the first National Security Council meeting and continued with each meeting. Clarke presented testimony and witnesses concerning how Bush and much of his cabinet tried to find excuses to attack Iraq immediately after September 11, such as associating it with September 11, claiming that Saddam Hussein possessed weapons of mass destruction, and claiming that Iraq posed an imminent threat, which implied that a war against Iraq would be legal by Article 51[23] of the U.N. Charter.Testimony at the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States (ongoing during March 2004) has included claims of how much of the Bush administration's immediate post-9/11 emphasis on Iraq was appropriate and proportional to the overall picture of terrorism, especially in light of the administration's subsequent decision to pursue military action in Afghanistan first, the fact that organizations accused of 9/11 are in Afghanistan, not Iraq, and that no links have been found between these organizations and Saddam Hussein. The Commission's report is expected to be released before the Presidential election. On June 16, 2004, the USA's 9/11 Commission filed an initial report on its findings, stating that it found "no credible evidence" of a "collaborative relationship" between pre-invasion Iraq and Al-Qaeda or of Iraqi involvement in the 9/11 attacks.The inability of the U.S. to find weapons of mass destruction in Iraq has led to greater domestic criticism of the administration's Iraq policy. Several of the statements that Bush and his administration made leading up to the war in Iraq, especially those involving claims of Iraqi weapons of mass destruction, have been criticized as misleading or inaccurate. Particularly controversial was Bush's claim in the 2003 State of the Union Address that British Intelligence had discovered that Iraq was seeking to buy uranium from Africa. Officials and diplomats disputed the evidence for this claim, especially after a document describing an attempted purchase from Niger, which was presented to the United Nations Security Council by Colin Powell, was found to be a forgery. This led to a public embarrassment for George Tenet, the director of the CIA, as well as the Valerie Plame scandal. Much criticism on these issues has come from political opponents of Bush. The Iraq war was a significant issue in the 2004 Democratic primary, including the campaigns of Howard Dean, John Kerry, Al Sharpton, and Dennis Kucinich.However, State Department documents declassified in 2006 cite hundreds of weapons of mass destruction found in Iraq. Nonetheless, it was soon quickly revealed that the particular weapons in question were WMD Saddam had obtained during the Iran-Iraq war, which had long since become stale and non-functional.[24][25]On March 24, 2004, Bush joked about the weapons of mass destruction issue at the annual White House Correspondents' Dinner. While showing slides of himself searching the Oval Office, he joked, "those weapons of mass destruction have got to be somewhere ... nope, no weapons over there ... maybe under here?" Some found it tasteless of him to be joking about the issue. Others defended the joke as being in line with the self-deprecatory sort of humor that has come to be expected of Presidents when they speak at that event.On September 26, 2006, Bush declassified the key judgments of the April 2006 National Intelligence Estimate. The estimate, titled Trends in Global Terrorism: Implications for the United States, states the following: "We assess that the Iraq jihad is shaping a new generation of terrorist leaders and operatives; perceived jihadist success there would inspire more fighters to continue the struggle elsewhere. The Iraq conflict has become the 'cause celebre' for jihadists, breeding a deep resentment of US involvement in the Muslim world and cultivating supporters for the global jihadist movement. Should jihadists leaving Iraq perceive themselves, and be perceived, to have failed, we judge fewer fighters will be inspired to carry on the fight."On December 1, 2008, during an interview with ABC World News, Bush stated "The biggest regret of all the presidency has to have been the intelligence failure in Iraq. A lot of people put their reputations on the line and said the weapons of mass destruction is a reason to remove Saddam Hussein..."I think I was unprepared for war. In other words, I didn't campaign and say, 'Please vote for me, I'll be able to handle an attack'...I didn't anticipate war." and on early withdrawal of troops, "It was a tough call, particularly, since a lot of people were advising for me to get out of Iraq, or pull back in Iraq,"[26]On December 14, 2008, during a joint press conference with Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, Bush was publicly insulted when an Iraqi reporter threw his shoes at the President as Bush and al-Maliki were about to shake hands. The offender, later identified as television correspondent Muntadar al-Zeidi,[27] leapt from his chair and quickly hurled first one shoe and then the other at the president, who was about 20 feet away. Bush successfully dodged both projectiles which were aimed at his head. Zeidi worked for Al-Baghdadia television, an Iraqi-owned station based in Cairo.[27] He was wrestled to the ground by security officials and then hauled away, moaning as they left the room. "So what if the guy threw a shoe at me?" Bush said, comparing the action to political protests in the United States.[27] Al-Baghdadia's Baghdad manager told the Associated Press he had no idea what prompted his reporter to go on the attack.[27] The Iraqi government has demanded an on-air apology from his employer.[28]There has been much controversy surrounding Iran and its nuclear program in the past few years. The controversy centers on the Iranian enrichment of uranium. Iran officials have stated that they are enriching the uranium to fuel civilian reactors as permitted under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and other international agreements, but the processes that Iran has been developing to reprocess and enrich uranium are also critical components for the development of a nuclear weapon.Since there exists some circumstantial evidence that Iran, classified by the U.S. as a state sponsor of terrorism, may have intentions of pursuing a weapons program, the Iranian nuclear program became a major foreign policy of the United States.[29]Bush has maintained a desire to resume the peace process in Israel, and had openly proclaimed his desire for a Palestinian state to be created before 2005. He outlined a road map for peace in cooperation with Russia, the European Union, and the United Nations, which featured compromises that had to be made by both sides before Palestinian statehood could become a reality.One particular proposal was his insistence on new Palestinian leadership; a stance that saw the appointment of the first ever Palestinian Prime Minister on April 29, 2003. Bush had denounced Palestine Liberation Organization leader Yasser Arafat for continued support of violence and militant groups. The road map for peace stalled within months after more violence and the resignation of the new Palestinian Prime Minister, Mahmoud Abbas.[citation needed]By the end of 2003, neither side had done what was outlined in the plan. In April 2004 Bush announced that he endorsed Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's plan to disengage from the Gaza Strip but retain Jewish settlements in the West Bank. He also announced agreement with Sharon's policy of denying the right of return. This led to condemnation from Palestinian President Yasser Arafat, Arab and European governments[30] and was a major departure from previous U.S. foreign policy in the region. Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak commented Bush's policies had led to an 'unprecedented hatred' of Arabs for the U.S.[31]Obama Doctrine - Wikipedia (2008 - 2016)Obama later elaborated on his foreign policy views, particularly relating to Muslim countries, in a high-profile speech given at Cairo University in June, where he called for reform of undemocratic countries from within.[31] Obama's efforts to improve foreign relations received praise even from former Republican Senator Chuck Hagel. Meanwhile, foreign policy analyst Reginald Dale, believed the President's policy of reconciliation had weakened the country in relation to other countries, such as Russia, China and North Korea.[32] The even-handed treatment of all countries was also critiqued by some conservative critics,[33] noting in particular that in calling for all nuclear weapons to be turned aside Obama had placed US and Israeli nuclear programs on the same moral level as Iran's alleged weapons plans.[34] There was also concern that Obama did not specifically identify terrorists as a common risk to the US and the Middle East.[33] Others criticized Obama for the lack of a well-defined doctrine. Charles Krauthammer said that "I would say his vision of the world appears to me to be so naïve that I am not even sure he's able to develop a doctrine."[35] Anders Stephanson, professor of history at Columbia University, coming from a different perspective, argued that an overly pragmatic foreign policy and the absence of an overarching ideology could facilitate the return of a simplified American exceptionalism policy at a later point.[36]In February and March 2009, Vice President Joe Biden and Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton made separate overseas trips to announce a "new era" in U.S. foreign relations with Russia and Europe, using the terms "break" and "reset" to signal major changes from the policies of the preceding administration.[315] Obama attempted to reach out to Arab leaders by granting his first interview to an Arab satellite TV network, Al Arabiya.[316]On March 19, Obama continued his outreach to the Muslim world, releasing a New Year's video message to the people and government of Iran.[317][318] In April, Obama gave a speech in Ankara, Turkey, which was well received by many Arab governments.[319] On June 4, 2009, Obama delivered a speech at Cairo University in Egypt calling for "A New Beginning" in relations between the Islamic world and the United States and promoting Middle East peace.[320]On June 26, 2009, Obama responded to the Iranian government's actions towards protesters following Iran's 2009 presidential election by saying: "The violence perpetrated against them is outrageous. We see it and we condemn it."[321] While in Moscow on July 7, he responded Vice President Biden's comment on a possible Israeli military strike on Iran by saying: "We have said directly to the Israelis that it is important to try and resolve this in an international setting in a way that does not create major conflict in the Middle East."[322]On September 24, 2009, Obama became the first sitting U.S. President to preside over a meeting of the United Nations Security Council.[323]In March 2010, Obama took a public stance against plans by the government of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to continue building Jewish housing projects in predominantly Arab neighborhoods of East Jerusalem.[324][325] During the same month, an agreement was reached with the administration of Russian President Dmitry Medvedev to replace the 1991 Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty with a new pact reducing the number of long-range nuclear weapons in the arsenals of both countries by about one-third.[326] Obama and Medvedev signed the New START treaty in April 2010, and the U.S. Senate ratified it in December 2010.[327]On February 27, 2009, Obama announced that combat operations in Iraq would end within 18 months. His remarks were made to a group of Marines preparing for deployment to Afghanistan. Obama said, "Let me say this as plainly as I can: by August 31, 2010, our combat mission in Iraq will end."[334] The Obama administration scheduled the withdrawal of combat troops to be completed by August 2010, decreasing troop's levels from 142,000 while leaving a transitional force of about 50,000 in Iraq until the end of 2011. On August 19, 2010, the last U.S. combat brigade exited Iraq. Remaining troops transitioned from combat operations to counter-terrorism and the training, equipping, and advising of Iraqi security forces.[335][336] On August 31, 2010, Obama announced that the United States combat mission in Iraq was over.[337] On October 21, 2011 President Obama announced that all U.S. troops would leave Iraq in time to be "home for the holidays".[338]In June 2014, following the capture of Mosul by ISIS, Obama sent 275 troops to provide support and security for U.S. personnel and the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad. ISIS continued to gain ground and to commit widespread massacres and ethnic cleansing.[339][340]In August 2014, during the Sinjar massacre, Obama ordered a campaign of U.S. airstrikes against ISIS.[341]By the end of 2014, 3,100 American ground troops were committed to the conflict[342] and 16,000 sorties were flown over the battlefield, primarily by U.S. Air Force and Navy pilots.[343]In the spring of 2015, with the addition of the "Panther Brigade" of the 82nd Airborne Division the number of U.S. ground troops in Iraq surged to 4,400[344] and by July American-led coalition air forces counted 44,000 sorties over the battlefield.[345]Early in his presidency, Obama moved to bolster U.S. troop strength in Afghanistan.[346] He announced an increase in U.S. troop levels to 17,000 military personnel in February 2009 to "stabilize a deteriorating situation in Afghanistan", an area he said had not received the "strategic attention, direction and resources it urgently requires".[347] He replaced the military commander in Afghanistan, General David D. McKiernan, with former Special Forces commander Lt. Gen. Stanley A. McChrystal in May 2009, indicating that McChrystal's Special Forces experience would facilitate the use of counterinsurgency tactics in the war.[348] On December 1, 2009, Obama announced the deployment of an additional 30,000 military personnel to Afghanistan and proposed to begin troop withdrawals 18 months from that date;[349] this took place in July 2011. David Petraeus replaced McChrystal in June 2010, after McChrystal's staff criticized White House personnel in a magazine article.[350] In February 2013, Obama said the U.S. military would reduce the troop level in Afghanistan from 68,000 to 34,000 U.S. troops by February 2014.[351]In October 2015, the White House announced a plan to keep U.S. Forces in Afghanistan indefinitely in light of the deteriorating security situation.[352]In 2011, the United States vetoed a Security Council resolution condemning Israeli settlements, with the United States being the only nation to do so.[353] Obama supports the two-state solution to the Arab–Israeli conflict based on the 1967 borders with land swaps.[354]In June 2011, Obama said that the bond between the United States and Israel is "unbreakable".[355] During the initial years of the Obama administration, the U.S. increased military cooperation with Israel, including increased military aid, re-establishment of the U.S.-Israeli Joint Political Military Group and the Defense Policy Advisory Group, and an increase in visits among high-level military officials of both countries.[356] The Obama administration asked Congress to allocate money toward funding the Iron Dome program in response to the waves of Palestinian rocket attacks on Israel.[357]In 2013, Jeffrey Goldberg reported that, in Obama's view, "with each new settlement announcement, Netanyahu is moving his country down a path toward near-total isolation."[358] In 2014, Obama likened the Zionist movement to the Civil Rights Movement in the United States. He said that both movements seek to bring justice and equal rights to historically persecuted peoples. He explained, "To me, being pro-Israel and pro-Jewish is part and parcel with the values that I've been fighting for since I was politically conscious and started getting involved in politics."[359] Obama expressed support for Israel's right to defend itself during the 2014 Israel–Gaza conflict.[360] In 2015, Obama was harshly criticized by Israel for advocating and signing the Iran Nuclear Deal; Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who had advocated the U.S. congress to oppose it, said the deal was "dangerous" and "bad".[361]On December 23, 2016 under the Obama Administration, the United States abstained from United Nations Security Council Resolution 2334, effectively allowing it to pass.[362] Netanyahu strongly criticized the Administration's actions,[363][364] and the Israeli government withdrew its annual dues from the organization, which totaled $6 million, on January 6, 2017.[365] On January 5, 2017, the United States House of Representatives voted 342–80 to condemn the UN Resolution.[366][367]In February 2011, protests in Libya began against long-time dictator Muammar Gaddafi as part of the Arab Spring. They soon turned violent. In March, as forces loyal to Gaddafi advanced on rebels across Libya, calls for a no-fly zone came from around the world, including Europe, the Arab League, and a resolution[368] passed unanimously by the U.S. Senate.[369] In response to the unanimous passage of United Nations Security Council Resolution 1973 on March 17, Gaddafi—who had previously vowed to "show no mercy" to the rebels of Benghazi[370]—announced an immediate cessation of military activities,[371] yet reports came in that his forces continued shelling Misrata. The next day, on Obama's orders, the U.S. military took part in air strikes to destroy the Libyan government's air defense capabilities to protect civilians and enforce a no-fly-zone,[372] including the use of Tomahawk missiles, B-2 Spirits, and fighter jets.[373][374][375] Six days later, on March 25, by unanimous vote of all of its 28 members, NATO took over leadership of the effort, dubbed Operation Unified Protector.[376] Some Representatives[377] questioned whether Obama had the constitutional authority to order military action in addition to questioning its cost, structure and aftermath.[378][379]On August 18, 2011, several months after the start of the Syrian Civil War, Obama issued a written statement that said: "The time has come for President Assad to step aside."[380][381] This stance was reaffirmed in November 2015.[382] In 2012, Obama authorized multiple programs run by the CIA and the Pentagon to train anti-Assad rebels.[383] The Pentagon-run program was later found to have failed and was formally abandoned in October 2015.[384][385]In the wake of a chemical weapons attack in Syria, formally blamed by the Obama administration on the Assad government, Obama chose not to enforce the "red line" he had pledged[386] and, rather than authorise the promised military action against Assad, went along with the Russia-brokered deal that led to Assad giving up chemical weapons; however attacks with chlorine gas continued.[387][388] In 2014, Obama authorized an air campaign aimed primarily at ISIL, but repeatedly promised that the U.S. would not deploy ground troops in Syria.[389][390]Starting with information received from Central Intelligence Agency operatives in July 2010, the CIA developed intelligence over the next several months that determined what they believed to be the hideout of Osama bin Laden. He was living in seclusion in a large compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan, a suburban area 35 miles (56 km) from Islamabad.[391] CIA head Leon Panetta reported this intelligence to President Obama in March 2011.[391] Meeting with his national security advisers over the course of the next six weeks, Obama rejected a plan to bomb the compound, and authorized a "surgical raid" to be conducted by United States Navy SEALs.[391] The operation took place on May 1, 2011, and resulted in the shooting death of bin Laden and the seizure of papers, computer drives and disks from the compound. [392][393] DNA testing was one of five methods used to positively identify bin Laden's corpse,[394] which was buried at sea several hours later.[395] Within minutes of the President's announcement from Washington, DC, late in the evening on May 1, there were spontaneous celebrations around the country as crowds gathered outside the White House, and at New York City's Ground Zero and Times Square.[392][396] Reaction to the announcement was positive across party lines, including from former presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush,[397] and from many countries around the world.[398]In November 2013, the Obama administration opened negotiations with Iran to prevent it from acquiring nuclear weapons, which included an interim agreement. Negotiations took two years with numerous delays, with a deal being announced July 14, 2015. The deal, titled the "Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action", saw the removal of sanctions in exchange for measures that would prevent Iran from producing nuclear weapons. While Obama hailed the agreement as being a step towards a more hopeful world, the deal drew strong criticism from Republican and conservative quarters, and from Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu.[399][400][401] In order to advance the deal, the Obama administration shielded Hezbollah from the Drug Enforcement Administration's project cassandra investigation regarding drug smuggling and from the Central Intelligence Agency.[402][403]Foreign policy of Donald Trump - Wikipedia (2016 - present)On February 10, 2011, the day prior to the overthrow of Hosni Mubarak, Trump stated that he had no sympathy for Mubarak and expressed optimism that events in Egypt will not affect the world economy.[106] At the time, Trump offered neither criticism nor praise for how President Barack Obama dealt with the Egyptian crisis, saying it was out of Obama's hands.[106] Later, in August 2011, Trump criticized the Obama administration for not helping Mubarak keep power, citing Mubarak's positive relationship with Israel and the negative effect that Mubarak's removal would have on other allies' faith in the United States.[107][108] In 2012, Trump reiterated his criticisms of the Obama administration's handling of Mubarak and asserted that "Egypt is now our enemy" and that "Israel is in trouble."[109]In September 2016, Trump first met the President of Egypt, Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, describing him as a "fantastic guy", praising his handling of the Egyptian coup d’etat of 2013 that removed former President Mohamed Morsi from power.[110] Trump said that there was a "good feeling between [them]".[110] Sisi later said he had "no doubt" that Trump would Trump would be a strong leader if elected.[111]In April 2017, President Trump invited President Sisi to the White House, a privilege that was not afforded to Sisi under the Obama administration. There, Trump clarified his stance on U.S.-Egypt relations: "I just want to let everybody know in case there was any doubt that we are very much behind President el-Sisi. He’s done a fantastic job in a very difficult situation. We are very much behind Egypt and the people of Egypt. The United States has, believe me, backing, and we have strong backing." Sisi responded by saying "you will find Egypt and myself always beside you in bringing about an effective strategy in the counter-terrorism effort," and pledged to support Trump's Israel-Palestine peace efforts, stating he hoped they would "find a solution to the problem of the century in the deal of the century."[112]In June 2016, Trump maintained that "Iran is now the dominant Islamic power in the Middle East and on the road to nuclear weapons."[113] Trump opposes the international nuclear agreement with Iran (negotiated with the United States and five other world powers) that was made in 2015, calling it "terrible" and saying that the Obama administration negotiated the agreement "from desperation."[114] Trump has claimed that he has "studied this issue in great detail ... actually greater by far than anybody else."[115] Trump opposed the sanctions relief in the agreement, saying: "we're giving them billions of dollars in this deal, which we shouldn't have given them. We should have kept the money."[114] Trump has claimed that the United States gives Iran $150 billion as part of the Iran deal, a statement rated false by FactCheck.org.[116] FactCheck.org notes that the Iranian assets that were unfrozen as part of the deal were held mostly by banks and other financial institutions outside the United States, and that the value of the assets is estimated to be between $25 billion and $56 billion.[116] Trump has claimed that "when those restrictions expire (in the Iran nuclear deal), Iran will have an industrial-size military nuclear capability ready to go," a statement rated "false" by PolitiFact.com.[115] Trump was critical of State Department officials as they negotiated the Iran deal, saying that "It's a one-day deal. This whole thing should have taken a day."[117]In July 2015, when explaining his opposition to the Iran agreement, Trump cited four American prisoners being held prisoner in the country.[114] When the four prisoners were released in January 2016, after the agreement went into effect, Trump claimed credit for the release, an assertion that was termed "dubious" by CBS News.[118]In August 2015, Trump had said that despite opposing the content of the deal, he would attempt to enforce it rather than abrogate it.[119] In a speech to the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) in March 2016, however, Trump said that his "number-one priority is to dismantle the disastrous deal with Iran."[120] In July 2016, Trump foreign policy adviser Walid Phares claimed Trump would not "get rid of" the Iran deal and would instead seek to "renegotiate" it.[121]In September 2015, Trump told CNN that he believed the agreement would compel the United States to side with Iran in the event of war: "There's something in the Iran deal that people I don't think really understand or know about, and nobody's able to explain it, that if somebody attacks Iran, we have to come to their defense. So if Israel attacks Iran, according to that deal, I believe the way it reads [...] that we have to fight with Iran against Israel."[122] Trump's statement is based on his interpretation of a provision in the agreement that "the U.S. and other partners are prepared, as appropriate, to cooperate with training to strengthen Iran's ability to protect against and respond to nuclear security threats, including sabotage." PolitiFact rated Trump's statement "false" and the Obama administration disagrees with Trump's interpretation.[123]During an interview with Bill O'Reilly, Trump was asked whether he would negotiate a new deal with Iran. Trump responded that, with the current deal, "Iran is doing nuclear. They're going nuclear." He would "put on the sanctions big league. I'd double and triple up the sanctions and make a deal from strength."[14] According to Trump, nuclear weapons, not global warming, is the world's biggest problem.[14] Trump said that any deal with Iran should stipulate that inspectors have 24-hour-a-day access immediately to all nuclear sites and made reference to American nationals imprisoned the country.[114]In the September 2016 Presidential Debate, Trump said that the Iran deal should have contained provisions that Iran must "do something with respect to North Korea. And they should have done something with respect to Yemen and all these other places."[124]In October 2016, it was reported that despite Trump's denouncement of Iran as a "big enemy" and assertions that donations from foreign governments to the Clinton Foundation charity amounted to evidence of corruption, the Trump Organization did business with one of Iran’s largest state-controlled banks from 1998 to 2003.[125] The Trump Organization kept the bank on as a tenant for four more years after the United States Department of the Treasury designated the bank in 1999 as being controlled by the Iranian government.[125] U.S. authorities also alleged that the bank had been used between 2002 and 2006 to funnel money to a unit of the Army of the Guardians of the Islamic Revolution that has sponsored terrorist attacks — a period that overlapped with the time the bank rented office space from Trump.[125]On September 11, 2002, when asked by radio talk-show host Howard Stern if he supported an invasion of Iraq, Trump responded, "Yeah, I guess so. I wish the first time it was done correctly."[126][127][128] In a January 28, 2003 interview with Neil Cavuto, on the night of President George W. Bush's 2003 State of the Union Address, Trump said that he expected to hear "a lot of talk about Iraq" and urged Bush to make a decision on Iraq—"Either you attack or you don't attack".[129] When asked whether Bush should be more focused on Iraq or the economy, Trump said:Well, he has either got to do something or not do something, perhaps, because perhaps he shouldn't be doing it yet and perhaps we should be waiting for the United Nations, you know. He's under a lot of pressure. I think he's doing a very good job. But, of course, if you look at the polls, a lot of people are getting a little tired. I think the Iraqi situation is a problem. And I think the economy is a much bigger problem as far as the president is concerned. Well, I'm starting to think that people are much more focused now on the economy. They’re getting a little bit tired of hearing "We're going in, we're not going in." Whatever happened to the days of Douglas MacArthur? Either do it or don't do it.[130][131]According to a February 2016 statement by Sean Hannity, "I battled him at the time. He did not want us to go to Iraq. He was dead set against it."[132] There are no transcripts or audio to confirm Hannity's claim,[133] and Hannity says that Trump opposed an invasion of Iraq during telephone calls following Hannity's show.[134]On March 21, 2003, one day into the Iraq War, Trump was interviewed by Fox News' Neil Cavuto. Trump said that the war appeared to be "a tremendous success from a military standpoint", and expressed hope that it would continue to be so.[135] Later that week he publicly called the war a "mess".[136][137] Later, Trump publicly and explicitly criticized the war in an interview published in Esquire in August 2004, sixteen months after the invasion.[138] Trump said: "Look at the war in Iraq and the mess that we're in," criticized the George W. Bush administration's handling of the war, dismissed the idea of Iraq becoming functionally democratic, and predicted that "Two minutes after we leave, there's going to be a revolution, and the meanest, toughest, smartest, most vicious guy will take over. And he'll have weapons of mass destruction, which Saddam didn't have."[138][139]On the campaign trail in 2015 and 2016, Trump has repeatedly said that he was "against the war from the very beginning."[138][140]Trump has been critical of the Obama administration's treatment of Israel, stating that "Israel has been totally mistreated."[113]Israel-related causesIn 2001, Trump lent his personal jet to then-New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani so that the latter could show solidarity for terror victims in Israel, and in 2004 Trump was the grand marshal of the Celebrate Israel Parade in New York City.[141] Speaking in 2006, Trump called Israel "a great country" and one of his favorite countries, adding: "I know that you’ve been through a lot recently."[142] Trump released a video endorsing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during the 2013 Israeli elections.[143][144]In February 2015, Trump stated: "We love Israel, we will fight for Israel 100 percent, 1000 percent, it will be there forever."[145][146] Trump has made multi million-dollar donations to the establishment of new settlements in Israel, to house Israeli families who were evacuated from Gush Katif in 2005, and to house families evacuated from settlements in the Sinai Peninsula in 1980. As a result, his name is listed on the top of the plaque of the major contributors to the development of Dekel in the Southern District.[147] Trump has also donated to the West Bank settlement of Beit El.[148]Proposed Muslim ban and cancelled Israel visitAfter Trump proposed in December 2015 to temporarily exclude Muslims from travel to the United States, numerous world leaders, including Prime Minister of Israel Benjamin Netanyahu,[149] criticized Trump's proposal. Netanyahu released a statement saying: "The State of Israel respects all religions and strictly guarantees the rights of all its citizens." Several dozen Israeli Knesset members, many of whom are Muslim themselves, signed a petition urging Netanyahu not to meet with Trump later that month;[150] a day later, Trump postponed his visit to Israel until "a later date after I become President of the U.S.",[151] stating that he did not want to put Netanyahu "under pressure".[149]SettlementsDuring his presidential campaign, Trump broke with long-standing bipartisan U.S. policy on the construction of Israeli settlements in the West Bank as a precursor to negotiations with the Palestinians, saying that Israel "have to keep going" and "I don't think there should be a pause."[152] Ynetnews noted: "If elected, Trump's seemingly broad support of settlement development would constitute a dramatic shift in U.S. foreign policy, as both Democratic and Republican U.S. presidents have stated in the past that the settlements are illegal and no further building in them should be allowed."[152]U.S. aid to IsraelAt a press conference in March 2016, Trump said that as president, he would require U.S. allies to pay the U.S. back for the defense spending and foreign aid that the U.S. has spent on their behalf. When specifically asked whether his previously stated stance on charging U.S. allies for defense spending would extend to Israel, he replied "I think Israel would do that also. There are many countries that can pay, and they can pay big-league."[153] However, immediately after the press conference, Trump reversed himself on aid to Israel, adding, "They [Israel] help us greatly."[154]Israeli-Palestinian peace processIn February 2017, Trump said that he could live with either a two-state solution or a one-state solution to the Israeli–Palestinian conflict.[155] This is a break with the previous bipartisan foreign policy consensus on support for the two-state solution.[155] Middle East experts have warned that the policy change could reduce the likelihood of resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.[155]Trump has previously said that he would not take sides in any Israeli-Palestinian agreement in order to be a neutral negotiator in the peace talks, although he also added that he was "totally pro-Israel."[156] In December 2015, Trump told the Associated Press that an Israeli-Palestinian peace accord would depend very much upon Israel, remarking: "I have a real question as to whether or not both sides want to" come to a peace accord. "A lot will have to do with Israel and whether or not Israel wants to make the deal — whether or not Israel's willing to sacrifice certain things."[157]Trump has vowed that as president he will veto a United Nations-imposed Israel-Palestine peace agreement, stating: "When I’m president, believe me, I will veto any attempt by the U.N. to impose its will on the Jewish state. It will be vetoed 100 percent."[158] He added that "The Palestinians must come to the table knowing that the bond between the United States and Israel is absolutely, totally unbreakable."[158]Trump has criticized the Palestinian National Authority for the absence of peace, saying: "the Palestinian Authority has to recognize Israel’s right to exist as a Jewish state. …[and they] have to stop the terror, stop the attacks, stop the teaching of hatred ... They have to stop the teaching of children to aspire to grow up as terrorists, which is a real problem. Of course, the recognition of Israel’s right to exist as a Jewish state is also a major sticking point, with the current Palestinian leadership repeatedly refusing to meet that basic condition."[159]Capital of IsraelTrump has said on more than one occasion that if elected president he will move the U.S. embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, which he described as the "eternal capital of the Jewish people."[160][161] In an earlier speech before the Republican Jewish Coalition, Trump had refused to say whether he supports Israel's position that Jerusalem is its undivided capital.[157] Meeting with Benjamin Netanyahu in September 2016, Trump's statement said that "under a Trump administration, [we] will finally accept the long-standing Congressional mandate to recognize Jerusalem as the undivided capital of the State of Israel."[162] On December 6, 2017, Trump officially recognized Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, despite objections from Palestinian leaders. Trump added that he would initiate the process of establishing a new U.S. embassy in Jerusalem.[163]LibyaSee also: Libya–United States relationsIn 2009, Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi rented space through intermediaries on Trump's Seven Springs estate in the suburb of Bedford, New York. Gaddafi rented Trump's land to camp in a "Bedouin-style" tent while in the United States to attend the UN General Assembly.) The situation created controversy when the tents were raised on the property, and Trump forced Gaddafi off the property saying that he was unaware of the arrangement.[164][165][166] In 2011, Trump told Fox News that he had "screwed" Gaddafi on the deal, touting the affair as evidence of foreign-policy experience.[165]Trump was a strong supporter of the 2011 military intervention in Libya, arguing "fervently" on a number of occasions that U.S. military intervention was necessary to advert humanitarian disaster in Libya and warning that it would be "a major, major black eye for this country [the U.S.]" if it failed to depose Gaddafi.[167][168] In a February 2011 video blog, Trump said: "I can't believe what our country is doing. Qaddafi in Libya is killing thousands of people, nobody knows how bad it is, and we're sitting around we have soldiers all have the Middle East, and we're not bringing them in to stop this horrible carnage ... Now we should go in, we should stop this guy, which would be very easy and very quick."[168] Trump made similar comments in a March 2011 appearance on Piers Morgan Tonight.[168] In 2011, Trump also advocated U.S. seizure of Libyan oil.[169]While campaigning for the presidency in 2016, Trump reversed his earlier position, stating on several occasions that the U.S. would be "so much better off" or "100% better off" if Gaddafi remained in charge of Libya.[170][171] At a Republican primary debate in February 2016, Trump claimed that he "never discussed" the Libyan intervention at the time it occurred; Politifact noted that this assertion was "patently inaccurate" and gave it its "Pants on Fire" rating.[170] In June 2016, Trump again reversed course, saying on CBS' Face the Nation that he would have supported "surgical" bombing, against Gaddafi in particular.[172] However, during both an NBC presidential forum and a presidential debate in September 2016, Trump once again reversed his position, criticizing Hillary Clinton for her support for the 2011 military intervention.[173][174]In May 2016, Trump suggested that the United States should bomb ISIL in Libya.[175]Saudi ArabiaSee also: Saudi Arabia–United States relationsIn December 2015, Trump said that the days of the Saudi Royal Family buying off American politicians will end if he is elected President.[176]In February 2016, Trump blamed Saudi Arabia for the September 11 attacks, saying: "Who blew up the World Trade Center? It wasn’t the Iraqis, it was Saudi – take a look at Saudi Arabia, open the documents."[177]Trump has called for Saudi Arabia to pay for the costs of American troops stationed there: "They should pay us. ... The primary reason we're with Saudi Arabia is because we need the oil. Now we don't need the oil so much ...".[178] He has argued that regional allies of the United States, such as Saudi Arabia should provide troops in the fight against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL). Trump said he would halt oil imports from Saudi Arabia unless the Saudi government provide ground troops to defeat ISIL.[179]In June 2016, Trump demanded that Hillary Clinton should give back donations the Clinton Foundation had accepted from Saudi Arabia. Trump wrote: "Saudi Arabia and many of the countries that gave vast amounts of money to the Clinton Foundation want women as slaves and to kill gays. Hillary must return all money from such countries!"[180]Syrian Civil War, Iraq and ISILSee also: Syrian Civil War, Iraq–United States relations, and Islamic State of Iraq and the LevantTrump's positions on defeating the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) have frequently changed throughout his presidential campaign.[181] Trump has claimed that he would "bomb the hell" out of Iraqi oil fields controlled by ISIL.[14][182] In the aftermath of the November 2015 Paris attacks, which were committed by ISIL, Trump reiterated his statements about ISIL from November 12, 2015, when he stated he would "bomb the shit out of 'em"[183] and said "I'd blow up the [oil] pipes, I'd blow up the refineries, and you know what, you'll get Exxon to come in there in two months ... and I'd take the oil."[184] Trump said in an interview with Anderson Cooper "There is no Iraq. Their leaders are corrupt."[183] In 2015 when asked how he would deal with Iraq's condemnation of strikes on their oil fields, Trump replied that Iraq is a corrupt country that is not deserving of his respect.[14] Trump said that to combat ISIL, "I would find you a proper general. I would find a Patton or a McArthur. I would hit them so hard your head would spin."[14]Trump's first post-announcement interview on June 17, 2015, was with Bill O'Reilly on The O'Reilly Factor.[14] One of several issues he highlighted was his proposed strategy in dealing with the Syrian Civil War.[14] In the interview, Trump stated: "Iran and Russia are protecting Syria and it's sort of amazing that we're in there fighting ISIS in Syria so we're helping the head of Syria [Bashar al-Assad] who is not supposed to be our friend although he looks a lot better than some of our so-called friends."[14] Instead of fighting ISIL in Syria, Trump suggested "maybe Syria should be a free zone for ISIS, let them fight and then you pick up the remnants."[14]In a Republican primary debate in November 2015, Trump said he "got to know [Vladimir Putin] very well because we were both on '60 Minutes', we were stable mates, we did well that night." Trump said he approved of the Russian military intervention in Syria, stating: "If Putin wants to knock the hell out of ISIS, I'm all for it 100 percent and I can't understand how anybody would be against that ... He's going in and we can go in and everybody should go in."[185] During his speech at the Oklahoma State Fair, Trump accused his opponents of wanting to "start World War III over Syria."[15]Trump stated in November 2015, "I know more about ISIS than the generals do. Believe me."[186]When asked in the March 11 CNN debate if he would send ground troops to fight ISIL, Trump answered, "We really have no choice. We have to knock out ISIS."[187] When pressed on specific numbers, Trump answered, "I would listen to the generals, but I'm hearing numbers of 20,000 to 30,000. We have to knock them out fast."[187] Later that month, he retracted that statement, saying that he would "never ever" deploy 20,000 to 30,000 U.S. troops to combat ISIL.[188] In June 2016, Trump stated that he "[likes] the idea of using NATO and also neighbors that aren’t in NATO" to "take [ISIL] out" and that "it's very possible that we should use NATO" to fight ISIL.[189]In an interview, Trump stated "You have to take out their families, when you get these terrorists, you have to take out their families. ... When they say they don't care about their lives, you have to take out their families." When pressed on what "take out" meant, Trump said the U.S. should "wipe out their homes" and "where they came from."[190] The intentional targeting of non-combatants is a violation of the Geneva Conventions and other aspects of the international law of war.[191] Jonathan Russell, head of policy for the anti-radicalization think tank Quilliam, warned that Trump's "anti-Muslim rhetoric" helps ISIL's narrative, saying "Trump will contribute to Islamist radicalization as his comments will make Muslims feel unwelcome in America. This grievance will fuel their identity crisis, which when combined are a potent combination for the vulnerability that ISIS is so adept at exploiting with their Islamist narrative."[192]During his presidential campaign, Trump has repeatedly criticized the battle to liberate Mosul from ISIL control, saying that the United States is "not going to benefit" from dislodging ISIL from the Iraqi city. Trump has repeatedly asserted that U.S. and Iraqi military leaders should have used "the element of surprise" to attack Mosul rather than announcing plans beforehand. He also said that U.S. military planners were "a group of losers" for not doing so.[193][194] U.S. military officials "strongly rebuked" Trump's comments, noting that "it is nearly impossible to move tens of thousands of troops into position without alerting the enemy" and that it was vital to warn civilians of impending military action.[193]During the presidential debate on October 9, 2016, Trump suggested he differed on his vice-presidential nominee Mike Pence's support for airstrikes against the Syrian regime, stating "he and I haven't spoken and I disagree."[195]On February 16, 2017, President Trump's Secretary of Defense, James Mattis, declared that the United States was not currently prepared to collaborate with Russia on military matters - including future anti-ISIL US operations.[196]The Trump administration has taken a different stance from the previous Obama administration on the issue of the Syrian Civil War, with UN Ambassador Nikki Haley and Secretary of State Rex Tillerson both stating in March 2017 that the United States would no longer prioritize the removal of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad from office, in line with Trump's stance during his campaign.[197]During a joint press conference on April 5, 2017, with King Abdullah II of Jordan in the aftermath of the 2017 Khan Shaykhun chemical attack, Trump stated "my attitude toward Syria and Assad has changed very much" and that the attack "crossed many, many lines." He accused the Obama administration's decision not to follow through with its proposed 2013 military intervention against the Assad regime in Syria of having led to the chemical attack.[198]On 7 April 2017, Trump ordered the United States Navy to launch cruise missiles at Shayrat Air Base in response to the Khan Shaykhun chemical attack. The response had wide international support[199] and was highly praised by the majority of Republicans as well as Democratic senators,[200] and many countries, however it drew criticism from Russia, who the United States had warned in advance about the attack. Although Russian anti-missile defenses such as S-300's failed to deter the missile attack, Russian forces suffered minimal damage, as the United States had intended to avoid striking areas of the base used by Russia.[201] Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev called the strike "good news for terrorists".[202]Many right-wing/leaning populist media figures who supported Trump during the election criticized Trump's reversal of policy towards war in Syria and the Middle East.[203][204][205][206] Ann Coulter pointed out that Trump "campaigned on not getting involved in Mideast" and this was one of the reasons many voted for him.[203]Accusations regarding Obama administration's roleIn the aftermath of the Orlando nightclub shooting (June 2016), Trump accused the Obama administration that it has actively "supported" the Islamic extremist group that became ISIL, an assertion rated "Pants on Fire" by PolitiFact (which quoted experts describing the claim as a "transparently fallacious conspiracy theory") and given "Four Pinocchios" by The Washington Post fact-checker (which described it as a "bizarre claim").[207][208]In August 2016, Trump repeatedly and falsely asserted that President Barack Obama was the "founder" of ISIL.[209][210][211] In an interview with conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt, Trump responded to Hewitt's attempt to reframe Trump's comment as one that said Obama's foreign policy created the conditions in Iraq and Syria that allowed ISIL to thrive, by saying "No, I meant he's the founder of ISIS. I do. ... He was the founder. The way he got out of Iraq — that was the founding of ISIS, OK?"[208][212][a] The Associated Press noted that the claim is "patently false," ISIL expert Joby Warrick referred to it as a "ludicrous claim,"[209] and PolitiFact rated the claim as "Pants on Fire" false, calling it "ridiculous."[211] ISIL in fact predates the Obama presidency,[209][211] with roots beginning in 2004.[211] Former U.S. Ambassador to Russia Michael McFaul wrote that Trump's accusation that the United States created ISIL "echoes exactly a myth propagated by Russian state-controlled media and bloggers."[212] Two days after Trump said that Obama had founded ISIL, and a day after he insisted that he meant what he said, Trump claimed that he was being sarcastic.[213] Later that day, Trump muddied his meaning, saying both that he was "being sarcastic. But not that sarcastic, to be honest with you."[214]On 7 April, the United States launched 59 cruise missiles at Shayrat Air Base.[215][216]Many right-wing/-leaning populist media figures criticized Trump's reversal of policy towards war in Syria and the Middle East.[203][217][218][219] Ann Coulter pointed out that Trump "campaigned on not getting involved in Mideast" and this was one of the reasons many voted for him.[203]TurkeySee also: Turkey–United States relationsRegarding the 2016 coup attempt in Turkey, Trump said in a July 2016 interview, "I give great credit to [Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan] for being able to turn that around."[1] When asked if Erdoğan was exploiting the coup attempt to purge his political enemies, Trump did not call for the Turkish leader to observe the rule of law, or offer other cautions for restraint. He said that the United States had to "fix our own mess" before trying to change the behavior of other countries.[1]Trump stated in the July 2016 interview that he believed he could persuade Erdoğan to step up efforts against ISIL.[1] When asked how he would solve the problem of Turkish attacks on Kurds who are fighting ISIL, Trump said "Meetings."[1]