Iraq decision has little impact for troops on ground

AL-ABBARA, Iraq, March 3 (UPI) -- The announcement by President Barack Obama that all but a few American troops would be out of Iraq in 18 months was the farthest thing from the minds of the U.S. and Iraqi soldiers walking through the palm groves here in al-Abbara.

In the undergrowth could be weapons caches, spider holes for hiding and worse -- small improvised explosive devices planted by a four- to six-man al-Qaida cell that still operates in the area.

Besides, 18 months is still far off. The men from the reconnaissance platoon of the 2nd Battalion, 8th Forward Artillery Regiment will be long gone by then; the Iraqis they work with -- a recon platoon from the 18th Brigade, 5th Iraqi Army Division -- will be better trained, more competent and more effective as progress continues in Iraq.

But far from mind doesn't mean out of mind or unworthy of an opinion.

The withdrawal plan "gets us out of here, and I'm just ready for whatever," Sgt. Karl Augustus said on his third tour of duty in Iraq and expecting deployment to Afghanistan. "I think they (the Iraqis) are ready to handle everything. I think the IA (Iraqi Army) and IP (Iraqi Police) can do it."

Spc. Steve Schumer, the reconnaissance platoon's medic, was a bit more textured on the prospect of American withdrawal: "I think there is still a lot of work to be done as far as leaving the country. I don't know if they have the support structure to handle the country on their own," he said.

"With us now in more of an observation/support role, we're in a position to train these guys a lot and pass on our knowledge more."

The broader view -- highly equivocal and so very Iraqi -- came from an 18th Brigade sergeant.

"It looks like everything is going to be stable," he said. "So maybe it will be good (when the Americans leave) … or maybe it will go bad.

"Inshallah, we will keep it stable."

Inshallah -- "God willing" -- is the exclamation of hope or of resignation to the whims of fate that punctuates Iraqi speech.

According to the U.S. president's plan, the 140,000 to 148,000 American soldiers in Iraq will be withdrawn over an 18-month period. In a bow to commanders on the ground and the importance of maintaining stability for parliamentary elections slated for December, the drawdown will come more speedily after the balloting if the new stability in Iraq holds.

A residual force of 30,000 to 50,000 would remain in Iraq until midnight on Dec. 31, 2011, when all U.S. troops are to have vacated the country as stipulated by the strategic-framework agreement signed by Washington and Baghdad late last year.

The residual force would be charged with continuing the training of Iraqi Security Forces and in helping in counter-terrorism.

As of Dec. 31, 2008, Iraqi Security Forces -- army, navy, air force and paramilitary units under the Ministry of Interior -- totaled nearly 615,000, according to figures published by the U.S. State Department. Of that figure, about 196,000 were army personnel.

In a report to Congress last September, the Pentagon noted the Iraqi Security Forces' increased capabilities in planning, conducting and sustaining operations.

Good examples of that are a sustained anti-terrorist operation now taking place in Ninawa province and a major operation taking place here in Diyala province. Also, successful security operations for Iraq's provincial elections in January were planned and implemented by the ISF.

Obama's plan does not alter training now taking place. U.S. military transition teams continue to work with ISF forces, and U.S. units -- forbidden by the strategic framework from conducting unilateral operations -- now partner with counterparts from Iraqi forces, leading to in-the-field mentoring.

Obama's withdrawal decision, coming on the heels of the strategic framework withdrawal timeline, means U.S. military logisticians have the challenge of planning how and through what ports of departure to withdraw the soldiers and, more problematically, the billions of dollars of equipment they will take with them.

"The pace at which units can be redeployed and equipment and material returned to the United States from Iraq will be governed by the capacity of facilities in neighboring countries as well as restrictions on the use of those facilities," the U.S. Government Accountability Office told Congress last month.

Kuwait is one avenue for withdrawal, but it is reported Jordan and Turkey are also being considered.

But those kinds of questions are for others to deal with. For Schumer and his comrades in the recon platoon, the focus is doing their jobs -- now -- and continuing to mentor their Iraqi partners.

"What the future holds, nobody can predict," said 1st Lt. Adam Redden, the recon platoon commander. The Iraqis "definitely won't be proficient in everything, but they're getting better. As for us, we go where we're told to go and when we're told to go."

The U.S. recon patrol operates out of Forward Operating Base War Horse, which is just outside Baquba, the provincial capital of Diyala, and still an area of insurgent activity. The day before the president's announcement, the patrol and its Iraqi partner unit were searching deep, dry irrigation canals near Balad Ruz for terrorists and their arms caches. The day after, they were many kilometers to the west in the al-Abbara area, next to the Diyala River, searching more fertile terrain once used by Saddam Hussein-era Republican Guards as a defense line and weapons-storage area.

Some searches hit pay dirt. The biggest arms cache they discovered to date included 78 rocket-propelled grenades and 25 pounds of TNT and C-4 plastic explosive. It also cost them as three were wounded from exploding land mines.

Al-Qaida and other extremists use the two areas as a "Motel 6" for hiding and resupplying for activities elsewhere, a U.S. officer said. In the case of al-Abbara, a four- to six-man al-Qaida cell visits the area several times a month, villagers said, and takes potshots at the local Iraqi Police post.