Iraq and Syria diary - 27 June 2014

  

"Jets from Russia and Belarus will hopefully make a key difference in the fight against ISIS in Iraq, the country’s Prime Minister Nouri Maliki said. He expressed regrets over Iraq's contract with the US, saying their jets are taking too long to arrive.

"God willing within one week this force will be effective and will destroy the terrorists' dens," he toldBBC Arabic.

Meanwhile, Maliki criticized the process of purchasing US jets as “long-winded,” adding that the radicals could have been repelled if Iraq had proper air defense."  RT

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"... could have been repelled if Iraq had proper air defense."  Really?  How?   This is magical thinking.  Contrary to delusions created by advocates of air power, you must have; staff planning capacity,  sound maintenance and actual targeting to make air power effective against ground forces or any other forces.  

Who is going to fly these jets?  Russians, Belorussians, Iranians?  The Mahdi's Army?  Who is going to do the maintenance, run the supply chain and do the targeting?  Who?

The rebel coalition is also seeking to arm itself with captured aircraft, mainly helicopters.  they have several advantages in this process.  1- A lot of the helicopters are of Russian manufacture.  The old Iraqi army men who make up the real military capability of the rebel coalition include a lot of helicopter pilots and mechanics.  2- the airbases north of Baghadad are treasures filled with spare prts and ordnance.  3 - It's a lot easier to vector helicopters in CAS than to target fast movers (jet fighters).

http://rt.com/news/168744-russia-jets-iraq-maliki/

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 "Kent Conrad’s phone hasn’t been ringing very much over the past few weeks, as Iraq, and the debate over America's future in the country, has once again dominated the news.

The architects of the Iraq war are back in TV studios and on op-ed pages, as are journalists and pundits who promoted the Bush administration’s ultimately bogus case for invading. But Conrad, a former senator who was one of only 23 to vote against authorizing the war in October 2002, hasn’t heard from CNN, MSNBC or any other TV outlet. "Not once," he said, when asked if anyone in the press had reached out regarding the current crisis in Iraq.  Huff Post

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I have been called several times in the last week and have declined.  So this is not "sour grapes."  I prefer to leave the whoring after network money to those who desire it and who have been well briefed by the US government.  The same guys were on the TV payrolls and the briefing list in 2003.  Major exceptions to this blanket condemnation are; Jack Jacobs and Andrew Bacevich.  

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/06/27/iraq-war-critics-tv-bookers_n_5534549.html

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 "The Obama administration has proposed escalating US involvement in the Syrian civil war, asking Congress for $500m for the US military to train and equip "moderate" Syrian rebels.

The request to Congress on Thursday, heralded by Barack Obama's vow, made during a speech at West Point military academy, to step up assistance to a beleaguered Syrian force, comes as the administration searches for effective alternatives to the jihadist army that has carved out massive swaths of Syria and Iraq for an Islamic state."  The Guardian

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Why?  Why?  The Free Syrian Army (FSA) is one of the smaller and weaker elements in the galaxy of anti Syrian government forces. They have had their asses kicked by the SAG, al-Nusra and ISIS.  They will continue to have their asses kicked.  The SAG' armed forces have become a much stronger force and the notion that the FSA will somehow be transformed into the winners of  the Syrian jug f--k is amusing.

Bashar Assad wants to be taken in from the cold, just as Qathafi wanted the same thing.  

From the time we relented about Qathafi until we chose to get rid of him, Qathafi was not a problem for the US.  Why will we not listen to the Syrian government?  pl  

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/jun/26/obama-seeking-500m-training-moderate-syrian-rebels

Comments

[jonst]

" Why will we not listen to the Syrian government?" That really is the question, isn't it? Stupid pride? They will have to admit they were wrong? Over ingested their own propaganda? They would not be the first. Something more sinister? All three reasons and more? Just gross, gross, incompetence?

Let the bidding begin.

[Ryan]

Here's a bid from the usual bunch of idiots, jonst.

Obama wants to throw away another half a billion dollars on so-called "moderates" in Syria.

http://news.antiwar.com/2014/06/26/obama-asks-congress-for-another-500-million-for-syria-rebels/

There are links in this brief article.

One thing I've noticed is the few people I see carrying M-16 variate rifles that those rifles look new. ISIS no doubt appreciates the continued support from the Obama administration and will put the weapons to good use.

Yes, they do believe their own propaganda, in my opinion. Yes, they are stupid. Paul Craig Roberts said what you see is what you get. They will never admit they are wrong. Like Marxists they will insist that their plan wasn't carried out properly, hence, someone else's fault.

When it comes to being sinister I suspect at the very top this may well be the case. Certain people are quite happy with the carnage unleashed.

[Matthew]

jonst: Israel and Saudi Arabia, that's why.

BTW, this story is almost amusing: You don’t get our planes because you rounded up our spies! http://www.newsweek.com/maliki-government-seriously-compromised-cia-operations-iraq-years-256353.

Imagine that. The elected representative of the supposedly sovereign state of Iraq didn't want his government riddled with our operatives.

[Ryan]

Colonel,

There is one bright spot. Jack Keane said a few days ago that the US should engage in hot pursuit of any ISIS forces that retreated before air attacks into Syria. At the time I wondered once inside of Syria who Jack would attack? The ISIS or the SAA? He has since clarified his remark. He wants to bomb the ISIS. This is good to know because with this bunch one can never be sure.

[Ryan]

McClatchy is one of the few news sources I put any stock in when it comes to the mess known as the Middle East. Mitchell Prothero is good, in my opinion. This article he has written is about the Persh Merga.

“Look, these guys are good,” he said in Irbil, the Kurdish capital, where his company consults for the military. “They’re not like Iraqis, they fight for a nation they believe in and have training, experience, equipment and a good dose of discipline you rarely see in the Middle East. But they’re best fighting at home in their mountains. And they’re at their best fighting around and protecting the Kurds.”

True enough. They have been fighting for decades. However, the Kurds are a mountain tribe and the area around Kirkuk is relatively flat. Prothero provides details on the problems the Kurds have.

http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2014/06/26/5007167/hanging-onto-oil-rich-kirkuk-may.html#storylink=cpy

Israel says Kurdistan will come about as an independent nation, no matter what the US or that clown Kerry wants. Agreed, in this case.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/06/26/us-iraq-crisis-israel-kurds-idUSKBN0F11I520140626

Another wonderful day awaits us.

[Medicine Man]

Col.:

Nobody in the Washington press corpse wants to be reminded about how desperately, catastrophically wrong they were during the time of the Iraq invasion. I'm frankly quite surprised you got invitations to appear on the networks. They can't be imagining you'd have anything flattering to say.

[robt willmann]

Patrick Cockburn, the British journalist of the Independent newspaper, said in an interview that he heard that captured ISIS fighters said that they are always glad to hear about weapons being provided to the "moderate" Syrian opposition because they can buy them from the "moderates" or try to intimidate them into giving ISIS the guns.

[Fred]

Matthew,

"... supposedly sovereign state of Iraq..."

I have to disagree with your characterization. Iraq is sovereign, that is why we are not still there; It is Maliki who will probably not be the government much longer.

[AEL]

This is just the administration's way of organizing support for Jordan without admitting that they are terrified over the possibility of ISIS taking a run at Jordan.

[jonst]

yeah, I'm not sold on the Pesh Mega as a 'solid fighting force'. i.e. willing to stand and kill and die. I could be sold. But I am not sold yet. (not, that god know anyone has to sell me...but that is my take). I'll wait till the battles come, which I think will be soon enough.

[Fred]

Col., you described the foreign reality nicely. I look at this and see that Obama can find $500,000,000 for the FSA and not a damn dime for Americans in places like Detroit. Maybe he should figure out which country's citizens are most important to him, it doesn't appear to be ours.

[turcopolier]

All

If I were one of the Green Beret commanders in this jug f--k I would start planning my teams' exfiltration to Jordan when it comes to a "sauve qui peut" situation. As a back up look for a responsible Iranian you could surrender to. pl

[Ryan]

Call it OPLAN Xenophon.

[turcopolier]

ryan

The SF commanders should band together to make this retreat of the brothers work. It isn't that far to Jordan across the desert. Some fuel and ammunition caches and tribal guides would work. pl

[Matthew]

Fred: That's not the point of the article. We recognize the de jure sovereignty of Iraq, but our government seems to think that Iraq had no right to curtail the activities of our spies in Iraq.

[Ryan]

robt,

I'm not surprised in the slightest.

[Ryan]

Colonel,

You won't get any argument from me. Obama and others are hanging them out in the air, I'm afraid.

They can only depend on themselves if things do fall apart.

[JohnH]

I have this lurking suspicion that those in power are tacitly and perhaps covertly supporting the jihadis both in Syria and Iraq. I can't explain Obama's decision to give $500 Billion to Syrian jihadis otherwise. He has to know that the arms will flow to Iraq.

The rationale would be that once the jihadis have brought down the undesirable regime, corruptible leaders can be found, rehabilitated, and put in power. Saudis would be instrumental. Apparently in their day the British were quite good at this.

To do this Obama would have to be willfully blind to the experience training jihadis in Afghanistan and how well that worked out.

[The Twisted Genius]

pl,

For that SF exfil plan, they are probably "obtaining" some solid vehicles and heavier weapons. They'll look like the Tuaregs returning to Azawad. We got our hands on a jeep mounted 106 recoilless rifle among other things in Lebanon. We went over with just M-16A1s and Browning Hi Powers.

[jcee]

The "moderate" rebel claim is a convenient fallacy to justify doing the the wrong thing. Over 60% of the FSA want an Islamic state. It's beyond ironic that Washington points the finger at Assad over human rights violations when the conditions for the Syrian nightmare were effectively engineered on the outside. Same deal in Ukraine. The destabilization and spark for internecine conflict owes much to American interference. Ditto sectarian fall-out Iraq. It's time to call out the real criminals.

[Jim Ticehurst]

The 500 million should go to the VA Hospitals....Wheres to Outrage..? Same CON Game from the Right and the Left..
How Impressed is everyone with the Way Obama Fundamentally Changed America..?

[Jim Ticehurst]

You should go Public..Take the Money and spend it on this Site..How many times Ive wished you would be on the News..

[Ryan]

On a lighter note, the John Kerry vaudeville act continues...

"Kerry tells Russia to disarm Ukraine separatists 'in hours'"

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/06/26/us-ukraine-crisis-france-idUSKBN0F10SB20140626

Quick, get the hook!

[VietnamVet]

Colonel,

This is crazy; $500 million in military supplies to the very same forces that are encircling Baghdad and whatever number of Americans left there. That is if ISIS halts their advance. Most likely, they will leave Baghdad to the Iraqi Sunni. After all, it is God’s Warrior’s duty to liberate Mecca.

If Saudi Princes value their heads, they will be desperately hiring every Toyota Pickup destroying airplane and pilot they can find who is willing fly to the nearest Saudi airfield. That is if America’s F-22 Raptors aren’t already there. If Russian, the pilots better keep their recognition software up to date in order to not shoot down their compatriot’s planes supporting the Shiite Iraqis and Iranians. If Chinese planes and pilots, an agreement to sell oil in Renminbi will have been signed and sealed.

Instead of Ukraine, as expected, WWIII could start in the Persian Gulf when American, Chinese and Russian airplanes start running into each other over the USS George H. W. Bush (CVN-77).

[Jim Ticehurst]

People are desperate for some Common Sense Leadership like yours Col...You have the Credentials..Think how many more readers you would get here..Lead the Way..