Anthony Cordesman
Anthony Cordesman
Anthony H. Cordesmanholds the Arleigh A. Burke Chair in Strategy at the Center for Strategic and International Studiesand is a national security analyst on a number of global conflicts...
battalions broader essential iraqi leave line next situation troops
It's an essential part of the broader strategy. But you won't have a situation where Iraqi battalions come on line and U.S. troops leave the next week.
broader essential
It's an essential part of the broader strategy.
best create forces helps military national needs police provide sure takes training truly
The best thing we can do is to make sure that our training helps them to create truly national military forces and truly national police forces because that then takes away any sense that one needs militias to provide security.
arrogance bet bump call daughters fools force lives perfectly sons speed
And to be perfectly blunt, I think only fools would bet the lives of other men's sons and daughters on their own arrogance and call this force a cakewalk or a speed bump or something that you can dismiss.
deal specific
Everything I know about counterterrorism is, you deal with specific cells.
acceptance additional best clearly constitution months outcome prelude start vote wins
Even if the constitution clearly wins acceptance by most Shiites and Kurds and some Sunnis, this is only the start of a process, not the end. Even the best outcome of the vote is the prelude to months and years of additional effort.
army direct facts force key manpower spin total
There's so much spin in these numbers. A lot of facts get disguised. . . . Total manpower is meaningless. The army is the key force in direct combat.
create divisions ethnic forces integrate national people scarcely simply within
These are scarcely people you want to integrate into a national force. This would simply create sectarian or ethnic forces or divisions within the forces that already exist.
breed further needs nonsense soon stop
The (United States) needs to stop issuing such nonsense as soon as possible. They have so little credibility that they can breed nothing but further distrust.
bombs charges destroy develop firing insurgents lightly methods mines rounds several shaped stacked using watching
You're watching the insurgents develop more sophisticated methods of attack, and more sophisticated IEDs. They're using shaped charges and anti-tank mines stacked together. They're using 500-pound bombs that can destroy any armored vehicle. They're using these so-called swarming attacks, firing several RPG rounds at one lightly armored vehicle.
allow capable iraq leading minister prime question step unity
This is the first step to allow Iraq to have a unity government, but it's only a first step. The question is, will the new prime minister be capable of leading the country?
call words
I would call it a show of words.
chosen develop military mission obligation serve serving soldiers trained tremendous
Serving soldiers develop a tremendous sense of obligation to their comrades, and are trained to see the mission through. They know the military and the risk, and they have already chosen to serve their country.
airport green level obviously overall secure security stop
On a day-to-day basis, the overall level of security is obviously low. We can't secure the airport road, can't stop the incoming into the Green Zone, can't stop the killings and kidnappings,