Gates, US General Back Long Iraq Stay
By Ann Scott Tyson
The Washington Post
Friday 01 June 2007
US presence said to reassure allies.
Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates and a senior U.S. commander
said yesterday that they favor a protracted U.S. troop presence in
Iraq along the lines of the military stabilization force in South Korea.
Gates told reporters in Hawaii that he is thinking of "a mutual
agreement" with Iraq in which "some force of Americans . . . is
present for a protracted period of time, but in ways that are
protective of the sovereignty of the host government." Gates said
such a long-term U.S. presence would assure allies in the Middle East
that the United States will not withdraw from Iraq as it did from
Vietnam, "lock, stock and barrel."
Lt. Gen. Raymond T. Odierno, who oversees daily military
operations in Iraq, supported the idea at a news conference in which
he also said U.S. military units are trying to reach cease-fire
agreements with Iraqi insurgents.
Odierno said he sees benefits in maintaining a South Korean-
style force in Iraq for years. "I think it's a great idea," he said,
adding that the Iraqi and U.S. governments would have to make that
decision.
"That would be nothing but helping the Iraqi security forces and
the government to continue to stabilize itself, and continue to set
itself up for success for years to come, if we were able to do that,"
Odierno told Pentagon reporters in a videoconference from Baghdad.
The comments represented the second time this week that
administration officials invoked the American experience in South
Korea in citing the need for a long-range U.S. military presence in
Iraq. Concerns that U.S. forces might stay for a lengthy period have
provoked considerable controversy in the region.
Yesterday's statements echoed those by White House press
secretary Tony Snow on Wednesday. Snow had sparked quick criticism
from Democratic lawmakers and liberal activist groups when he said
that President Bush envisions a troop posture in Iraq similar to that
in South Korea.
Iraqi forces, Snow said, would provide the bulk of security, but
U.S. troops would be deployed in an "over-the-horizon support role so
that if you need the ability to react quickly to major challenges or
crises, you can be there." He said that "what you're really dealing
with is the internal security of Iraq, rather than trying to provide
a reassurance against an external foe."
Senate Majority Leader Harry M. Reid (D-Nev.) responded by
accusing Bush of "equating U.S. troop involvement in the endless
Iraqi civil war to the post-Korean War security model, telling
Americans that he may keep our troops mired in Iraq for as long as
half a century."
Snow had said, however, that he was not suggesting a 50-year
deployment and characterized the potential duration as "unanswerable."
Odierno cited some progress in Iraq and said U.S. forces are
negotiating cease-fires with local Sunni and Shiite insurgent groups
that it considers "reconcilable" in an effort to reduce violence.
Odierno said he recently gave military commanders authority to
strike such agreements with insurgent groups that have staged attacks
against U.S. and Iraqi forces. He said that he thinks 80 percent of
the fighters - including Sunni insurgents, Shiite militia such as the
Mahdi Army, and possibly a small number of al-Qaeda in Iraq members -
are "reconcilable," meaning they could be persuaded to lay down their
weapons.
"There are insurgents reaching out to us . . . so we want to
reach back to them," Odierno said. "We're talking about cease-fires
and maybe signing some things that say they won't conduct operations
against the government of Iraq or against coalition forces."
The overtures to insurgent groups, tribes and religious leaders
are part of a push by the U.S. military to generate political
accommodation at local and eventually national levels, Odierno said.
Odierno also cited progress resulting from the buildup of 28,500
U.S. troops in Iraq, but he appealed for patience and said he may
need time beyond September to determine whether the "surge" ordered
by Bush in January is working. "The assessment might be . . . 'I need
a little more time,' " he said.
The troop increase will be completed in mid-June, with 8,000
more U.S. combat personnel moving into position in Baghdad and its
outskirts and in Anbar province over the next two weeks. Odierno said
it will take until at least August for those forces to be "immersed
into the local populace" and be able to improve security.
Odierno said the extra troops have produced "some very clear
progress." He cited military data showing that since January,
operations in Iraq have detained nearly 18,000 people, discovered
about 2,500 weapons caches, killed more than 3,184 enemy fighters and
wounded 1,016. In Baghdad, where about 50,000 U.S. combat troops and
79,000 Iraqi security forces are operating, civilian deaths -
including those from sectarian violence - are lower than in January,
although they increased in May over the previous two months, he said.
Operations have added security barriers to 11 Baghdad markets and
helped generate 32,000 jobs, and have spent more than $35 million on
reconstruction and humanitarian projects, he said.
Still, Odierno said that he expects hard fighting ahead. In
coming weeks, he said, the focus of U.S. military operations will be
on insurgent sanctuaries in the outskirts of Baghdad, especially to
the south and east in Diyala province.
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Staff writer Michael Abramowitz contributed to this report.
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