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| Iraq |
| Corps of Engineers Building Iraqi Army Bases |
| 2008-08-06 |
| Iraq is hiring the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to supervise a $1.6 billion construction effort that will build bases (housing, storage, training and maintenance facilities) for the Iraqi armed forces. The Corps of Engineers has long experience in running large scale military and civilian construction projects, and supervised the construction of U.S. bases and logistical facilities in Iraq and Kuwait. But the Iraqis also want the Corps of Engineers to oversee this project because the American officials can be expected to minimize the extent of corruption. If an Iraqi firm were put in charge, a lot more of the money would disappear, rather than be turned into military facilities. In the last few years, little of the Iraqi oil income has gone to infrastructure work, partly because of corruption fears, and a lack of qualified Iraqis to handle such projects. Even Saddam imported foreign construction managers for large scale projects. |
| Posted by:Anonymoose |
| #6 Ah, but were they only cohens, that'd be ok, liberalhawk. Nothing but the best for Iraq's oil profits. ;-) |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2008-08-06 23:14 |
| #5 In the last few years, little of the Iraqi oil income has gone to infrastructure work, partly because of corruption fears, That seems to be an important fact left out of yesterday's Iraqi cash hoarding story. Wonder why that was? |
| Posted by: Raj 2008-08-06 23:01 |
| #4 Especially if the maintenance of the levee's were given to NO pol's. |
| Posted by: tipover 2008-08-06 20:59 |
| #3 I think the whole region would take it badly if levys were involved. |
| Posted by: liberalhawk 2008-08-06 20:05 |
| #2 There is another very good reason for the CoE to do this. They know how to design modern, efficient and secure bases. This is way different from the way the Russians did things, as their bases have unsafe materiel storage, poor infrastructure, not so hot security, and generally poor design. The Iraqis were impressed as all hell that while hundreds of attacks were made against US bases, the bad guys could never even get through the perimeter, except the occasional foot suicide bomber. |
| Posted by: Anonymoose 2008-08-06 19:55 |
| #1 no levees? |
| Posted by: Frank G 2008-08-06 19:51 |