"We're Not Calling Things What They Are"

"As France's foreign minister in 2003, he led the charge at the United Nations Security Council against US attempts to drum up support for the invasion of Iraq, culminating in a widely celebrated speech decrying the use of force and hailing the power of diplomacy. It was ignored by Washington at the time, but his warning that an intervention would trigger "incalculable consequences" across the Middle East proved sadly prophetic."

"Today's war, he told me over video from his office in Paris, is even more dangerous and more reckless than the one that ravaged the region more than two decades ago. And the muted response from European leaders stands in stark contrast to the days he took on a vial-clutching Colin Powell in New York."

"Deep disagreements between Paris and Washington aside, Villepin recalled that the US decision to invade Iraq followed its participation in a multilateral initiative at the United Nations that involved weapons inspections. And while the Bush administration never won UN support for the war, it still managed to pull together something of an international coalition."

Dominique de Villepin, who famously opposed the 2003 Iraq invasion as France's foreign minister, now speaks against current Middle East conflicts involving the United States and Israel. He argues the present situation is even more perilous and reckless than the Iraq War, whose predicted "incalculable consequences" proved accurate. Villepin emphasizes key differences between the conflicts rather than similarities. He notes that while the Bush administration pursued Iraq through multilateral UN processes and weapons inspections before acting unilaterally, the current approach lacks even this framework. European leaders have responded with notable restraint compared to Villepin's vocal opposition during the Iraq era. Out of government since serving as prime minister from 2005-2007, Villepin is considering a presidential campaign.

Read at The Nation