Withdrawing from Iraq: Alternative Schedules, Associated Risks, and Mitigating Strategies
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
THE ARTS This PDF document was made available from www.rand.org as CHILD POLICY a public service of the RAND Corporation. CIVIL JUSTICE EDUCATION Jump down to document ENERGY AND ENVIRONMENT 6 HEALTH AND HEALTH CARE INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS The RAND Corporation is a nonprofit research NATIONAL SECURITY POPULATION AND AGING organization providing objective analysis and PUBLIC SAFETY effective solutions that address the challenges facing SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY the public and private sectors around the world. SUBSTANCE ABUSE TERRORISM AND HOMELAND SECURITY Support RAND TRANSPORTATION AND INFRASTRUCTURE Purchase this document WORKFORCE AND WORKPLACE Browse Books & Publications Make a charitable contribution For More Information Visit RAND at www.rand.org Explore the RAND National Defense Research Institute View document details Limited Electronic Distribution Rights This document and trademark(s) contained herein are protected by law as indicated in a notice appearing later in this work. This electronic representation of RAND intellectual property is provided for non-commercial use only. Unauthorized posting of RAND PDFs to a non-RAND Web site is prohibited. RAND PDFs are protected under copyright law. Permission is required from RAND to reproduce, or reuse in another form, any of our research documents for commercial use. For information on reprint and linking permissions, please see RAND Permissions. This product is part of the RAND Corporation monograph series. RAND monographs present major research findings that address the challenges facing the public and private sectors. All RAND monographs undergo rigorous peer review to ensure high standards for research quality and objectivity. Withdrawing from Iraq Alternative Schedules, Associated Risks, and Mitigating Strategies Walter L. Perry, Stuart E. Johnson, Keith Crane, David C. Gompert, John Gordon IV, Robert E. Hunter, Dalia Dassa Kaye, Terrence K. Kelly, Eric Peltz, Howard J. Shatz Prepared for the Office of the Secretary of Defense Approved for public release; distribution unlimited NATIONAL DEFENSE RESEARCH INSTITUTE The research described in this report was prepared for the Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD) and conducted in the RAND National Defense Research Institute, a federally funded research and development center sponsored by the OSD, the Joint Staff, the Unified Combatant Commands, the Department of the Navy, the Marine Corps, the defense agencies, and the defense Intelligence Community under Contract W74V8H-06-C-0002. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available for this publication. 978-0-8330-4772-4 The RAND Corporation is a nonprofit research organization providing objective analysis and effective solutions that address the challenges facing the public and private sectors around the world. RAND’s publications do not necessarily reflect the opinions of its research clients and sponsors. R® is a registered trademark. Cover photo: The Iraqi flag flutters as a soldier of the 5th Squadron, 4th Cavalry regiment, salutes during the transfer ceremony of the JSS Ghazaliyah IV security station to full Iraqi Security Forces control in the Ghazaliyah district of Baghdad on February 14, 2009. Ahmad Al-Rubaye/AFP/Getty Images © Copyright 2009 RAND Corporation Permission is given to duplicate this document for personal use only, as long as it is unaltered and complete. Copies may not be duplicated for commercial purposes. Unauthorized posting of RAND documents to a non-RAND Web site is prohibited. RAND documents are protected under copyright law. For information on reprint and linking permissions, please visit the RAND permissions page (http://www.rand.org/ publications/permissions.html). Published 2009 by the RAND Corporation 1776 Main Street, P.O. Box 2138, Santa Monica, CA 90407-2138 1200 South Hayes Street, Arlington, VA 22202-5050 4570 Fifth Avenue, Suite 600, Pittsburgh, PA 15213-2665 RAND URL: http://www.rand.org To order RAND documents or to obtain additional information, contact Distribution Services: Telephone: (310) 451-7002; Fax: (310) 451-6915; Email: [email protected] Preface Security has improved dramatically in Iraq since 2007; both the U.S. and the Iraqi governments want to see the U.S. presence reduced and have the Iraqis assume a greater role in providing for public security. These developments have brought the United States to a critical juncture in Iraq. The emerging challenge is to continue a withdrawal of U.S. forces while preserving security and stability in the country and in the region. With this in mind, the U.S. Congress provided resources in the fiscal year 2009 Defense Appropriations Act for an independent study to assess alternative schedules to draw down U.S. forces and effect the transition to Iraqi forces provid- ing for the nation’s security. This study assesses the feasibility of three such plans and makes recommendations designed to reduce the risks attendant on withdrawal; these recommendations are, for the most part, relevant whichever drawdown schedule is ultimately met. The analysis supporting this report was completed in May 2009, and the illustrative schedules all assume implementation decisions having been made in time for implementation in May, if not earlier. To the extent that such decisions are made later, the schedules would likely be pushed back accordingly. We recognize that any drawdown schedule that calls for U.S. forces remaining in Iraq beyond the end of December 2011 would require renegotiating the Security Agreement between the United States and Iraq. The RAND Corporation National Defense Research Institute was asked to conduct this study. This report documents the study findings. It describes alterna- tive drawdown schedules and analyzes how internal Iraqi security and stability and regional political and military issues might affect and be affected by these plans. It should interest senior members of the Obama administration, including policymakers in the Departments of Defense and State, members of Congress, and military planners and operators. This research was sponsored by the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs and conducted within the International Security and Defense Policy Center (ISDP) of the RAND National Defense Research Institute (NDRI), a federally funded research and development center sponsored by the Office of the Secretary of Defense, the Joint Staff, the Unified Combatant Com- iii iv Withdrawing from Iraq: Alternative Schedules, Associated Risks, and Mitigating Strategies mands, the Department of the Navy, the Marine Corps, the defense agencies, and the defense Intelligence Community. For more information on RAND’s International Security and Defense Policy Center, contact the Director, James Dobbins, who can be reached by email at [email protected]; by phone at 703-413-1100, extension 5134; or by mail at the RAND Corporation, 1200 South Hayes Street, Arlington, Virginia 22202-5050. More infor- mation about RAND is available at www.rand.org. Contents Preface ................................................................................................. iii Figures ................................................................................................. xi Tables .................................................................................................xiii Summary ..............................................................................................xv Acknowledgments ............................................................................... xxxiii Abbreviations .................................................................................... xxxvii CHaptER ONE Introduction ........................................................................................... 1 The Purpose of This Report ........................................................................... 2 Why Three Alternatives? ............................................................................ 2 The Effects of the Drawdown ...................................................................... 3 Methodology ........................................................................................... 3 About This Report ..................................................................................... 5 CHaptER TWO Drawdown Scheduling............................................................................... 7 Ending the Combat Mission in Iraq ................................................................. 8 Iraqi Security Forces ................................................................................... 9 U.S. Military Forces in Iraq .........................................................................10 Sequencing the Withdrawal of U.S. Combat and Support Forces ..............................11 Implementation and the Rotation Schedule .......................................................12 The Security Agreement Referendum...............................................................12 Three Alternatives .....................................................................................13 Rationale .............................................................................................14 Defining the Alternatives ..........................................................................15 Alternative 1: Combat Units Depart by April 30, 2010 ..........................................16 Planning..............................................................................................16 ISF Support