12.1 |
Security Sector Reform
On 22 June
2004, NATO received a request from Dr Allawi seeking support
to Iraq through
“training
and other forms of technical assistance”.568
On the same
day, in a video conference with President Bush, Mr Blair
suggested using
the NATO
conference in Istanbul, scheduled for later in the month, to secure
agreement
to Dr Allawi’s
request for NATO help with training.569
The matter
was discussed at the Istanbul conference on 28 June and all Heads
of State
and
Government in attendance agreed to offer assistance to the IIG with
the training of its
security
forces.570
A training
mission was deployed in August to conduct training of
Iraqi
Headquarters
personnel.
NATO’s
previous role had been limited to logistical support of the
multinational division led
by the
Poles in MND(CS).571
Personnel
from Canada, Hungary, Norway, the Netherlands
and Italy
were all involved.
On 8
October, the North Atlantic Council agreed a Concept of Operations
for enhancing
NATO’s
assistance to the IIG by taking a role in training of the security
forces.572
Lt Gen Petraeus
was given the additional role of the head of the NATO training
mission.
On 21
February 2005, Mr Hoon was briefed that NATO was encountering
problems fully
manning its
training mission in Iraq, with a shortfall of 25 posts (around a
quarter of the
total). At
that stage, the UK had 11 personnel working in the NATO training
mission.573
To address
pressure from NATO for a greater UK role Mr Hoon agreed that
the UK
could
rebadge 11 personnel from MNSTC‑I involved in Basic Officer
Training as NATO
personnel.
Mr Hoon agreed with advice from officials that the UK should
resist requests
to take
the lead on the Junior Officer Leadership Training
Module.574
On 2 June
2005, Mr Roger Cornish, MOD Deputy Director Iraq, recommended
the UK
take
leadership of the Basic Officer training module when it transferred
to NATO.575
That
did not
take effect until 1 July 2006, and then only after agreeing a
Memorandum of
Understanding
that stipulated the UK would not be expected to make up any
personnel
or funding
shortfalls.576
568
NATO
website, ‘NATO in Iraq: the Evolution of NATO’s Training Effort in
Iraq’.
569
Letter
Quarrey to Owen, 22 June 2004, ‘Prime Minister’s VTC with Bush, 22
June: Iraq’.
570
NATO Press
Release (2004) 098, 28 June 2004, ‘Statement on Iraq’.
571
Wright DP
& Reese TR. On Point
II: Transition to the New Campaign – The United States Army
in
Operation
IRAQI FREEDOM May 2003 – January 2005. Combined
Studies Institute Press, June 2008;
NATO Press
Release (2003) 059, 3 June 2003, ‘Final Communiqué: Ministerial
Meeting of the North
Atlantic
Council held in Madrid on 3 June 2003’.
572
NATO Press
Release (224) 134, 8 October 2004, ‘NATO Nations Agree Next Step in
Implementing
Training in
Iraq’.
573
Minute MOD
[junior official] to PS/Secretary of State [MOD], 21 February 2005,
‘The NATO Training
Mission
Iraq (NTM‑I)’.
574
Minute
Naworynsky to MOD [junior official], 22 February 2005, ‘The NATO
Training Mission
Iraq (NTM‑I)’.
575
Minute
Cornish to PS/Secretary of State [MOD], 2 June 2005, ‘Iraq: UK
Short‑Term Commitment
to Bilateral
Defence Relations’.
576
Minute
DCDS(C)/Policy Director to PS/SofS [MOD], 2 June 2006, ‘NATO
Training Missions – Iraq
(NTM‑I)
Memorandum Of Understanding (MoU) for Basic Officer
Training’.
193