Declassified documents show Blair was determined to join Iraq War
Blair’s government aimed to prevent support from building behind France and Germany’s position that conflict should be a last resort. Chris Patten, the British EU commissioner at the time, warned Arab diplomats that Iraq should not misinterpret the anti-war protests in Europe.
Following the March 2003 invasion, Blair outlined a new foreign policy strategy, stating Britain had “six months to settle the world.” These Iraq notes are part of thousands of documents released by the UK’s National Archives, covering 1999 to 2003 during Blair’s premiership.
The documents include diplomatic cables, notes prepared for Blair’s discussions with foreign leaders, and No. 10 Downing Street memos annotated by Blair himself. They span the post-9/11 period when Blair and U.S. President George Bush saw Iraq and Saddam Hussein as significant threats.
As early as March 2002, No. 10 aide David Manning noted that the U.S. had decided on regime change in Iraq. A note from a March 19 meeting revealed Manning’s belief that Blair would likely decide the UK could not remain uninvolved if military action occurred.
Despite Blair’s assurances to anti-war leaders like German Chancellor Gerhard Schroder that no final decision had been made, UK officials doubted diplomacy’s effectiveness and felt UN weapons inspector Hans Blix was making little progress.
Global peace protests took place on February 15, 2003, including a march by over one million people in Britain. Two days later, Britain’s ambassador in Egypt, John Sawers, reported a difficult meeting with Arab ministers where the protests were discussed.
On the same day, Blair dined with EU leaders at a tense summit. His aides identified which countries supported Britain and which opposed the war. Blair emphasized the necessity of maintaining pressure on Saddam, warning that time was running out.
Even after the invasion began on March 19, 2003, UK officials remained focused on winning the diplomatic argument. Blair was advised to assert that the UK had worked hard to bridge gaps on the UN Security Council, which did not explicitly authorize the invasion.
In 2004, Blair admitted that the intelligence on Saddam’s chemical and biological weapons was wrong. The war diminished his popularity, and although he won a third term in 2005, he left office two years later. A 2016 inquiry concluded that Britain had gone to war when peaceful options were still viable. Blair defended his decision as being made in good faith based on the available information.
Shortly after Saddam’s statue was pulled down in Baghdad, Blair outlined a new foreign policy in a memo, calling for close alliances with both the US and Europe and emphasizing the importance of the Israel-Palestine peace process. His Foreign Secretary, Jack Straw, supported engagement with Muslim countries as part of a broader global agenda.
Blair was celebrated in Washington for siding with Bush over Iraq. He considered addressing the US Congress and accepting an Ellis Island Medal but declined an offer to become an honorary US citizen, a distinction previously given to Winston Churchill.
