[Dean's World] Dave Price: Maliki Doubles Down

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Posted by Dave Price:
Maliki Doubles Down
http://www.deanesmay.com/posts/1169090758.shtml


   He [1]says if the elected Iraqi government had the guns, they could
   take care of the problems themselves. I'm not sure he's wrong.

     Nouri al-Maliki said the insurgency had been bloodier and prolonged
     because Washington had refused to part with equipment. If it
     released the necessary arms, US forces could âdrasticallyâ cut
     their numbers in three to six months, he told The Times.
     ...
     Gordon Johndroe, the White House national security spokesman,
     conceded that some of Mr al-Malikiâs criticism was âvalidâ. The
     training and equipping of Iraqi troops would be speeded up, he
     said, adding that by âself-admission we have had to redo our
     training and equipment programmeâ.
     ...
     Challenged on the point, Mr al-Maliki remarked acidly: âCertain
     officials are going through a crisis. Secretary Rice is expressing
     her own point of view if she thinks that the Government is on
     borrowed time, whether it is borrowed time for the Iraqi Government
     or American Administration. I donât think we are on borrowed time.â

   That last rings especially true. I think even many of the most
   steadfast hawks have been caught up in this hysterical Western media
   meme that the Iraqi security forces and government are forever a
   hairsbreadth from collapsing in the face of the mighty invincible
   insurgents and their courageous, effective tactic of blowing things up
   and running away. Yes, the security forces have issues, but Saddam
   managed to keep control of the country with much less popular support,
   and his army wasn't exactly a model of competence. ISF casualties
   apparently [2]peaked in August 2005, and there are quite a few more of
   them out fighting now than there were back then. There really doesn't
   seem to be much if any existential threat to the elected Iraqi
   government, especially not if American air power is around to back
   them up.
   I always have a lot of sympathy for everyone in the Iraqi political
   process, not just because they're nearly all going to die horribly if
   things don't work out (and probably many even if it does), but also
   because this godawful mess of violence and irrational hatred they
   inherited from Saddam is their home, and ultimately their problem to
   deal with. I understand the reluctance to give them free rein, but
   based on what I'm hearing from our troops many Iraqi units are at or
   nearing a level of competence and judiciousness that would put them on
   a par with most militaries in the region. Maybe it's time to give them
   their head.

References

   1. http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,7374-2553148.html
   2. http://www.brookings.edu/fp/saban/iraq/index.pdf