The Report
of the Iraq Inquiry
14.
The draft FCO
paper on SSR informed a Cabinet Office paper of 1 November
which
explored
what Iraq could look like after Saddam Hussein.12
The Cabinet
Office paper
drew
together strands of work from across Government and was written as
a steering
brief for
talks on post‑conflict issues in Washington with the US and
Australia.
15.
The paper
assumed that the international community and UN would be willing
to
assist with
reconstruction. Following a period of transitional military
government (up to
six
months), the UN was expected to “rule” Iraq for about three years.
SSR planning was
considered
in the context of preparation for a UN administration.
“There will
need to be a Security Sector Reform process … Having
dismantled
Saddam’s
security apparatus, there will need to be a new one. This will
require a
comprehensive
plan agreed with and led by the US. The judiciary will need a
total
rebuild as
will the police. Decisions will need to be taken on the size and
scope of
the Army
and intelligence services.”
17.
The first
round of talks between the US and UK on post‑conflict planning took
place
in
Washington on 6 November.13
Reporting
on the talks to Sir David Manning, the Prime
Minister’s
Foreign Policy Adviser and Head of the OD Sec, Mr Drummond
wrote:
“We are
agreed on the need for rapid and comprehensive reform of
existing
security structures.
Very few of the many current structures can be allowed
to
remain. We
can expect the US to maintain a tight grip on this, but urged them
to
think about
the wider security sector including police and the need to arrive
with
a plan
(ie not as in Afghanistan).”
18.
Mr Drummond
chaired a meeting of the AHGI on 8 November.14
The
Washington
talks were
discussed in the meeting, but SSR was not.
19.
In
mid‑December, the FCO Middle East Department produced a paper
describing
different
models of interim administration for Iraq.15
That was
shared with the US on
12 December.
The FCO identified “initiating Security Sector Reform, especially
the
reform of
the police” as a “key element” that any international
administration would need
to address
in the short term.
20.
The FCO Middle
East Department explored further the issue of SSR in a
separate
paper which
was completed on 10 December.16
12
Minute
Drummond to Manning, 1 November 2002, ‘Iraq: Post‑Saddam’ attaching
Paper ‘Iraq: Models
and Some
Questions for Post‑Saddam Government’.
13
Minute
Drummond to Manning, 8 November 2002, ‘Iraq: Day
After’.
14
Minute Dodd
to Manning, 11 November 2002, ‘Ad Hoc Group on Iraq’.
15
Paper FCO
Middle East Department, 12 December 2002, ‘Interim Administrations
in Iraq: Why a UN‑led
Interim
Administration Would be in the US Interest’.
16
Paper FCO
Middle East Department, 10 December 2002, ‘Iraq: Security Sector
Reform’.
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