| Coalition to Oppose the Arms Trade (COAT) |
From: Coyote <mmealing_-at-_direct.ca>
To: no_to_nato_-at-_flora.org
Date: Tue, 27 Jul 2004 09:24:06 -0700
References: <3.0.6.32.20040723221041.007a3a00@pop.uniserve.com>
Dear Norman: I've only websurfed for about 6 minutes; I append the most detailed reports I found. Nothing appeared on Romania... Best/Mark Norman Thyer wrote: > I have come across reports that the USA is building permanent military > bases in Iraq. One source said there are 4 - other sources said 14. > I have also heard that the USA is building air bases in Romania. Does > anyone have any information on this, and how many there are? http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2003/04/21/wirq21.xml America plans military bases in Iraq to apply pressure on Middle East By Toby Harnden in Washington (Filed: 21/04/2003) The United States is planning to establish up to four long-term military bases in Iraq. The proposal would transform America's ability to project its power in the Middle East. Future arrangements depend largely on who takes over as leader of Iraq. However, Baghdad International Airport, Tallil in southern Iraq, the H-1 airstrip in the west and Bashur airfield in Kurdistan have been identified as potential bases. "There will be some kind of a long-term defence relationship with a new Iraq, similar to Afghanistan," a senior Bush administration official said. "The scope of that has yet to be defined - whether it will be 'full-up' operational bases, smaller forward operating bases or plain access." One reason senior officials in the Pentagon favour Ahmad Chalabi, of the exile group the Iraqi National Congress, as the new leader is that he would be pro-American and happy to facilitate US bases. Mr Chalabi told ABC television yesterday: "It is up to the Iraqi parliament and the Iraqi people to decide whether they will want a military association of the United States. "But it is my view that a strategic alliance between Iraq and the United States is a very good thing for both." The plan for bases does not mean US troops would remain as an occupying force indefinitely. The bases would be used primarily to help with reconstructing Iraq. But their proximity to Syria and Iran could help the US to apply added pressure on those countries. With US troops also stationed in Afghanistan, Iran is now almost surrounded by American forces. One senior official said US bases in Iraq would "make Syria and Iran nervous". Colin Powell, the secretary of state, said last week: "We have been successful in Iraq. There is a new dynamic in that part of the world." The new bases would also enable America to scale back its presence in Saudi Arabia and Turkey. Permanent US bases in Iraq would be just one element of a dramatic change in America's strategic posture since the September 11 attacks. The bulk of American troops in Germany are likely to be withdrawn in favour of "lilypad" bases used as short-notice stopping-off points. • The Iraqi National Congress said Jamal Mustafa Sultan, Saddam Hussein's son-in-law, had surrendered to them in Baghdad after leaving Syria. He is the nine of clubs in America's pack of most wanted Iraqis. http://theatreofwar.org/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=116 d byutopian on Tuesday, March 30 @ 14:20:38 BST Contributed by utopian This article comes from the Chicago Tribune, a major conservative newspaper the U.S. http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/chitribts/20040323/ts_chicagotrib/14enduringbasessetiniraq&cid=2027&ncid=1473 14 `enduring bases´ set in Iraq Tue Mar 23, 9:40 AM ET Chicago Tribune By Christine Spolar, Tribune foreign correspondent From the ashes of abandoned Iraqi army bases, U.S. military engineers are overseeing the building of an enhanced system of American bases designed to last for years. Last year, as troops poured over the Kuwait border to invade Iraq, the U.S. military set up at least 120 forward operating bases. Then came hundreds of expeditionary and temporary bases that were to last between six months and a year for tactical operations while providing soldiers with such comforts as e-mail and Internet access. Now U.S. engineers are focusing on constructing 14 "enduring bases," long-term encampments for the thousands of American troops expected to serve in Iraq for at least two years. The bases also would be key outposts for Bush administration policy advisers. As the U.S. scales back its military presence in Saudi Arabia, Iraq provides an option for an administration eager to maintain a robust military presence in the Middle East and intent on a muscular approach to seeding democracy in the region. The number of U.S. military personnel in Iraq, between 105,000 and 110,000, is expected to remain unchanged through 2006, according to military planners. "Is this a swap for the Saudi bases?" asked Army Brig. Gen. Robert Pollman, chief engineer for base construction in Iraq. "I don't know. ... When we talk about enduring bases here, we're talking about the present operation, not in terms of America's global strategic base. But this makes sense. It makes a lot of logical sense."Brig. Gen. Mark Kimmitt, deputy chief of operations for the coalition in Iraq, said the military engineers are trying to prepare for any eventuality. "This is a blueprint for how we could operate in the Middle East," Kimmitt said. "[But] the engineering vision is well ahead of the policy vision. What the engineers are saying now is: Let's not be behind the policy decision. Let's make this place ready so we can address policy options." To that end, the U.S. plans to operate from former Iraqi bases in Baghdad, Mosul, Taji, Balad, Kirkuk and in areas near Nasiriyah, near Tikrit, near Fallujah and between Irbil and Kirkuk. There also are plans to renovate and enhance airfields in Baghdad and Mosul, and rebuild 70 miles of road on the main route for U.S. troops headed north. Dollar figures have not been released. The Defense Department plans to build the bases under its own contracts separate from the State Department and its Embassy in Baghdad. Lt. Gen. Ricardo Sanchez, the head of coalition forces in Iraq, recently outlined a plan that would slice the current Coalition Provisional Authority into pieces after sovereignty is returned to Iraqis at the end of June. The U.S. Embassy would absorb some coalition workers as Embassy personnel; the Defense Department would take others. Its workers would direct most of the major contracts connected to the $18 billion allocated for Iraq reconstruction, military planners said. The Program Management Office, the agency that has been doling out the cash, will remain under the Defense Department. "It was a significant win," one military planner said. "In terms of controlling the money, Defense is in control."