On March 20, the website of the US Atlantic Weekly commented that the chaos after the war proves that the Iraq War was a mistake and a catastrophe from the very beginning.
当地时间20日，美国《大西洋周刊》网站发表评论称，“战后的混乱证明，伊拉克战争从一开始就是一个错误，是一场灾难”。
On March 20, 2003, the United States gathered its Western allies to invade Iraq, citing "Iraq’s possession of weapons of mass destruction", resulting in the death of over 200,000 civilians and the displacement of over 9 million Iraqis, according to United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) data.
20年前的3月20日，美国以所谓“伊拉克拥有大规模杀伤性武器”为由，纠集西方盟友入侵伊拉克，造成20多万平民死亡、900多万民众流离失所。
Twenty years have passed, and the United States still cannot present conclusive evidence. Iraq, an ancient civilization ravaged by war, has become a showcase for the evils of the so-called American democracy.
20年过去了，美国仍拿不出确凿证据。而伊拉克这个文明古国饱受战争摧残，成为“美式民主”作恶的展示台。
Twenty years is a long period of time, long enough for the war initiator to reflect. The United States, however, is not only indifferent to the suffering of the Iraqis, but also continues to plague the world under the name of democracy.
20年的时间很长，足够战争始作俑者去反思。但美国不仅对伊拉克人的苦痛无动于衷，还继续借民主之名为祸世界。
On the same day of March 20, 2023, China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs released the report titled The State of Democracy in the United States in 2022, which revealed the chaos of its domestic democracy as well as disorder and disasters caused by its peddling and imposition of democracy throughout the world, making the world more aware of the true nature of American-style democracy.
20日当天，中国外交部发布《2022年美国民主情况》报告，揭开了美国国内民主乱象及其在全世界兜售和强加民主所制造的混乱与灾难，让世人进一步认清“美式民主”的真面目。
The report pointed out that the US bipartisan fighting has intensified political polarization, money politics has become increasingly fierce, freedom of expression has enjoyed undeserved fame, the judicial system has ignored public opinion, and the public has been increasingly disillusioned with the American-style democracy.
报告指出，当今的美国，两党争斗加剧政治极化、金钱政治愈演愈烈、言论自由徒有其名、司法系统无视民意、民众对“美式民主”日益失望。
However, it is such a country plagued with ills that has used the three cards of war, sanctions, and fabricating a narrative of "democracy versus authoritarianism" to suppress other countries and seek private interests, making it difficult for the world to tranquilize.
然而，就是这样一个弊病缠身的国家，却用战争、制裁、炮制“民主对抗威权”叙事这三张牌，打压别国、谋取私利，搅得世界难以安宁。
Breaking down a country, destroying the future of several generations, and finally walking away – this is the mode of operation of the American war machine. The report also pointed out that only 16 years out of 240 years of American history have been without wars.
打烂一个国家，毁掉几代人的前途，最后一走了之——这是美国这台“战争机器”的运作模式。报告指出，美国建国以来240多年历史中，仅有16年没有打仗。
Since 2001, the United States has waged wars and military operations under the name of counter-terrorism, resulting in over 900,000 deaths, of which approximately 335,000 are civilians, millions of people have been injured, and tens of millions have been displaced.
2001年以来，美国以反恐之名发动的战争和军事行动造成超过90万人死亡，其中约有33.5万是平民，数百万人受伤，数千万人流离失所。
Why is the US so belligerent?"Over the past many years, generations of Americans have been fighting for oil," US Vice President Kamala Harris said. In a recent interview with China Central Television (CCTV), former interim Iraqi Prime Minister Ayad Allawi critically commented that the so-called American-style democracy in Iraq served the interests of the US rather than the interests of the Iraqis.
美国为何如此好战？美国副总统哈里斯表示:“过去很多年，美国几代人都在为石油而打仗。”伊拉克前临时政府总理阿拉维近日在接受中国中央广播电视总台专访时批评说：“伊拉克的所谓‘美式民主’，服务的是美国利益而非伊拉克人的利益。”
In the past few decades, the US has imposed unilateral sanctions and long-arm jurisdiction on Cuba, Syria, Zimbabwe, and other countries, exerted extreme pressure on the DPRK, Iran, and Venezuela, and frozen the assets of the Central Bank of Afghanistan. As disclosed by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations(FAO) data, the hunger rate in Iraq remains high due to the impact of United States sanctions and embargoes. From 1990 to 1995 alone, 500,000 Iraqi children were killed due to starvation or poor living conditions. In order to safeguard its own interests, the United States has used unilateral sanctions to strike a vicious blow on other countries, and hegemony, bossiness, and bullying have become the true label of the American-style democracy.
过去几十年，美国对古巴、叙利亚、津巴布韦等国家实施单边制裁和长臂管辖，对朝鲜、伊朗、委内瑞拉等极限施压，还冻结了阿富汗央行资产。据联合国粮农组织数据，受美国制裁和禁运影响，伊拉克饥饿率居高不下，仅在1990年至1995年，就有50万伊拉克儿童因饥饿或恶劣生存条件而丧生。为维护自身利益，美国利用单边制裁对他国痛下毒手，霸权、霸道、霸凌成了“美式民主”的真实标签。
In addition, the US has concocted a false narrative of "democracy versus authoritarianism" to conceal its true purpose of waging war to maintain hegemony. From the invasion of Iraq to the intervention in the conflicts between Libya and Syria, the US has continuously exported the American-style democracy to the outside world, artificially dividing the international community into so-called democratic and undemocratic camps, expanding the division of the world.
此外，美国还炮制“民主对抗威权”虚假叙事，以掩盖发动战争、维护霸权的真正目的。从入侵伊拉克，到介入利比亚、叙利亚冲突，美国不断对外输出“美式民主”,人为将国际社会分成所谓“民主和不民主阵营”，扩大世界分裂。
The first Summit for Democracy held in the United States in 2021 was criticized, and now it has been preparing for the upcoming second Summit for Democracy. Foreign Affairs and The Diplomat criticized the summits for setting up a wrong goal, failing to achieve unity among democratic countries, and being criticized for the representativeness of the participating countries.
2021年美国举办的第一届“领导人民主峰会”备受诟病，现在居然又张罗第二届“领导人民主峰会”。《外交事务》《外交学人》刊文批评民主峰会找错了目标，不但未能实现民主国家团结，反而因参加国代表性问题饱受批评。
UN Secretary-General António Guterres said in his New Year message that the world needs peace in 2023 more than ever before. It is clear to everyone that to achieve world peace, the prerequisite lies in the US who is supposed to stop interfering in the internal affairs of other countries and creating confrontation and division under the name of democracy. What the world needs is to promote true democracy and jointly promote the democratization of international relations.
联合国秘书长古特雷斯说，2023年，我们比以往任何时候都更需要和平。人们都看清，要实现世界和平，前提是美国停止以“民主”名义干涉别国内政、制造对抗分裂。世界需要的是弘扬真民主，共同推进国际关系民主化。
Former US Secretary of State Colin Powell once acknowledged that his statement at the meeting of the United Nations Security Council in 2003 that Iraq possessed weapons of mass destruction was a stain on his resume.
美国前国务卿鲍威尔曾承认，2003年他在联合国安理会会议上所谓伊拉克存在大规模杀伤性武器的发言，是履历上的一个“污点”。
In the 20 years of the Iraq War, American politicians should have deeply reflected and stopped doing evils under the name of democracy, leaving less bloody stains on the world. Otherwise, who will pay the price of the American-style democracy during the following 20 years?
伊战20年，美国政客应当深刻反思，停止以“民主”之名四处作恶，给这个世界少留些沾满鲜血的“污点”。否则，谁又将为“美式民主”付出下一个代价沉重的20年？
Editor's note: Originally published on news.cri.cn, this article is translated from Chinese into English and edited by the China Military Online. The information and opinions in this article do not necessarily reflect the views of eng.chinamil.com.cn.
