Article

2005-04-15 Iraq-Jordan

US makes gains in Iraq, but Iraqi security forces still need improvement

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Posted by Dan Darling 2005-04-15 12:30:47 AM|| || Front Page|| [4 views since 2007-05-07] Top

#1 police aint an army of maneuvre - but I think the point is can they do things like running raids on insurgents, search and destroy missions, etc. Can they guard their own police stations from an large scale insurgent attack. Are they trained for counterinsurgency, or just for routine police work? I suspect more are trained for counter insurgency than the MSM implies, but probably less than Bush's statement implies. I certainly havent seen anyone say we've got 130,000 Iraqis capable of doing counter insurgency work, particularly on their own with only US advisors and air support, and without US ground backup. Id say we're lucky if weve got 20 to 30 thousand.

adequate vs excellent - I dont know. I think it would be much better to have the insurgency close to snuffed out, and not just contained. And Im concerned (see Belgravia Dispatch) with the political implications of a US withdrawl while the political situation in Iraq is still very fluid. I dont see why a full withdrawl is needed - a return to bases, and focus on training missions, would reduce or end US casualties, while keeping our troops as a backstop against both the smoldering insurgency AND political hanky-panky.

As for our troops in Syria, or Iran, Id be VERY careful about that.

Posted by Liberalhawk 2005-04-15 10:43:03 AM|| 2005-04-15 10:43:03 AM|| Front Page Top

#2 Interesting the MSM doesn't mention the Kurds have 100,000 Pergamesh they could mobilize immediately.

Posted by phil_b 2005-04-15 11:15:45 AM|| 2005-04-15 11:15:45 AM|| Front Page Top

#3 The US will train the Iraq army to the point where they can reasonably be assured to thoroughly whup Iran if they try it on. This means that we will rebuild them to a far better degree of functionality, if not raw numbers, than Saddam had. They *will* stand and fight, and they *will* dominate the battlefield, at least strongly enough so that Iran's military would be destroyed. And practically speaking, Iraq's military will *have* to force project, at least as far as having a Navy, Coast Guard and Air Force to defend their part of the Persian Gulf and shipping, etc. They are designed to be a regional power, so that is what we are training them to be.

Posted by Anonymoose 2005-04-15 11:47:11 AM|| 2005-04-15 11:47:11 AM|| Front Page Top

#4 No matter how good the Iraq forces become, there will likely be suicide bombings. They may reduce the bombings to a few per month, rather than the current few per week but they can't be stopped entirely unless violent Jihad is more or less universally renounced through the entire Islamic world (instead of conditionally or contingently renounced as is the current practice; e.g., don't do it in Soddyland, don't do it against believers, etc.).

Posted by mhw 2005-04-15 1:00:38 PM|| 2005-04-15 1:00:38 PM|| Front Page Top

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