Word: iraqi
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Dates: during 2000-2009
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...Deputy Foreign Minister Mohammad Haj Hammoud - the lead negotiator on the SOFA talks until al-Maliki recently took over - is confident the Iraqis will get their way. Already, says Hammoud, the U.S. has conceded that private security contractors working with the U.S. military and embassy staff will no longer enjoy immunity. But even if the Americans hold firm on the final two sticking points (which is likely) al-Maliki can grudgingly approve the deal and still ultimately get his way. That's because the agreement must be ratified by the Iraqi parliament, which is unlikely to occur without...
...lack of progress in resolving the country's political divisions could trigger more violence, especially if large U.S. units pull out, Pentagon officials say. When the British pulled out of the southern city of Basra in 2007, the resulting vacuum was filled by Shi'ite militia units until the Iraqi government sent in its improving army in March and brought the city under Baghdad's control. And Bush doesn't want to begin a major withdrawal that could jeopardize recent security gains as his successor takes office...
...Iraq hasn't been able to procure arms since it invaded Kuwait in 1990, and the U.S. invasion in 2003 pretty much crushed whatever military hardware Saddam Hussein had left. So Iraq is starting from scratch in rebuilding its military. "The Iraqi military is growing in strength and capability very rapidly now," Pentagon spokesman Geoff Morrell says. "They are turning into a very formidable force that not only will be able to deal with internal threats, but also handle external threats in a very dangerous part of the world." While the deal would require reviews from the Pentagon, State Department...
...push to help re-arm Iraq - helicopter gunships are already in the pipeline, and Baghdad is looking to buy 400 armored personnel carriers and six C-130 cargo planes - suggests an Iraqi government eager to fight its own battles without U.S. help. "Given Iraq's history and its location, it's going to create regular forces that are capable of not simply dealing with an insurgency but defending the country," says Anthony Cordesman, a military scholar with the Center for Strategic and Independent Studies. "And when a country is looking for prestige - a symbol of coming back as a fully...
...year. But a lack of political progress in the country could trigger more violence, especially if large U.S. units pull out, Pentagon officials say. When the British pulled out of the southern city of Basra in 2007, the resulting vacuum was filled by Shi'ite militia units until the Iraqi government sent in its improving army in March and brought it under Baghdad's control. Petraeus also doesn't want to risk a security meltdown brought on by a major withdrawal just as a new U.S. President takes office...