Washington quietly begin delivery of military aid from Iraq training fund

Washington quietly begin delivery of military aid from Iraq training fund

Saturday 06-06-2015 | 12:01:29

Twilight News / US officials said the United States began quietly pledged supplied weapons that the Iraqi army from a fund worth 1.6 billion dollars delivery process approved by Congress last year created in the wake of the growing frustration of Baghdad slow aid provided by the coalition against al Daash that.

The US Department of Defense (Pentagon) that the delivery of the equipment that the long-awaited start of “training and equipping Iraq” Fund about two weeks ago and that things are taking place at the fastest pace possible.

Officials pointed to a previous transfer and intensely weapons from a variety of points of US operations.

Oliphant said Douglas, a former adviser in the Iraqi affairs in the administrations of former US President George W. Bush and current President Barack Obama, “They (Iraqis) complain of very slow in implementing the program, but in fact the administrative system is slow.”

But by contrast Olyphant adds, “asking the Russians fighter jets and Atzlmunha after month.”

And equipped with the first batch of training and equipping Iraqi brigade Fund in the Iraqi army with rifles and machine guns and rocket launchers, grenades, mortars and masks and other equipment.

And Commander Elissa Smith said Pentagon spokeswoman said more weapons on their way to Iraq.

She explained, “That was the first batch of planned shipments processing units (military) which will include units of Peshmerga.”

She noted that the first shipment of equipment from the allocated fund for Iraq posted in the same week that fell in front of the gray organize Daash in greater defeat for the Iraqi army since around the year.

And he said that he was also in the beginning of last week send anti-tank weapons of the type (BAA. T-4) were financed from the Fund.

He said a US government official who asked not to be named, “we are still almost at the starting point (to achieve the goal of establishing) train and equip Iraq Trust Fund.”

Is contained in a document prepared by the Pentagon last year detailed plans to train and equip Iraq Trust Fund which provides group American equipment ranging between 45 thousand and protective shield to Iraqi forces and 14400 gun (M – 4) Kurdish forces.

Fighters will also receive year 5000 Kalashnikov rifle.

US officials acknowledge that the program will face a major test when the Shiite-led government in Baghdad arming Sunni tribes and is an essential step toward reconciliation between the Iraqi fabric components.

While weapons are part of a broader effort that includes US air raids, reconnaissance and training Iraqis see that the pace of the flow of arms from Washington is one of the criteria that can measure how through the Obama administration’s commitment to fighting in their view, very slow delivery operations.

But some US officials consider that complaint Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi of the slow delivery of weapons and other assistance to a large extent reflect the pressure locally, especially after the fall of Ramadi last month.

One official said, “It senses the pressure from all sides.”

The Pentagon announced the delivery of tens of millions of rounds of ammunition and hundreds of vehicles to Iraq since last summer, and most of this aid through the provision of other destinations outside the framework of the training and equipping Iraq Fund and took the form of donations from the military alliance and sales of traditional foreign armies.

A US official said, “The lack of weapons and ammunition is not the problem,” noting that “the weaknesses lie in structural and leadership.”

But it seems that the US officials downplay concerns about Iraq’s ability to protect the weapons received recently in spite of the frequent occurrence of weapons and vehicles provided by the Americans in the hands of the organization Daash fighters after the soldiers left Iraqi soldiers in conditions over the past year.

A military official said the “loss of weapons is a risk inherent in the process of arming any army ally during a struggle.”

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