Withdrawing from Iraq: Part II

Continued from yesterday, here are the next set of steps.



2. During the withdrawal of troops, America should ONLY help the Iraqi government at it's behest. It is crucial though that a substantial police force be created during this period to combat remaining groups of insurgents and so that once America has fully withdrawn, Iraq will be capable of taking care of any surge in violence. As was stated earlier, once America has left, the insurgency will become increasingly more unpopular and will fade into oblivion. "Warlordism" will also likely be a problem that this national police force would be able to handle along with the 'central government, and neighborhood, village, and tribal home guards.'



3. Creation of this police force will prove difficult, as existing ethnic and cultural divides in Iraq continue to deteriorate. It has even been said that the current force is "battered and dysfunctional." The authors of Out of Iraq recommend a '$1 billion package to help the Iraqi government create, train and equip' an appropriate police force. This is about the cost of four days of the current occupation. This force will be supplemented by traditional neighborhood, village, and tribal guards, which is normal for Iraqi-society.



4. 'America should immediately release all POW's it holds and close its detention centers.' Though this process has already been started, it is important to realize it is only being done on a small scale.



5. Iraq's past armies have not been a source of defense but rather disruption. Until Iraq has time to establish it's civil institutions, an army is NOT in it's interest. It should transfer current 'soldiers to the national police force or into a reconstruction corps that would be modeled after the US Corps of Engineers.' The US would help pay for this with $500 million, about two days of the occupation.



6. America must 'cease work' on ALL military bases. As long as there are bases in Iraq, Iraqi's will feel like America is playing a role in their politics, whether they are or not (a lesson learned from the British occupation.)



7. America should leave the Green Zone. It would be turned over to the Iraqi government a year after the withdraw starts. Included in the sprawling complex are Marine barracks. Any American military presence, Green Zone or elsewhere would threaten to spur more insurgent attacks.



8. My final point for this post, to replace the embassy that would be in the Green Zone, the US needs to 'build a normal embassy,' outside of the Green Zone. In other words, normal means it should not resemble a 'fortress in enemy territory,' like the current one in the works is. Ending occupation of the Green Zone would SAVE taxpayers nearly $25 billion - the cost for each division in the GZ.

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Sources:

George McGovern, William R. Polk (2006) Out of Iraq: A Practical Plan for Withdrawal Now New York: Simon & Schuster Paperbacks