Pentagon Update

By Wendy Wang
May 12, 2006

After two months in his Iraqi post, General Fry offers his initial impression of the situation there. First, he was struck by the scale of the enterprise in Iraq. Even with the British experience of post-colonial disengagement, he was not prepared for the scale of forming a new government and introducing a new economic system to this country. He calls it a huge undertaking.

His second observation is that force alone cannot bring about decisive resolution to the current conflict. He is positive that the formation of the central government, guided by the Iraqi Constitution will achieve that goal. The military role is merely to support that process.

The third and last observation he made is the difference in the American and British tactical war fighting traditions. Though he did not say just how the British compares, he noted that the American troops have a strong sense of purpose and commitment, supported by the military leaderships’ affective communication of a clear vision.

Fry notes the continuing insurgency violence is an effort to undermine the newly formed central government. It is part of the conditions that needs to be considered when considering the overall goal of troop drawdown. He states clearly that it is not the intent of the British, or of the Americans, to withdraw troops with a timetable. He gives three conditions that must be met before entertaining discussion of troop withdrawal: The condition of the Iraqi military force, stability of the local and central government, and that presence of the insurgency.

Currently the training of the Iraqi military and police force is positive. 115,000 soldiers and 134,000 police have been successfully trained to operate macro operations, though finite logistics still needs work.

The future of the Iraqi nation lies in the hands of Iraqis, and the Coalition forces are merely there to facilitate the process to ensure its long term success. The Coalition needs to create precondition such as getting the central government involved in the active execution of democracy.