Committee on Armed Services

Washington, D.C.— The U.S. House Armed Services Committee today held a hearing on the status of ongoing efforts in Iraq.  Ranking Member Howard P. “Buck” McKeon (R-CA) released the following opening statement for the full committee hearing:  

“Thank you, Mr. Chairman and welcome to our witnesses. It’s great to have you here General Odierno; we really appreciate you taking the time to be here today. Please pass on to all the men and women who serve under your command in Iraq how proud we are of their accomplishments and how much we value their service.   

“This is a timely hearing. While the focus in Washington has shifted to Afghanistan, we cannot lose sight of the enormous challenges before us in Iraq.  

“We have made remarkable progress in Iraq. Violence continues to stay at a level comparable to 2003, the provincial elections earlier in the year were a success, and the SOFA agreement has held together. Most recently, in June the Iraqi Security Forces assumed primary security responsibility within Iraqi cities and U.S. combat forces departed the last remaining cities.  

“The issue, therefore, is not whether we’ve won the war, but whether we will win the peace in Iraq.  With national elections set for January, a referendum on the SOFA on the horizon, as well as other significant unresolved political hurdles, like the status of Kirkuk, there are many unknowns that will determine the prospect of enduring domestic peace in Iraq.  

“In parallel with Iraq’s demanding political calendar, the President’s February 2009 plan calls for a dramatic reduction to the U.S. footprint in Iraq by August 2010.  By next summer the President plans to decrease our troop strength by 60%, in addition to closing bases and moving material out of theatre.  This leads to some basic questions. First, is it still safe to assume that the Iraqi Security Forces will be able to assume security responsibility and that electoral politics will not trigger sectarian violence? These are the assumptions underpinning the President’s plan. This plan arguably made sense in February; does it still make sense today? 

“Many of us here have consistently held the position that scheduling troop withdrawals in Iraq should be based on the conditions on the ground. General Odierno, we’d like to hear from you on this subject. Do we have contingency plans in the event the security situation demands revisiting the August 2010 timeline? I’m concerned we may be biting off more than we can chew in Iraq.  

“As we begin executing the President’s redeployment plan we also need to keep an eye on the future. What do we want the U.S.-Iraqi bilateral relationship to look like? This leads me to concerns about the “normalization” of our relations with Iraq. After all we’ve invested in Iraq we should be taking steps to ensure that we pursue a robust security relationship with Baghdad. Our increase in combat forces was not the only reason the “surge” was successful; rather, Ambassador Crocker and General Petraeus knew how to leverage our presence to ensure Iraqi leadership made the right choices. I’m concerned that we may be retreating from this posture too quickly in an effort to “normalize” our relationship with Iraq.   We must remember this is an embryonic democracy. As much as the situation in Iraq has improved, I think it’s fair to say the situation is far from normal. As long as we have a force presence in Iraq our leadership should continue to involve itself in Iraqi political affairs to ensure the right decisions are made. Robust engagement seems to be the key to a redeployment plan.  

“Beyond the strategic and political-military concerns there are host of issues ranging from operational implementation of the Advisory and Assist Brigades (AABs) to the enormous logistical challenges of moving all our equipment out of Iraq. Accomplishing this all in such a narrow window of time is a herculean task even if we did not face what you rightly call “drivers of instability.” I hope we can discuss these issues over the course of the hearing.            

“I look forward to a candid discussion on these important issues.  Thank you again for being here this morning.”