12.2 |
Conclusions: Security Sector Reform
Karl
Eikenberry, former US Security Co‑ordinator and Chief of the Office
of Military
Co‑operation
in Afghanistan. It was thought that the change would provide the
unity of
command
across the security sector that was needed. The report reiterated
that the
Army’s
focus should remain on external threats but its training rate be
reduced to allow
the
development of other security forces.
66.
The change in
responsibilities led to the creation of a new umbrella structure,
the
Office of
Security Co‑operation (OSC), commanded by Major General Paul Eaton,
the
former
commander of CMATT. CMATT and the newly named policing equivalent –
the
Coalition
Police Assistance Training Team (CPATT) – would report to the OSC
and the
OSC would
report to the CJTF‑7.
67.
It appears
that DCC Brand and Mr Casteel had not been consulted about
that
significant
change in approach. Former DCC Brand told the Inquiry that the
creation of
the OSC was
a shock to both him and Mr Casteel. He said that, while the
military could
do “the
volume stuff”,39
they did
not have the skill set to conduct basic training or
the
policy
advice on policing. That meant “they were making it up … from
theatre, rather
than back
at the policy headquarters”.
68.
On 25 March
2004, the FCO’s Weekly Update on Iraq for No.10 stated that
a
CENTCOM
review had concluded that transition to local control across Iraq
was “likely
to be
delayed by up to eight months from their original over optimistic
target of May
2004”.40
The paper
stated that was “not a surprise”:
“The Iraqi
Security Forces do not just have to be hired; they must be vetted,
trained,
equipped,
mentored and certified ie capability, not numbers, is the key …
Bremer
has been
pushing for quality for months, without the support in Washington,
where
the
emphasis has been on numbers. On the positive side, a lesson has
now been
learned.”
69.
The Cabinet
Office sent an update for Ministers on 2 April, stating that police
training
was to be
accelerated under the new structures with a target of completing
in‑service
training of
43,000 officers by January 2005.
70.
Although
advice and information sent to Ministers consistently emphasised
the
importance
of training competent police officers, the focus of effort
continued to be on
training
officers in high numbers.
71.
There was a
significant worsening of security in the spring of 2004. Coupled
with
revelations
of abuse by members of the US military of Iraqi detainees in Abu
Ghraib
39
Public
hearing, 29 June 2010, pages 94‑95.
40
Minute Owen
to Cannon, 25 March 2004, ‘Iraq: Weekly Update’ attaching paper FCO
‘Iraq: No 10
Weekly
Update’.
427