Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD)

IRAQ STABILIZATION FORCE TAKING SHAPE

By Kathleen Ridolfo

The United States, Britain, and Poland have drawn up plans to establish a multinational security force to police Iraq, Polish Foreign Minister Wlodzimierz Cimoszewicz announced on 3 May. "The idea is to have all the countries, ready to engage, there by the end of this month," Cimoszewicz told reporters at a 3 May meeting of EU foreign ministers in Greece. News of the plan emerged following a 30 April meeting in London in which several countries sent military officers to discuss participation in the force.

Initial reports indicated that Iraq would be divided into three sectors, although details are beginning to emerge that suggest the country will be divided into four sectors. U.S. forces will control one sector, while British and Polish forces will run two other sectors of the multinational force. It is unclear which country will be placed in charge of the fourth sector. U.S. Central Command will have overall control over the four sectors.

In all, 16 countries -- Australia, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, the Philippines, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Korea, and Qatar -- joined the United States and Great Britain at the 30 April conference. France and Germany both opposed the U.S.-led war on Iraq and were not invited to attend, but have grudgingly endorsed the plan, AP reported on 3 April. Russia also did not participate in the meeting.

French Foreign Ministry spokesman Francois Rivasseau told journalists during a 5 May daily, online briefing that his country prefers that the UN lead the reconstruction of Iraq, according to his statements posted on the Foreign Ministry's website (http://www.france.diplomatie.fr/). "We are still in the securing phase, during which there is a reconfiguration of the occupying force and a diversification of its personnel," Rivasseau stated. "As the French authorities have said, after the securing phase and in the context of initiating the reconstruction phase in Iraq, we think the United Nations should have a central role."

Early reports indicated that 10 countries have committed troops, among them Albania, Bulgaria, Denmark, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, and Ukraine. Details are still emerging on the size of each country's contribution to the stabilization force. However, an unnamed senior U.S. official told Reuters in a report published on 3 May that around 20,000 U.S. troops will participate. The troops will be separate from the 135,000 U.S. forces still in Iraq, Reuters reported. In addition, Polish Deputy Defense Minister Janusz Zemke said the United States has requested that 4,000 Polish troops participate. But Polish Defense Minister Jerzy Smajdzinski told "The Washington Times" on 5 May that Poland will contribute 1,500 to 2,200 soldiers. AFP reported that Washington will help finance the Polish troop deployment, which it reported would cost $90 million. Poland has also called for a UN Security Council mandate to authorize a peacekeeping mission to Iraq. Polish Foreign Minister Cimoszewicz told reporters at the U.S. State Department on 6 May, "I understand that in the days ahead there will be some initiatives opening the way to have such a resolution."

Meanwhile, the Warsaw-based daily "Trybuna" reported on 6 May that Polish troops will be responsible for the Turkish-Iraqi border area. Polish Major General Andrzej Tyszkiewicz, who led the Polish delegation to the 30 April meeting, has been mentioned as a candidate to run the Polish sector, "Trybuna" reported. He reportedly has experience in Turkish affairs, and once served as military attache to Turkey. In addition, Poland's former Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Marek Belka said on 6 May that he will soon be appointed a deputy to the Office of Reconstruction and Humanitarian Assistance (ORHA) and will coordinate economic programs in Iraq, Radio 1 reported. Belka indicated that a Polish team will leave for Iraq by early June.

Kyiv's 1+1 Television reported on 6 May that a Ukrainian delegation, in Washington to participate in a NATO conference, met with U.S. officials to discuss the terms of Ukraine's participation in the stabilization force. Italy's Associated National Press Agency reported on 6 May that Italian Defense Minister Antonio Martino has committed 2,500-3,000 troops to the stabilization force and expects them to be in Iraq by early June.

The Hungarian Parliament voted on 6 May to open that country's territory and airspace to the stabilization force, but delayed approval of a troop deployment for one month, AFP reported on the same day. The authorization allows "international peacekeeping forces taking part in the humanitarian effort to rebuild Iraq to use Hungarian airspace, roads, and railroads until the end of 2004," AFP reported.

The Danish government plans to send a peacekeeping force of 380 soldiers, including troops specializing in "performing protection missions," the daily "Jyllands-Posten" reported on 6 May.

Other countries are also expressing an interest in participating in the effort. Portuguese Prime Minister Jose Manuel Durao Barroso said on 6 May that Portugal will send troops to Iraq, but said the terms of his country's participation in postwar Iraq have not been set, RDP Antena 1 Radio reported on the same day. "We are assessing the terms in which we will fulfill this [commitment]," he said. "I will publicly announce the government's decision [at the right moment]." Azerbaijani Defense Minister Safar Abiev told reporters on 6 May that "a total of 150 Azerbaijani peacekeepers will participate in Iraq's postwar rebuilding," Interfax reported on the same day. A preparatory team is scheduled to head to Iraq on 8 May to inspect the base where Azerbaijani troops will be stationed, Interfax reported.

Meanwhile, Kuwaiti Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Shaykh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Sabah announced on 6 May that Kuwait has been asked to participate by sending peacekeepers to Iraq. Al-Sabah told reporters that Kuwait will only participate if the UN Security Council approves such a force. Likewise, Jordanian Information Minister Muhammad al-Adwan said on 6 May that Jordan will only participate in peacekeeping efforts in Iraq under the UN, MENA reported. Al-Adwan said, however, that the United States has not asked for Jordanian assistance.

It appears that the stabilization force will be on the ground in Iraq by mid-June. According to international press reports, the British are expected to hold a "force-generation conference" on 7 May to iron out the details and determine which states will fall under its command and how many forces each state will be asked to contribute. Poland is expected to hold a similar meeting on 22 May.

The international contributions will not be limited to peacekeeping and security. U.S. administration officials have said that some of the 10 countries that have committed to participate in the stabilization force have offered to provide expertise in the fields of medicine, civil administration, policing, reconnaissance, and mine clearing, as well as nuclear, biological, and chemical protection, according to international press reports.