based on how many military forces he could deploy but how precisely, accurately, and smartly he could deploy that power because in his view, stephanie, you wanted to be careful whenever you used military power. you wanted to be precise, and you wanted to have an exit strategy. that was the powell doctrine. i ve been in the pentagon iowa. you always talked about the powell doctrine. also the pottery barn rule. if you break it, you buy it. whenever the united states goes in and breaks something, we have to own it, own the consequences. colin powell leave as very important and lasting legacy for anyone who s a decision maker or diplomacy defense in international affairs. and beyond colin powell as a diplomat, a military man, a politician, what do you want people to know about colin powell the person? well, he was a gentle soul. i mean he wasn t someone who was filled with a lot of bravado.
i think a lot was based on the qualities of colin powell. yes, he was the first black chairman of the joint chiefs. he was the first black secretary of state. let me tell you something. when i talk to colin powell, i was interested in what he had to say, because he had this depth of knowledge about what our military roles should be. i think the powell doctrine is incredibly important to our country. i mean, we just went through what happened in afghanistan, and powell, powell s doctrine was about if you re going to take on a mission, commit yourself to a clear mission. you know, commit the amount of force that you need to accomplish that mission, but more importantly, have an exit strategy. that powell doctrine is and
there at the pentagon covering the first gulf war. his strategy was not only you have to have a decisive overwhelming force. you have to have a plan to win but then you have to have a quick exit strategy to get out, and a lot of people forgot that to liberate kuwait after saddam hussein invaded kuwait and then you had months of operation desert shield which eventually became operation desert storm january 1991 you had to have an exit strategy to get out as quickly as possible. within six weeks, the air warnings the ground war, it was over. the u.s. and its allies, 540,000 troops, six aircraft carrier battle groups in the persian gulf, did it and got out. now, during the iraq war in 2003, i think under 200,000 troops were deployed. a lot fire, and there was really no overwhelming capability to do the job to win and then get out. the u.s. got stuck there. the u.s. still has troops in iraq to this day.
powell doctrine the u.s. should only use military force if it has clear and achievable objectives with public support sufficient fire power and an exit strategy our strategy go after very simple. head it off and kill it. he famously told then secretary of state madeleine albright that u.s. troops should not be used as toy soldiers. his pottery barn rule you break it, you own it was a tough lesson the u.s. learned after the invasion of afghanistan and iraq after 9/11. during a white house event honoring teachers president biden spoke about powell born in harr throw them jamaican immigrants. not only a dear friend and patriot. great military leaders and man of overwhelming decency. he joined rotc at the city college of new york. this is the guy we talk about who had teachers who looked at this african-american kid and said you can do anything. served two tours in vietnam
man who was very protective of american national security values and equities. i think if you look at the powell doctrine, which if you re going to go into a military conflict, be sure you have an exit strategy. be sure that you know what you re trying to accomplish, what your objectives are, and how you re going to use the precise application of military force to achieve those objectives and how you re going to use all american aspects of power, including diplomatic power, including the moral power of the united states to further advance our interests and our values. i think if you look at that as well as the pottery barn rule, if you break it you buy it. if the united states is going to use our military power, we re going to own some of the consequences. i think those lasting legacies will hopefully inform generations of national security leaders because that s what colin powell left for the world as his legacy. i m so grateful to you, jeremy, for being with us today on that score,