(From the conclusion)

"But if we must remain as nation builders in Iraq beyond the nominal transfer of sovereignty and until an Iraqi government can actually rule its own citizens and enforce its laws, when can we go? At what point are our obligations to Iraq fulfilled, so that responsibility for Iraqis' fate rests in their own hands? It could possibly be argued that the nation builder's obligation is on-going, coterminous with the consequences of the nation-building project. If this were the case, then even if Coalition forces left when asked to do so by a legitimate Iraqi government, they could be called back should the goverment find itself in trouble as a direct result of the weakness of institutions that first came into being when nation building was afoot...

At some point, the nation builder's special obligations to the country where it has initially participated begin to fade and to look very similar to the obligations of other bystanders... Something special happens when the new nation is able to stand on its own feet, govern itself democratically, and monopolize the means of force in the society."