• Military

• WMD Menu                           

• Introduction
• Systems
• Facilities
• Agencies
• Operations
• Countries
• Hot Documents
• News
• Reports
• Policy
• Budget
• Congress
• Links

• Intelligence
• Homeland Security
• Space

19 December 2004

Senators Expect Iraqi Election To Spur Progress Toward Democracy

Lawmakers call for international cooperation in training Iraqi security forces

By Michael OToole
Washington File Staff Writer

Washington -- The two most prominent U.S. senators in the area of international affairs expect to see progress toward full democracy in Iraq stemming from the parliamentary elections in that country scheduled for January 30, 2005.

The two senators -- Richard Lugar, a Republican from Indiana and chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and Joe Biden of Delaware, the committee's ranking Democrat -- discussed Iraq and other issues on the "Meet the Press" television program December 19. They were joined by two other senators: John Warner, a Republican from Virginia and chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee; and Carl Levin from Michigan, that committee's ranking Democrat.

Biden predicted the Iraqi election will bring "some surprises."

"I think you'll see some independent voices elected," he said. It will be "virtually impossible for the Shia majority to dominate the Kurds in the north. I think there will be accommodations made. I think you'll see some Sunnis that decide they must get engaged."

Insofar as Iran's possible influence is concerned, Biden added, "I think you will see a government [in Iraq] ... leaning closer to Iran than the last government did. But I do not see a theocracy there."

Lugar said the democratic impact of the election might spread to Iraq's neighbor, adding he is "hopeful that the Iraqi democracy in fact offers a model or at least a beginning for the Iranians, for the young people there."

Both senators called for the Bush administration to accept offers made by Egypt, France and Germany to assist with the training of Iraqi security forces. Biden said that on a recent trip to the Middle East he had met with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, who told him "I can train many more Sunnis ... I can train many more Iraqis." Biden also said that both the French and the Germans have offered to "train out of country."

Lugar said that "we had better try out everything we can. We'd better take up the French and the Germans and train outside if necessary. We ought to pick everybody up we can that's going to help train these people ... because ... there will not be a successful negotiation of American withdrawal under terms that we find satisfactory until there are Iraqis that can patrol their streets and can secure their country."
      
Currently the Multinational Security Transition Team in Iraq (MNSTC-I) is charged with the training of both police and military forces in that country. Police officers are receiving training at the Jordan International Police Training Center; its most recent class graduated 1,423 officers from an eight-week training course on December 16. MNSTC-1 says there are 69,488 police officers now on duty in Iraq.

NATO recently opened a new headquarters building in Baghdad and expanded its personnel strength from 74 to 300. NATO's Training Mission Iraq (NTM-I) will provide senior officer training for the Iraqi defense and interior ministries. Germany is currently facilitating a program in the United Arab Emirates to teach Iraqi security force members forensic policing techniques.

(The Washington File is a product of the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)

This page printed from: http://usinfo.state.gov/xarchives/display.html?p=washfile-english&y=2004&m=December&x=20041219202547521elootom0.4866754&t=livefeeds/wf-latest.html