Like Congressman John Murtha (D-PA) and retired Army Lieutenant General William Odom, the former director of the National Security Agency, Barry Posen is right when he says that the United States must withdraw its military forces from Iraq. The reasons that they give are similar; the three plans differ only in the specific timetable for withdrawal. Murtha and Odom want us to get out as soon as possible, which Murtha indicates should be in about six months. Posen favors an 18-month time frame. But taking out our troops in 24 months would give us a better chance of safeguarding American interests in the region. We all agree that the United States should retain a presence in the region to manage threats to American security. Posen sees the greatest threat as conventional aggression. American power should also be used against any foreign terrorist camps or enclaves that emerge. While we need to ensure that Iraq is not invaded by Iran or Turkey, we must also ensure that Iraq does not become another Afghanistan.
Posen would keep American forces over the horizon, presumably Marines on Navy ships, and have the Special Operations Command retain relationships with their Iraqi counterparts. We would go further. Like Murtha, we would leave quick-reaction ground troops in the region. (Our preference would be Kuwait.) Moreover, we would keep a small group of Special Operations forces on the ground in Iraq to work closely with Iraqi forces to combat homegrown and foreign insurgents.
Korb and Katulis are talking about a very qualified version of withdrawal, i.e., "redeployment", and that over a period of two years. We're going to withdraw troops, but still provide military strikes against terrorist groups in Iraq, plus militarily deter invasion from Iran or - our NATO ally Turkey? Posen's proposal at least has the advantage of getting the US troops "redeployed" out of Iraq six months sooner!
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