thedrifter
10-04-07, 08:55 AM
Pentagon review recommends more U.S. military control over contractors in Iraq, Gates says
By: LOLITA C. BALDOR - Associated Press
SANTIAGO, Chile -- A Pentagon review team has recommended the U.S. military have more control over contractors hired in Iraq and private security guards fall under the military code of justice in some cases, Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Wednesday.
He said new guidelines for military commanders in Iraq probably will increase the number of private security contractors who will face prosecution or discipline for violence.
Gates said the five-member review team he sent to Iraq last week found a need for better coordination between the security details and the military.
In about one in every three cases, the team said, when military commanders got a call for help from a convoy under private protection, it involved a detail the commanders did not know about.
Speaking to reporters on a plane trip from Colombia to Chile, Gates provided the broadest description to date of the possible steps the military could take in response to the latest problems with private security companies in Iraq.
But he also said any major limits imposed on the contractors by the Iraqi government would burden U.S. forces or drastically restrict the mobility of State Department officials and other civilians who depend on the private guards.
Another idea, Gates said, would have him or Deputy Defense Secretary Gordon England meet with the heads of the security companies "to talk about the situation and our expectations. ... I'm sure there's a fair amount of uncertainty on their part now about what the ground rules are going to be and perhaps we could provide some help on that."
Greater use of the Uniform Code of Military Justice is perhaps the review team's most controversial suggestion. Gates acknowledged questions about how it would work and at what level the decision would be made to pursue that option in individual cases.
"That's just something we need to look into more deeply and talk to department lawyers," he said. "I'm told there is some uncertainty whether you could actually make that work or not."
When Gates ordered the fact-finding team to Baghdad last week, he expressed concerns about whether the military has exercised sufficient oversight of the contractors.
The review came in response to a Sept. 16 incident when Blackwater USA guards killed at least 11 Iraqi civilians. That set off a wave of investigations, from the Pentagon and State Department to Congress, into the conduct and oversight of the security companies that routinely protect U.S. diplomats and others.
Blackwater officials have defended their actions, saying they acted in response to a threat.
Blackwater is the largest of the State Department's three security contractors. Currently there are about 7,300 private security contractors working for the Defense Department in Iraq, of which about 5,000 are guarding sites important to the military or the Iraqi government. Thousands more work for the State Department.
Gates said the contracts are put together in the United States, with little information flowing to the military.
"One obvious suggestion is how do we give (military commanders) greater clarity and more of a role and knowledge about the contracts that are going to be executed" in their region, Gates said.
Asked what the impact would be if the Iraqi government were to ban Blackwater from the country, Gates said he did not know if the other security companies could take on the extra responsibility.
The question, he said, would be what the State Department would do in the meantime. "It's really more of a challenge for the Department of State in the short term," he said.
Ellie
By: LOLITA C. BALDOR - Associated Press
SANTIAGO, Chile -- A Pentagon review team has recommended the U.S. military have more control over contractors hired in Iraq and private security guards fall under the military code of justice in some cases, Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Wednesday.
He said new guidelines for military commanders in Iraq probably will increase the number of private security contractors who will face prosecution or discipline for violence.
Gates said the five-member review team he sent to Iraq last week found a need for better coordination between the security details and the military.
In about one in every three cases, the team said, when military commanders got a call for help from a convoy under private protection, it involved a detail the commanders did not know about.
Speaking to reporters on a plane trip from Colombia to Chile, Gates provided the broadest description to date of the possible steps the military could take in response to the latest problems with private security companies in Iraq.
But he also said any major limits imposed on the contractors by the Iraqi government would burden U.S. forces or drastically restrict the mobility of State Department officials and other civilians who depend on the private guards.
Another idea, Gates said, would have him or Deputy Defense Secretary Gordon England meet with the heads of the security companies "to talk about the situation and our expectations. ... I'm sure there's a fair amount of uncertainty on their part now about what the ground rules are going to be and perhaps we could provide some help on that."
Greater use of the Uniform Code of Military Justice is perhaps the review team's most controversial suggestion. Gates acknowledged questions about how it would work and at what level the decision would be made to pursue that option in individual cases.
"That's just something we need to look into more deeply and talk to department lawyers," he said. "I'm told there is some uncertainty whether you could actually make that work or not."
When Gates ordered the fact-finding team to Baghdad last week, he expressed concerns about whether the military has exercised sufficient oversight of the contractors.
The review came in response to a Sept. 16 incident when Blackwater USA guards killed at least 11 Iraqi civilians. That set off a wave of investigations, from the Pentagon and State Department to Congress, into the conduct and oversight of the security companies that routinely protect U.S. diplomats and others.
Blackwater officials have defended their actions, saying they acted in response to a threat.
Blackwater is the largest of the State Department's three security contractors. Currently there are about 7,300 private security contractors working for the Defense Department in Iraq, of which about 5,000 are guarding sites important to the military or the Iraqi government. Thousands more work for the State Department.
Gates said the contracts are put together in the United States, with little information flowing to the military.
"One obvious suggestion is how do we give (military commanders) greater clarity and more of a role and knowledge about the contracts that are going to be executed" in their region, Gates said.
Asked what the impact would be if the Iraqi government were to ban Blackwater from the country, Gates said he did not know if the other security companies could take on the extra responsibility.
The question, he said, would be what the State Department would do in the meantime. "It's really more of a challenge for the Department of State in the short term," he said.
Ellie