Foreign Correspondence

[Amaunet]

Iraq force may grow by 25,000


Prime Minister Iyad Allawi, whose government will assume sovereignty next month from the U.S. Coalition Provisional Authority, told Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz in Iraq last week that he plans to have up to five of the divisions reconstituted "in a couple of months," the sources said.

Though no firm figures were discussed, five divisions could put 50,000 Iraqis into uniform.

Even if Allawi can muster and equip five divisions over the next several weeks, most officials agree that such a force would still be insufficient by itself to defeat the insurrection
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However, the 50,000 planned Iraqi forces would not be by themselves, they would have the backing of 138,000 American soldiers through 2005 and an overall force of 160,000, including the troops deployed by coalition partners.

The 50,000 Iraqi force would be in addition to the 3,000 Iraqi army and a 37,500- member Civil Defense Corps trained by the United States.

In addition the U.S. Central Command has informally asked Army planners for up to five more brigades - about 25,000 troops - to augment the American force of 138,000 soldiers and Marines now in Iraq, military officers and Pentagon officials said.

Not only does this seem a significant overall increase in troops especially when considering the addition of the 50,000 planned Iraqi divisions these forces will be backed by an increase of 72 F-16s currently deployed in Germany to Incirlik in neighboring Turkey.
#msg-3385389

Granted an increase in troops is being driven by requirements in theater but this will yield 75,000 more troops and 72 F-16s which looks a bit much for Iraq solely.

Again it appears Bush might be planning on going after Iran and/or Syria.

-Am

Iraq force may grow by 25,000
Possible mix of U.S. reservists, regulars would bolster security; 'We may need more people,' officer says

By Tom Bowman
Sun National Staff
Originally published June 23, 2004


WASHINGTON - The U.S. Central Command has informally asked Army planners for up to five more brigades - about 25,000 troops - to augment the American force of 138,000 soldiers and Marines now in Iraq, military officers and Pentagon officials said.

Some officers said any increase might well be lower, perhaps involving 10,000 troops that would be a mix of active-duty and National Guard units.

"For a period of time, we may need more people," said a senior officer familiar with the planning, noting the perilous security situation and the needs of Iraq's new interim government, which is to assume sovereignty a week from today. "It's clearly being driven by requirements in theater."

It is uncertain whether a formal request for more troops has been made by Gen. John P. Abizaid, head of Central Command, which is responsible for U.S. forces in the Persian Gulf region. Neither is it clear that discussions between Central Command and the Army have reached Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld.


Unstable Iraq

Even with 22,000 troops from other nations, primarily Britain, joining the American force, the U.S.-led coalition does not control Iraq's borders, has taken substantial casualties along roads and highways, and avoids key cities such as Fallujah.

Asked about the possible increase in U.S. troop strength, Bryan Whitman, a Pentagon spokesman, said: "It's been Secretary Rumsfeld's position that the combatant commander would have what he needs to prosecute the operation in Iraq. I wouldn't want to speculate on what Central Command would require as far as force structure."

Sen. Jack Reed, a Rhode Island Democrat and member of the Armed Services Committee, told reporters yesterday that more American troops are needed to combat Iraqi insurgents in Fallujah and elsewhere who are becoming "more adept" at fighting U.S. forces.

The senator said he has heard nothing from Central Command about a request for more troops. But Reed said fellow senators who recently returned from Iraq are picking up those signals from American commanders.

"My suspicion is, they're recognizing they could use more troops," Reed said.


Tapping the Reserves

Already, the Pentagon is digging deeper into National Guard and Army Reserve units as it prepares to rotate fresh troops into Iraq later this year to battle the stubborn insurgency and assist the new Iraqi government in building its own security forces.

The Pentagon is planning to call up thousands of members of the Individual Ready Reserve, a pool of about 118,000 trained soldiers who have unexpired service obligations and are called to active duty only on rare occasions, such as the Persian Gulf war in 1991.

About 2,300 of them are now serving as part of the Iraq effort, though the vast majority are volunteers. But now the Pentagon is looking to involuntarily mobilize up to 6,500 of the reservists to fill vacancies in active and reserve units, said one officer, who, like other officers and Pentagon officials interviewed for this article, requested anonymity.

The reservists selected would likely possess critical skills needed in Iraq, such as military police and civil affairs training, officials said.

As U.S. forces perform such duties as training Iraqi recruits or protecting members of the interim government, more American troops may be needed to perform other tasks, such as patrolling, the senior officer explained.


Higher troop levels

Until now, Pentagon planners expected to maintain the current level of 138,000 American soldiers through 2005 and an overall force of 160,000, including the troops deployed by coalition partners.

Adding five brigades would increase the coalition force to 185,000, far more than originally envisioned.

Pentagon planners had once hoped to reduce the number of U.S. troops in Iraq to 105,000 by late spring.

The additional troops, if approved by Rumsfeld, would be part of the next rotation of U.S. forces that is to begin in September and continue into next March. Like the current force, those Army troops are scheduled to spend a year in Iraq.

Within the past two weeks, two Army National Guard units - totaling about 7,000 troops - have been alerted for possible duty in Iraq in the next rotation. That is in addition to the four Guard units the Pentagon said in March would be sent to Iraq by the end of the year.

The two added units are the Mississippi Army National Guard's 155th Brigade Combat Team, which has 4,015 soldiers, and the 2,944 reservists from the 56th Brigade of the 36th Division from the Texas Army National Guard. Both units are expected to be mobilized in the next two months, officials said.

While the Texas unit is to replace a Guard unit now serving in Iraq, there is no word on whether the Mississippi force will replace any Guard or active-duty U.S. unit in Iraq or would be in addition to those already there, officials said.

The Mississippi and Texas soldiers would join four other Guard units already set for the next rotation into Iraq that begins in September - the 278th Armored Cavalry Regiment from Tennessee, the 116th Cavalry Brigade from Idaho, the 256th Brigade Combat Team from Louisiana and the headquarters division of the 42nd Infantry from New York.


Other options

It is uncertain which active-duty units - if any - would be used to increase the U.S. force, since most of the Army's 10 active-duty divisions are now in Iraq or Afghanistan or resting up to head back. There was no immediate information on whether any more Marine units would be deployed.

One option for beefing up the U.S. contingent is to accelerate deployment of the Army's 3rd Infantry Division, which has been expanded from three brigades to four as part of a modernization effort. The division is scheduled for deployment this year.

Another unit that could be sent to Iraq earlier might be the 1st Brigade, 25th Infantry Division, a Stryker Brigade Combat Team, based at Fort Lewis, Wash., which was scheduled to replace the 3rd Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division, another Stryker unit from the base, later this year.

The Stryker is the Army's new lightweight, eight-wheeled armored vehicle.




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Iraq wants army back
Prime minister tells Pentagon that abolished divisions will be reconstituted to restore order

BY KNUT ROYCE
WASHINGTON BUREAU

June 24, 2004

Iraq's prime minister told a top Pentagon official last week that he will move rapidly to reconstitute several of the army divisions abolished by the United States last spring, with officers and soldiers regaining their previous ranks, salaries and pensions, according to well-placed sources.

Prime Minister Iyad Allawi, whose government will assume sovereignty next month from the U.S. Coalition Provisional Authority, told Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz in Iraq last week that he plans to have up to five of the divisions reconstituted "in a couple of months," the sources said.

Though no firm figures were discussed, five divisions could put 50,000 Iraqis into uniform.

Allawi had signaled for weeks that he planned to tap into the ranks of former army officers to beef up internal security forces. "Disbanding the Iraqi Army was a big mistake," Allawi told reporters Sunday. "We are fixing the mistakes of the Americans."

Testifying before the House Armed Services Committee Tuesday, Wolfowitz said he would not be surprised if Allawi issued an order restoring Saddam Hussein's army "as a symbolic move."

But those familiar with Allawi's conversation with Wolfowitz said the new prime minister was "very forceful" when he declared, according to one of the sources, "This is our business, and we're going to do that." Wolfowitz did not object, the source said.

"We'll stand our old units back up and we'll have four, five divisions in a couple of months," Allawi reportedly said. Iraqi Army divisions typically had about 10,000 men each, according to estimates when coalition troops invaded last year.

Allawi told Wolfowitz that his promised reversal of the U.S. order abolishing Hussein's army would "reinstate everyone in their previous grade, reinstate salaries and pensions."

The reinstatement would apply to most members of the elite Republican Guard, although officers tainted with operations against the Kurds or Shia would not be included.

Iraq, reeling under a violent insurrection, now has a 37,500- member Civil Defense Corps trained by the United States and a minuscule army of 3,000 soldiers. Allawi has made clear he believes his first order of business is to establish security.

But an administration official familiar with Allawi's intention to bring back at least a portion of Iraq's former army of 425,000 men cautioned that Allawi will face a number of problems.

"Wanting to do it and actually getting it done are two different issues," he said.

It is unclear, for instance, how Allawi will get the materiel to equip the divisions so quickly. "They've got a lot of personal gear," said a source familiar with the discussion between Allawi and Wolfowitz. "What they're going to need is armor and artillery and trucks." Wolfowitz told the lawmakers Tuesday that there was a shortage of funds to equip a larger Iraqi army.

Also, bringing back elements of Hussein's army would be unpopular among Kurds to the north and Shia to the south, who were brutally put down during several insurrections.

Nevertheless, the administration official said, Allawi's decision demonstrates that he is "showing some leadership and really stepping up to the plate and charting his own course for the country."

Even if Allawi can muster and equip five divisions over the next several weeks, most officials agree that such a force would still be insufficient by itself to defeat the insurrection.

In his congressional testimony Tuesday, Wolfowitz said it was "entirely possible" that the United States, which has 138,000 troops in Iraq, would have to maintain a presence there for "a good many years."
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