But according to a joint statement issued by commission co-chairs Michael Thibault and Christopher Shays, the State Department may also need to more than double its private security force, from around 2,700 today to 6,000 or 7,000 personnel.
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All I have to say, is wow! That is a lot of jobs for the industry. I posted awhile back about the DoS’s coming requirements in Iraq as troops draw down, and it is amazing to me that congress or anyone covering this would be surprised by what will be required of this contractor force. Rescuing downed air crewmen or diplomats won’t be the only jobs for these types of forces, now that the troops will be gone. Other scenarios might present themselves as well, and taking care of these problems was usually the task of troops.
With the troops in Iraq, the mission of searching for and destroying mortar teams or rocket teams was their task. (even counter sniper missions, but DoS and others have always had their own contractor designated marksmen) But now that the troops will be leaving, who will take over these jobs? The Iraqis? Well I hope for the sake of the DoS and their various camps throughout Iraq, that they trust the Iraqis enough to take care of these kinds of attacks. Because as the troops leave, I think attacks will surge, and the insurgency or others will be focusing on making the phased withdrawal look like a bloody retreat. That means an increase in attacks, and it is what I would do if I was the enemy.
With that said, it does not surprise me that DoS would want this kind of hardware and manpower. It would also not surprise me that the missions of contractors will include a lot more responsibilities. Rescuing downed crewmen in aircraft or sending quick reaction forces to aid convoys and motorcades in trouble will require equipment and capability that mimics what the military had for such operations. Anything less, and now you are putting those crews at risk, as well as putting the lives of folks doing work in the field at risk. Congress must know that if DoS does not have dedicated reserves, either military or contractors, that it cannot safely do what it has to do.
I will take it a step further. Contractor QRF’s will be the ones responding to these indirect and direct attacks on the bases, and these QRF’s must have all the tools necessary to do the job. Whatever a platoon in the military has, a contractor force should have, and I see no reason for limited that QRF or hamstringing them by only allowing them small caliber weapons with limited range or capability. I say contractor QRF’s, because what happens when the Iraqis refuse to do the job? It’s either use that contractor QRF, or sit in your base and take fire indefinitely, and watch as your casualties grow and your compound gets reduced to ashes and rubble? Or you could send up a Blackhawk with weapons mounted on it, and that contractor crew will have to take care of the problem from the air.
My point with all of this, is that in order for us to achieve this troop draw down, as well as maintain a civilian presence in Iraq so we can continue to help that government stay on track, congress is going to have to face some realities. I think that is the overall message that DoS was sending to congress, and it is the message I got out of all of this. The way I see it, security contractors are all they have….. unless congress wants to implement the draft or halts the troop drawdown. But then of course you have Afghanistan and all their troop requirements. So yet again, we are presented by a scenario where contractors are the best thing we got in order to fill a manpower/security vacuum, during a crucial phase of a war….. Your welcome. lol –Matt
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U.S. Contractor Use in Iraq Expected To Rise
By WILLIAM MATTHEWS
12 Jul 2010
As the U.S. military pulls troops and equipment out of Iraq, the State Department will have to rely increasingly on contractors to perform such services as flying rescue helicopters and disarming roadside bombs, a congressional commission warned.
That is not an ideal solution but none other seems available, members of the Commission on Wartime Contracting in Iraq and Afghanistan said during a July 12 hearing.
While the Defense Department works to reduce its dependence on contractors, the State Department will have to greatly increase its use of hired help.
“Boy, that really troubles me,” said Dov Zakheim, a commission member and former Pentagon budget chief. “You’re going to be getting contractors not only doing what they’re doing today, but doing things that are inherently governmental.”
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