Our allies are dropping like flies. Next thing you know, the important state of Togo will be gone.
First, Britain...gone
Then, Denmark
Its ok, Cheney is fine with it. He is going to go shot people over there himself if he has to. Soon its just going to be this bear fighting in Iraq.
"In fact, I talked to a friend just the other day who had driven to Baghdad down to Basra, seven hours, found the situation dramatically improved from a year or so ago, sort of validated the British view they had made progress in southern Iraq and that they can therefore reduce their force levels," Cheney said."
3 comments:
Britain is not gone. They are reducing their troop level by 1/4th and handing that part of domestic security work to the ISF. Blair said Britain will maintain a troop level for as long as it is needed to.
Secondly, southern Iraq is completley diffferent from the middle of Iraq where US forces are. There is not secreterian violence. It is a Shiite population. The only fighting that goes ont here is different sects of Shiites fighting one another for power (Sadar's Mahdi militia vs. other groups). There is not too much in weigh of fighting by insurgents against the international forces there. Most of the fighting is initiated by raids which are targeted at munitions capture. Most of the smuggled arms from Iran come from there. What we eventually want is a complete withdrawl by Uk troops from the cities and movment to the Iranian border where the supply lines can be monitored.
Don't equate Britain pulling a few troops to them withdrawing because of domestic pressure or what not. If domestic pressure gets too big UK might do what Poland did from the initial involvment. Just take voulenteers - take those who want to go. The U.S. Army has a similar system for National guardsmen, reserves and active duty troops. There is an online system in which you pick three of your prefferred deployments. I read an article about voulenteers in Iraq from U.S. forces and if I remember correctly it was above 50%.
Afghanistan has some type of different system because only select combat MOS units are sent out there (i.e. 10th mountain divison, 75th Ranger Regiment, 101st Airborne). Iraq is mostly support staff with about 20,000 to 25,000 trigger pullers. This is a different porblem in itself.
bvaler: It's "flies."
(Sorry; had to).
Lithuania is seriously considering pulling out all 53 of their troops at the end of August as well. At least Stankonia and Afrika Bambata and the Zulu Nation are in it for the long haul.
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