Cain: 'The war in Iraq wasn't a mistake'

In his interview with David Gregory on Meet The Press Sunday, Herman Cain revealed some interesting foreign policy thoughts.

When asked about his perspective on the war in Iraq, Cain believed the decision by the Bush administration to go there was justified.

"I don't think the war in Iraq was a mistake, because there were a lot of other reasons we needed to go to Iraq, and there have been a lot of benefits that have come out of Iraq," he said.

Cain also disagreed with President Barack Obama's decision to withdraw troops from Iraq.

"I don't agree with the president's approach to draw down 40,000 troops and basically leave that country open to attack by Iran," he said. "I would want to leave America troops there if that is was what the commanders on the ground suggested and that is what I believe they would say."

The former CEO of Godfather's pizza also revealed that his foreign policy has been influenced by reading the likes of former U.S. ambassador to the UN John Bolton and former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger.

Despite that, Cain didn't know about a term that Gregory preceded to ask him about.

"Would you describe yourself as neo-conservative then?" the Meet the Press host asked.

"I'm not sure what you mean by neo-conservative," Cain said. "I am a conservative yes. Neo-conservative, sometimes labels would put you in a box.

Gregory then asked, "But you're familiar with the neo-conservative movement?"

Cain replied: "I'm not familiar with the neo-conservative movement. I'm familiar with the conservative movement."

WATCH: Video from MSNBC, which appeared on October 16, 2011.

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy