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U.S. To Urge NATO Allies to Drop Use-of-Force Restrictions

By Donna Miles
American Forces Press Service

ISTANBUL, Turkey, June 27, 2004 – Nations' restrictions on what their forces can and can't do while conducting coalition or alliance missions reduces the commander's military effectiveness and may put some troops at unnecessary risk, a senior U.S. defense official told reporters here today.

The official, here for the NATO Istanbul Summit that begins June 28, said use of force by NATO troops is among the issues defense leaders are expected to discuss. While not expecting NATO to reach a concrete agreement, she said, the United States hopes the leaders will come to a general consensus that national restrictions on use of forces are counterproductive to NATO operations.

Once that consensus is reached, she said, the alliance will "ask these countries to go back and work with their parliaments and governments" to drop these restrictions "to make sure that if they are committing forces, they can use them."

The issue most recently came to light last March in Kosovo, where NATO forces were unable to quell violence and destruction at the church they were guarding. Due to their country's limitations on their use of force, the troops were practically helpless against a Kosovo Albanian mob that looted and burned the shrine. Seven people died, and dozens more were injured.

The defense official said national restrictions on their troops' activities does more than hamper NATO's effectiveness. "It also puts other troops in harm's way who have to be moved to fill in for countries that have so restricted their troops that they can't be responsive," she said. "So not only are you not being able to fulfill your mission, you could be endangering more of your fellow coalition partners."

These restrictions not only make forces weaker and more vulnerable, she said, but they also send out a message: "If you are a terrorist or you are looking to incite violence, don't go to the places where countries have robust command rules of engagement, but go to the ones where they can't do this and can't do this, and they might stay in their barracks."

The defense official told reporters national caveats about the use of force is a significant issue for NATO, but will become increasingly important as the alliance stands up its NATO Response Force.

"If you have a situation where the commander goes out and says, 'OK, we've got to go out, we've got this mission, but gee, this 'X' country can't do these three things, and 'Y' country can't do these five things,' it makes it impossible to be effective militarily," she said.

NATO Expected to Support Call to Help in Iraq

By Donna Miles
American Forces Press Service

ISTANBUL, Turkey, June 27, 2004 — The United States "is cautiously optimistic" that NATO will agree tomorrow to support Iraqi Prime Minister Ayad Allawi's request for assistance, a senior defense official said here today.

Support for the new Iraqi government is expected to dominate discussions at the two-day NATO Istanbul Summit, which kicks off June 28.

Heads of state from NATO's 26 nations will discuss Allawi's request for help in bolstering Iraq's security forces to defeat terrorists he said "are determined to derail our political transition toward a stable democracy" and to reduce Iraq's reliance on foreign forces.

In a June 20 letter to NATO Secretary-General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer, Allawi urged NATO and the international community to help equip Iraq's security forces and provide in-country training and other technical assistance.

Acknowledging that his nation is "going through a very difficult period in its history" and that "our indigenous capabilities remain limited," Allawi said he is confident that with NATO's help, Iraq ultimately "will deliver a major setback to terrorism globally."

Allawi said Iraq is expediting the formation of its army as well as its international security and counter-terrorism capabilities. "We are determined to defeat the terrorists," he wrote.

A senior defense official said here today the United States "will be pressing hard for NATO allies to be responsive to the Iraqis' request for assistance."

"If at this summit we can show support as an alliance for the Iraqis, that will be a big plus," she said. "If the goal is to support a sovereign Iraq, then building up their capabilities is very meaningful."

Once alliance members make a political decision to support Iraq's request — something the United States expects on the summit's first day -- the task of coming up with options to carry it out will fall to military authorities, the official explained.

Iraq's call for NATO help was not unexpected. Earlier this month, the NATO secretary-general told the Centre of European Reform he didn't know when, or if, a sovereign and legitimate Iraqi government might request NATO assistance. But if the request did come, Scheffer said, the international community "simply cannot afford" to let Iraq fail. "I believe that, if both the U.N. and the Iraqi people call on NATO for help, the Atlantic Alliance cannot turn a blind eye," he said.

Sixteen NATO members have troops on the ground in Iraq, and NATO continues to support the Polish-led Multinational Division, Scheffer pointed out.

http://www.dod.mil/news/Jun2004/n06272004_2004062701.html