Ally to Adversary by Rick Francona
Much has been written about the Iran-Iraq War, Desert Storm, and Iraq's weapons of mass destruction, but until now no one has chronicled the perilous, spiralling course of U.S.-Iraqi relations from inside the highest military and diplomatic levels. In this revealing firsthand account, career intelligence officer and Arabic linguist Rick Francona takes the reader on an unforgettable odyssey from the battlefields of the Iran-Iraq War, to the top secret tactical decision-making meetings of the Desert Storm coalition forces, to the actual surrender at Safwan by Iraqi officials, many of whom he had worked with previously as allies. As the point man for the highly sensitive support the United States gave Iraq in 1987-1988, during its war with Iran, Francona walked the streets of Baghdad, toured military facilities, and established close relations with high-ranking Iraqis. Through these activities he gained a unique and valuable perspective of Iraq's military capabilities and doctrine, including its use of ballistic missiles and chemical weapons. Later, as General Norman Schwarzkopf's personal interpreter, he shared in the successes, failures, and frustrations of political and military planning and prosecution during Desert Shield and Desert Storm. From the author's sparkling, informative prose, the reader discovers how the delicate coalition of international forces was developed and maintained despite contentious parochialism that threatened to divide the force and even US services. Francona sheds considerable new light on the strengths and weaknesses of the US and coalition intelligence efforts and explodes myths surrounding their methods and results. Objective, revealing, and often humorous, this unprecedented peek inside the closed doors of US and international military decision-making documents an important epoch of US and Middle East history and offers many lessons and warnings for current and future relations.
Francona provides an interesting firsthand account of Operation Desert Storm filled with insights into intelligence operations, the tricky business of Arabic-to-English translation and Schwarzkopf's demanding, out-sized personality" -- Washington Post "Francona had a front-row seat on the military relationship with Iraq...[his] firsthand experiences provide interesting information...[and] a bevy of anecdotes." -- Middle East Quarterly "Clearly one of the best personal accounts of the Gulf War and long overdue...a must for any library." -- Military Intelligence Professional Bulletin "Unique insights...excellent, well-written book about the US relationship with Iraq during the Iran-Iraq War." -- Military Review "Francona has written a fascinating account of what he saw in the Middle East." -- The Oregonian
Rick Francona is a retired Air Force intelligence officer and Middle East specialist. In addition to his role as the lead U.S. military interpreter during the Gulf War and a principal author of the report to Congress on the conflict, he served throughout the Middle East with the Defense Department and national intelligence agencies. The author lives in Oregon.
| SKU | Unavailable |
| ISBN 13 | 9781557502810 |
| ISBN 10 | 1557502811 |
| Title | Ally to Adversary |
| Author | Rick Francona |
| Condition | Unavailable |
| Binding Type | Hardback |
| Publisher | Naval Institute Press |
| Year published | 1999-05-30 |
| Number of pages | 216 |
| Cover note | Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary. |
| Note | Unavailable |