The United States must support cultural exchange programs such as the Iraqi Women’s Fellowship Foundation if it wants to ensure success in Iraq, writes former assistant secretary of state Bradford Higgins in the Christian Science Monitor:

As the Obama administration develops its plans for supporting the transition to Iraqi self-reliance – and fights another war in Afghanistan, in part to establish and protect the rights of women there – it must not forget the role of education exchanges. Washington should also keep in mind the courage of Iraq’s women and the foundational role that they can play in establishing a stable, just, and democratic Iraq.