Wolfowitz Rewarded Iraq War Allies With Key Positions At World Bank

In an attempt to diffuse the growing controversy surrounding his tenure at the World Bank, Paul Wolfowitz asked his critics not to associate him with his previous position of having led the nation into the Iraq war:

For people who disagree with the things they associate with me in my previous job, I am not in my previous job. I am not working for the U.S. government. I’m working for this institution and its 185 shareholders.

But Wolfowitz has allowed his previous position to influence his management at the World Bank. He secured an exorbitant salary for his girlfriend Shaha Riza, who “reinforced Wolfowitz’s resolve” to invade Iraq. Moreover, of five top Bank officials appointed by Wolfowitz, three were senior political appointees of governments that provided strong backing for U.S. policy in Iraq:

Marwan Muasher, senior vice president for external affairs: “The former Jordanian Deputy Prime Minister Muasher served as King Abdullah II’s ambassador in Washington in the run-up to the Iraq War in 2002 and reportedly played a key role in ensuring Amman’s cooperation in the March 2003 invasion.”

Jose Daboub, managing director: As chief of staff to former Salvadorian President Francisco Flores, Daboub helped secure deployment of “400 Salvadoran combat troops to Iraq, more than any other developing country” in 2003. Daboub has vigorously defended the World Bank’s decision to send more officials to lend in Iraq.

Ana Palacio, chief general counsel: As former foreign minister of Spain, Palacio was “an outspoken proponent of the U.S.-led Iraq invasion, and helped secure 1,500 Spanish troops to Iraq. Lauded by the U.S. State Department for her pre-war support, Palacio believed that Iraq was “deceiving the international community” and harbored weapons of mass destruction.

In February, the Government Accountability Project learned that Wolfowitz was “negotiating a contract with a new resident Iraq Country Director,” suggesting that “Wolfowitz intends to expand Bank-funded projects there dramatically in the future,” despite the presence of massive corruption and “no functioning banking system” to secure those loans.

Among World Bank staff, “it has been noted that Mr. Wolfowitz’s passion for fighting corruption, which he has said saps economic life from the world’s poorest nations, seemed to evaporate when it came to reviewing lending to Iraq.”

UPDATE: Wolfowitz asked to resign:

An agency that oversees the World Bank is asking for the resignation of the bank’s president, former deputy U.S. Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz.

In a document obtained by the Financial Times, the Independent Evaluation Group asked for Wolfowitz’s immediate resignation, saying a continuation of his leadership will lead to “irreparable harm to worldwide efforts in poverty reduction and sustainable development.”