WASHINGTON — The U.S. Defense Department has drafted a plan to
significantly expand the Iraq Army and security forces.
Under the plan, the Pentagon would spend at least $1 billion to increase
the Iraqi military and police. Officials said the effort could eventually
lead to up to 100,000 additional Iraqi troops, or an increase of nearly
one-third the current force.
"I'm very comfortable with the increases they've proposed and the
accelerations in achievement of some of their targets," Defense Secretary
Donald Rumsfeld said on Tuesday.
[At the same time, the United States continues to increase its military
presence in Iraq. The Pentagon reported 150,000 U.S. troops in Iraq, up from
147,000 last week.]
Officials said Rumsfeld received the recommendation for the Iraqi
expansion from Gen. George Casey, commander of the U.S.-led coalition in
Iraq. They said the Baghdad government has also approved the plan and would
soon announce details.
"Now it's simply a matter of our pressing forward and getting our
portion of the funding from the Congress and working to see that it's
executed," Rumsfeld said.
Under the plan, the U.S. military would also accelerate training and
equipping of the Iraqi security forces. Iraq plans to fulfill its original
goal to recruit, train and equip 325,000 soldiers and police by 2007.
But over the last year, the U.S. military has determined that Iraq's
liberal leave policy has harmed army and police operations. Officials said
up to one-quarter of the force was absent — particularly after pay day —
and that unauthorized leaves remained rampant.
The shortage in Iraqi troops has forced the U.S. military to increase
operations, particularly in the Baghdad area. In October, 103 U.S. soldiers
were killed in Iraq, a casualty toll that officials said reflected a
significant expansion in U.S. field activities.
"What that [Iraqi security force expansion] means is that U.S. and
coalition forces will not have the need to be there doing the kinds of
things they're doing," Rumsfeld said. "In terms of patrolling, in terms of
presence, those are the kinds of things that would very likely be less
needed as the Iraqi forces increased."
Officials said the Bush administration would submit the expansion plan
to Congress for funding in 2007. At this point, the White House has not
formally approved the recommendation. So far, Congress has allocated $10
billion to develop the Iraqi security forces.
"The plan envisions a staged expansion of Iraq's army and police," an
official said. "At this point, there is not a number we have agreed upon."
