AL ASAD AIR BASE, Iraq — As U.S. forces in Iraq prepare for the responsible drawdown outlined by President Obama, U.S. military and police transition teams are ensuring the results of their efforts which will last long after American troops leave Iraq.
Across the country, these teams help train Iraqi security forces to ensure they are prepared for the ongoing U.S. drawdown from Iraq. But as the MiTTs and PTTs help improve the Iraqi army and police units, who is ensuring that the teams themselves receive their annual training, supplies and equipment?
That job rests mainly with the Iraqi security forces office aboard Al Asad Air Base, Iraq — a cramped five-man room with vast responsibilities.
"Right now we've got military and police transition teams operating across Anbar province and those numbers are growing smaller and smaller with each passing month," said Sgt. Martin Beatty, Ministry of Defense liaison section chief with Multi-National Force - West. "But even though these numbers are going down, we've still got to ensure that those teams have all of the equipment and training necessary to accomplish the mission."
Part of Beatty's job is to ensure that all transition teams have the equipment they need to train Iraqi security forces, as well as the skills necessary for them to effectively advise the up-and-coming elements of the Iraqi military.
"We're also responsible for ensuring that not only the Iraqis are getting training, but the transition teams that are out there get their required training as well," said Beatty. "The Iraqi army is showing improvement and they've actually got three-quarters of their units operational and ready to do individual missions. We're seeing positive progress across the board."
As of May 2009, the ISF office had teams operating with two Iraqi army divisions, eight brigades and 26 battalions. These numbers are expected to decline as American forces prepare for the responsible drawdown from Iraq.
In the few years the transition teams have been operating, significant progress has been made. The final piece for the transition teams to complete before they leave is further strengthening the skills essential for fighting the insurgency, mainly focused on indirect fire support, medical aid, reconnaissance, surveillance, engineering and bomb disposal.
"What we're really seeing here is that the Iraqi military is more capable now than at any point in time since 2003," said Beatty. "I can honestly say that it is largely due to the excellence seen in the transition teams currently operating out there, far away from most conventional units."
With most Iraqi military units operating without coalition help at the battalion and even brigade level, many MiTT and PTT personnel can now watch as Iraqi military and police forces they have helped train and advise stand up and take the security of Iraq into their own hands.