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By Lisa Daniel
American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, Dec. 7, 2011 – As the ultimate U.S. military convoys roll out of Iraq these following three weeks, marking the stop of eight a long time of operations, Us citizens can be proud of the perform service members did there, U.S. Forces Iraq’s deputy commanding basic mentioned nowadays.
In USFI’s ultimate news briefing from Baghdad, Army Lt. Gen. Frank G. Helmick advised the Pentagon press corps that Us citizens and Iraqis will have distinct opinions about regardless of whether Operations Iraqi Flexibility and New Dawn “were well worth it.”
“From in which I sit, it was,” Helmick mentioned.
It was since of the U.S. military part that the region held historic elections in March 2010, offering Iraq “the possibility for a sovereign potential,” the basic mentioned. And, he added, violence is at an eight-12 months lower.
Helmick mentioned his beliefs are underscored by the good remarks of some wounded warriors and loved ones members of the fallen, which totals a lot more than 4,500 U.S. service members.
“My agency belief is that there is no other military in the planet that can do what yours did in Iraq,” he mentioned. “For eight a long time, they have been developing and securing this region.”
U.S. troops’ greatest legacy in Iraq, Helmick mentioned, is in the professionalism, self-assurance and esprit de corps of the Iraqi security forces.
“We gave 28 million Iraqis the greatest gift any person can give and that is their flexibility,” he mentioned.
Helmick marked the historic occasion by calling the veterans of Iraq operations the following “Greatest Generation,” a reference to individuals who served in Planet War II.
“The significance of this day doesn’t escape me,” the basic mentioned on the 70th anniversary of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. For their service in Iraq, he mentioned, “America uncovered the following greatest generation.”
“Words can not commence to express the pride I experience about America’s military overall performance and service in Iraq,” he added.
The 18-month method of drawing down forces in Iraq “is just historic,” going from 300,000 service members and a lot more than 5,000 installations in 2007 to 8,000 troops and five bases nowadays, Helmick mentioned. Military drivers have logged 16 million miles, “moving a mountain of devices and personnel,” largely by means of southern Iraq and into Kuwait, and have fewer than 1,000 truckloads left, he mentioned.
U.S. forces created the Iraqi security forces to a lot more than 700,000, skilled them, and left them with “some of the very best [devices] we have,” such as the M1 Abrams tank and artillery devices, the basic mentioned. U.S. forces also have been in charge of the country’s security until finally 2010 when Iraqi forces took the lead.
Each and every piece of U.S. military devices “goes by means of an agonizing process” of identifying regardless of whether it must be shipped out of the region or left for the Iraqis, Helmick mentioned. The U.S. military has incurred considerable financial savings in transportation fees by leaving devices, namely business office home furniture, in Iraq, he mentioned.
Iraq nevertheless has issues, Helmick mentioned, such as continued threats from al-Qaida and other terrorist groups, Iranian meddling, and internal ethnic tensions.
Iraq has created excellent progress on police perform, the basic mentioned, and is capable of securing the region internally, if not externally. “The Iraqis realize they have a security gap if an individual will come into their air room who doesn’t want to be observed,” he mentioned.
Regardless of whether or not the Iraqis pick a potential U.S. military part in security is up to them, the basic mentioned.
“The feeling I get from the Iraqis is that they want to have a robust romantic relationship with our region,” he mentioned.
Asked about the military’s “lessons learned” in Iraq, Helmick mentioned, “We done, actually, outside of expectations.”
Early on, the basic mentioned, service members in Iraq had to do items they weren’t automatically skilled to do. They weren’t really excellent at advising Iraqi farmers on wheat crops, “but we did that,” or in supporting with the oil refinery and distribution processes, “but we did that,” he mentioned.
“The military had to branch out by means of all the distinct portions of the government sector
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