Free Republic

WASHINGTON -- The Pentagon (news - web sites)'s search for troops from other nations to replace U.S. soldiers in the force that is stabilizing postwar Iraq (news - web sites) has fallen short of expectations, and U.S. officials face the prospect of keeping more U.S. forces in Iraq than they had hoped, diplomats and military officials say. Despite efforts to prod other nations to send troops -- and a United Nations (news - web sites) resolution on May 22 that cleared the way for countries to begin contributing soldiers to the postwar effort -- the United States and Britain have...

BAGHDAD, Iraq, May 28 — Faced with armed resistance that has killed four American soldiers this week, allied military commanders now plan to keep a larger force in Iraq than had been anticipated and to send war-hardened units to trouble spots outside Baghdad, senior American officials said today. Instead of sending home the Third Infantry Division, which led the charge on Baghdad, American officials are developing plans that call for most of its troops to extend their stay and be used to quell unrest and extend American control. Allied officials said that about 160,000 American and British troops were in...

SURVEY CONDUCTED BY THE IRAQI INSTITUTION FOR DEMOCRACY IN BAGHDAD SHOWED THAT MOST IRAQIS SUPPORT CONTINUED AMERICAN PRESENCE UNTIL DEMOCRATIC ELECTIONS ARE HELD IN IRAQ. (AL-SHARQ AL-AWSAT, LONDON 5/28/03)

BUDAPEST, May 28 — Hungarian parliamentary parties agreed on Wednesday to send a 300-strong military transport and logistics unit to Iraq. Poland, a central European NATO member and EU candidate like Hungary, announced earlier on Wednesday that a multinational peacekeeping force of up to 7,500 troops under its command would be sent to Iraq in July.

US sends in extra troops to quell unrest By Andrew Buncombe in Washington 27 May 2003 A further 20,000 US troops are to be deployed in Iraq amid growing concerns that there are insufficient forces to bring law and order to the country after the American-led invasion. Over the next few weeks, troops from the 1st Armoured Division will start to arrive in the country, bringing the total number of US forces to about 163,000. Whether forces from other countries will be deployed is unclear, though there are certainly no plans to add more American troops to the so-called stabilisation...

The United States plans to increase its military force in Iraq in an effort to stabilize the country. U.S. officials said nearly 20,000 troops would arrive in Iraq over the next few weeks. This would increase the U.S. force level to about 163,000 troops. Currently, about 145,000 U.S. soldiers are deployed in Iraq. U.S. troops have disarmed a militia group affiliated with pro-American Iraqi politician Ahmed Chalabi, as part of a campaign to impose law and order in Iraq, a political official said Sunday. But fighters of the biggest Muslim Shi'ite group, trained by Washington's bitter foe Iran, reacted warily...

India may be willing to offer troops for `stabilisation duties' in Iraq even if they have to operate under the command of the US military rather than the United Nations. While the final decision on participation will depend on the composition of the force and the precise command and control structure, official sources made it clear that the formal mandate of a UN peacekeeping force under Chapter VII of the UN Charter would not be the sole criterion. India, official sources said, was keeping open its options on participating until the final blueprint of the force was available. A US-drafted...

BRUSSELS, Belgium (AP) NATO unanimously backs plans to help Poland lead peacekeeping force in Iraq NATO: Poland Will Lead Iraq Peacekeepers 59 minutes ago BRUSSELS, Belgium - NATO (news - web sites)'s 19 nations agreed unanimously Wednesday to start planning to help Poland lead a multinational peacekeeping force in Iraq (news - web sites), a move that begins to heal the alliance's deep divisions over the war. Although the plans involve only modest technical assistance, the step also marks the possibility of a wider role for NATO in postwar Iraq. "This is a big step forward by the NATO alliance,"...

Ye, Adam, your idea about Poland being stiffed by Yankees is a sound one. It came to my mind too. Yet I’d like to note, that the process will be launched by Yankees and finished by the European neighbors! A poor country with its ridiculous claim to power or something like that is unlikely to expect a serious EC treatment. EC has made it clear that Poland may get huge allocations to upgrade its agricultural sector of economy. Poland needs this sort of help badly! But now officials in Brussels may well say, ‘The Poles are so sure of themselves...

BRUSSELS, Belgium - In a possible first step toward direct involvement in Iraq, NATO is preparing to help Poland run a peacekeeping force in one of three military zones to be set up in the country by the U.S.-led coalition, diplomats said Tuesday. The decision to order military experts to begin planning was expected at a meeting of ambassadors from the 19 NATO allies Wednesday. Poland asked the alliance last week for assistance in assembling the force, which is expected to number at least 7,000. The request also concerns intelligence sharing, communications and logistics. Warsaw plans to host a conference...

Iraqis wonder if war was worth it Many question whether winning their freedom justifies losing stability05/19/2003 By TOD ROBBERSON / The Dallas Morning News BAGHDAD, Iraq – The government buildings not destroyed by American bombs now are ravaged by looters and set ablaze in an unprecedented display of anarchy. Crime is rampant. The economy is crushed. Gas lines stretch for miles in spite of vast oil riches underground. The list goes on and on. Iraqis can spend hours complaining of all the bad things they say America is doing to ruin their country and make their lives miserable. Regardless of...

May 14, 2003Release Number: 03-05-46 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE COALITION FORCES PROVIDE SECURITY AND STABILITY CAMP DOHA, Kuwait – Coalition Forces continue to actively patrol Iraq to make it safe to conduct Humanitarian Assistance operations. Recent incidents highlight the dangerous nature of their work: Unknown assailants in a vehicle shot at 2d Armored Cavalry Regiment, 3d Infantry Division personnel by a power sub-station in Baghdad with AK-47s early this morning. No injuries were reported. Unknown assailants fired two rocket-propelled grenades at a building used by the 2d Armored Cavalry Regiment near Fallujah early this morning. Two soldiers received minor injuries. A...

Now that the U.S. has brought down the regime of Iraqi President Saddam Hussein, Professor Emeritus Shoichi Watanabe of Sophia University calls for the formation of a four-nation alliance of Japan, the United States, Britain, and Spain — countries that supported the attack on Iraq — to take the place of the United Nations, which was paralyzed in the face of the Iraq crisis. Writing in Voice magazine, he says this would lead to a strengthening of the security bonds between Tokyo and Washington and the correction of such unrealistic notions as not accepting that Japan can exercise the right...

I'd appreciate your comments and thoughts on this. I still believe that the Us will not stay and take over the oil. There has to be a rebuttal to this. ----------------- America and Britain declared themselves yesterday to be the "occupying powers" in Iraq and produced a blueprint for the administration of the country that confined the United Nations to a co-ordinating role. Although George Bush declared in Belfast last month that the UN would have "a vital role" in Iraq, there was great disappointment yesterday after the organisation was denied an operational role. Britain acknowledged in a draft UN...

The German government swiftly rejected a proposal from Warsaw to contribute troops to a Polish occupation zone in Iraq, saying it would not consider any economic or military role in the defeated country without a clear United Nations mandate for reconstruction. This seemed to dash hopes in Washington that Germany would break with France on their mutual insistence upon a major role for the UN in Iraq. Defense Minister Peter Struck told the Bundestag parliament that Germany would not send troops to Iraq as part of a larger unit comprising Danish and Polish troops, government spokesman Bela Anda said on...

LONDON, May 9. The situation surrounding the participation of Turkey in the re-construction of post-war Iraq has become intriguing. According to Kurdish Media, Poland is opposed to Turkey's participation in the international peacekeeping forces, which will be based in Iraq. Moreover, the Kurdish democratic party has called on Turkey to not only open an embassy in Baghdad, but consulates in Mosul and Arbil. US Ambassador Robert Pearson told Turkish businessmen that if they want to participate in the post-war reconstruction of Iraq, they must have good relations with the Kurds.

Dutch scout out Iraqi mission 9 May 2003 AMSTERDAM — A team of five Dutch military officers are travelling to southern Iraq to scout out the feasibility of dispatching 600 troops to take part in the multinational stabilisation force in the war-torn Islamic nation. A spokesman for Defence Minister, Henk Kamp, said on Friday that the detachment departed from the Valkenburg airstrip on Thursday night, Dutch associated press ANP reported. It was not immediately known how long the mission would take. But he said the team would travel to southern Iraq, where British forces are set to take command...

Britain and America yesterday asked the international community to grant them a sweeping mandate to rule Iraq as "occupying powers" for at least a year, effectively relegating the United Nations to an advisory role. A toughly worded draft resolution, handed to the UN Security Council, called for the immediate lifting of 12 years of sanctions against Iraq and the use of oil revenues to fund reconstruction. Despite several ringing clauses about the duties of a UN special co-ordinator for Iraq, critics will say it falls far short of the "vital role" agreed by Tony Blair and President George W Bush...

The Polish, German and French leaders are meeting for a regular three-way summit in the south-western Polish city of Wroclaw that may be marked by tension over the Iraq crisis. Relations between Poland and its two partners soured after Poland supported the US-led attack on Iraq both militarily and diplomatically. There has also been further friction over Polish plans to manage a sector in post-war Iraq. These three-way meetings of the so-called Weimar Triangle have been largely formal affairs ever since they started in 1991. Reception concerns But this time there is an air of nervousness. Poland has riled its...

<p>U N I T E D  N A T I O N S, May 9 -- The long-awaited U.S. plan for postwar Iraq envisions the United States and Britain running the country as "occupying powers" for at least a year and probably much longer, a limited role for the United Nations, and Iraq's oil money financing the country's reconstruction. Continues.</p>