US Secures Only Half Foreign Troops Sought

[Nambe]

from USA Today

New foreign peacekeeping troops are set to begin arriving in Iraq in mid-August, but months of U.S. arm-twisting have produced only about half the soldiers the Pentagon was counting on. As of now, there won't be enough foreign troops to permit the replacement and withdrawal of some U.S. forces planned for early next year.

The Pentagon has said it expected some 30,000 foreign troops to replace war-weary U.S. combat forces. But dozens of interviews with foreign political and military officials found that so far, 29 countries have committed only about 15,500 troops.

About a third of those are either unqualified for combat or deliberately barred from combat operations by their governments, the foreign officials say. That could limit their usefulness in the violent, guerrilla-style war coalition forces are now waging in Iraq. Asked Monday whether the foreign troops headed to Iraq were "militarily significant," Paul Bremer, the U.S. envoy to Iraq, replied, "Some are...some more than others." ---

[bahrbearian]

1. Of those troops how many are con-scripted?

[realFedUp]

2. Wonder what Spain got out of all this?

Nice to be one of the excesses of evil but what
did Spain do for this invasion?

[salin]

3. What the article doesn't say

is the costs to the US to get these soldiers in place (there was an article the other day describing all of the costs the US is paying to get the Polish soldiers there and to house them - came out to about $100,000 per soldier).

What it does say: About a third of those are either unqualified for combat or deliberately barred from combat operations by their governments, the foreign officials say.

Expensive, unqualified by 1/3, and undertarget of need by 1/2. I would say this doesn't look very good to the service folks stationed in Iraq and to the American taxpayers sitting at home.

[htuttle]

4. In other words...

It doesn't sound like the 3rd Infantry is going anywhere for the foreseeable future.

[Jacobin]

5. Ah yes, enter hapless mercenaries, stage right

Whaddya wanna bet they get even fewer to actually show up when the time comes.

This is all just smoke and mirrors to make it appear to be a coalition and to try to get body bags going to other countries where they won't be reported in the U.S. news.

Not working too well.

[papau]

6. At $100k per, 15477 (max 21627)there goes another $1,547,700,000

Albania: 100-200
Azerbaijan: 150
Bulgaria: 500
Czech Republic: 300
Denmark: 380
Dominican Republic: 300
Estonia: 43
El Salvador: 360
Fiji: 700
Georgia: 190
Honduras: 370
Hungary: 300
Italy: 2,800
Japan: up to 1,000
Latvia: 144
Lithuania: 100
Macedonia: 30
Mongolia: 70
Netherlands: 1,100
New Zealand: 40
Nicaragua: 230
Norway: 140
Philippines: 350
Poland: 2,300
Portugal: 120
Romania: 405
Slovak Republic: 85
South Korea: 670
Spain: 1,300
Thailand: 450-500
Turkey: up to 5,000
Ukraine: 1,800

[NYC]

7. How do you pick a number like 43?

Estonia is sending 43.

[papau]

8. Why did the US Liberian peacekeeping force increase from 5am to 6 pm

why was it important to add one before the 6 oclock news?

Why are the other 2500 kept on ship?

Why do we require the 70 US troops in Liberia to hide inside the Embassy and not take part in peacemaking?

Why has the AM's peacekeeper words been turned into humanitarian Aid liasons by the 6 oclock news - and does the media not note the WH has once again changed the "words" - like WMD becomes WMD programs?

Indeed why does the US Media not just laugh at this President?

[renegade000]

10. national lotto?

:shrug:

[htuttle]

11. It would have been 50

But they realized they better leave some troops at home to protect Estonia.

[tom_paine]

9. Aren't the Hessians available?

They only cost 7 Pounds Sterling per head, right?

How come Wolfie and Uncle Dickhead didn't get those guys?

[Zero Gravitas]

12. I'm surprised they can get any at all

Why should any other country send troops to Iraq to die for George W. Bush?

[Frances]

13. How will the soldiers communicate with each other

since they speak so many different languages?

Also, how well trained are these soldiers? Do you think they are the kind of people who were told you can go to prison or you can go to Iraq?

[J B]

14. Notice the 5000 Turks.

Expect BIG TROUBLE.

[Rose Siding]

15. "BUSH secures only half"

"Bush FAILS" This is something everyone wants to see- a more internationalized force both for legitamacy and and to try to limit hatred for America as the brutal force BUSH has made us.

And Bush failed. When the press gives him responsibility for his failures, we'll all be better off.

[rooboy]

16. But was't this the BIGGEST coalition in the history of the world ? n/t