It's extremist to say there were "no links" because it is basically saying they never cooperated or discussed cooperation at all.

I didn't bring up the revelance of if the links were significant enough to go to war over and not sure why you did because discussion can be had without retreating into a prowar or antiwar knee jerk position right away. But since you did bring it up was there another state, aside from Iraq, who was openly praising al Qaeda after 2001 when they had just attacked us? Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and even Syria and Iran were cooperating with the U.S. then.