Diplomatic Protection Military Tradeoff Da/turn

DIPLOMATIC PROTECTION/MILITARY TRADEOFF DA/Turn Summary- A good source says that when we use diplomats, we have to divert troops from other places to protect them. That's NORMAL MEANS. Run it as a turn on plan text. If they respond that we're withdrawing from Iraq now, the turn assumes this- continued troop commitment until the withdrawl is what makes it go smoothly. TURNA. NORMAL MEANS MEANS PROTECTING OUR DIPLOMATS- THIS WILL NECESSARILY TRADEOFF WITH MILITARY PRESENCE IN FALLUJAH Donnelly, Thomas. Resident Fellow for the American Enterprise Institute. Interviewed by Neal Conan of NPR on "Talk of the Nation." Thursday, April 9 2009. Mr. DONNELLY: That's true. The majority of them are providing logistical support to our forces. But, you know, even the high profile folks are protecting American diplomats because the State Department doesn't have enough people to do that and it would divert military forces from other missions to make sure that our diplomats aren't blown up or assassinated. CONAN: Do you want Marines protecting diplomats, or do you want them in Fallujah? Mr. DONNELLY: Well, when you've only got X number of Marines, you've got to make a choice like that.

B. DEMONSTRATING TROOP COMMITMENT UNTIL THE TRANSITION IS CRITICAL TO PREVENT INSTABILITY AND TERRORISM Obama, Barack. President of the United States, former US Senator, and smarter than us. "Obama to Troops in Iraq." April 7, 2009. http://edition.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/04/07/obama.iraq.transcript/index.html#cnnSTCText Point number two is, this is going to be a critical period, these next 18 months. I was just discussing this with your commander, but I think it's something that all of you know. It is time for us to transition to the Iraqis. (Applause.) They need to take responsibility for their country and for their sovereignty. And in order for them to do that, they have got to make political accommodations. They're going to have to decide that they want to resolve their differences through constitutional means and legal means. They are going to have to focus on providing government services that encourage confidence among their citizens. All those things they have to do. We can't do it for them. But what we can do is make sure that we are a stalwart partner, that we are working alongside them, that we are committed to their success, that in terms of training their security forces, training their civilian forces in order to achieve a more effective government, they know that they have a steady partner with us. And so just as we thank you for what you've already accomplished, I want to say thank you because you will be critical in terms of us being able to make sure that Iraq is stable, that it is not a safe haven for terrorists, that it is a good neighbor and a good ally, and we can start bringing our folks home.

AT: BUT WE'RE PULLING OUT OF IRAQ ACTUALLY, THIS FEEDS THE LINK: WE HAVE A SCHEDULED PULLOUT AND NEED TO MAINTAIN STABILITY UNTIL THEN TO PREVENT GROSS INSTABILITY AFP “US General Odierno: Iraq Violence Low.” April 13, 2009. http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5gzCfKiofSkm4VASyNgKyqmJMAbzg Odierno also said that he was pleased with meetings he held with Barack Obama last week when the US president made a surprise visit to Baghdad. Obama "understands, as he has stated, that there is still much work to be done here in Iraq," Odierno said. "I believe he has given me the flexibility over the next 18 months in order to adjust the size of the force that I need in order to accomplish the mission," Odierno said. The general expressed confidence that US troops would be out of the country by the last day of 2011. When asked to rate on a 1-10 scale whether the deadline would be met, Odierno said "I believe it's a 10 that we will be gone by 2011." "There has been a clear improvement of security here," Odierno added. "The issue is, can we maintain that? Can the Iraqis maintain it? And that is what we're working through now (as) we want them to be able to maintain this stability as we pull out." Meanwhile Iraq's national security adviser Mowafaq al-Rubaie, the country's top negotiator on the bilateral Status of Forces Agreement that set the timetable for US withdrawal, said Iraqi forces will be ready to take over security operations. "The Iraqi security forces are leading and doing most of the combat operations now," Rubaie said on the same CNN program. "Only the high-end very specialized counter-terrorism operations and some logistical support, some air fire support, some navy support, that is what we are requiring. And we are building these as we go along and in the next year or so, we will be in a position to take over ... security all over the country."

DEMONSTRATING TROOP COMMITMENT UNTIL THE TRANSITION IS CRITICAL TO PREVENT INSTABILITY AND TERRORISM Obama, Barack. President of the United States, former US Senator, and smarter than us. "Obama to Troops in Iraq." April 7, 2009. http://edition.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/04/07/obama.iraq.transcript/index.html#cnnSTCText Point number two is, this is going to be a critical period, these next 18 months. I was just discussing this with your commander, but I think it's something that all of you know. It is time for us to transition to the Iraqis. (Applause.) They need to take responsibility for their country and for their sovereignty. And in order for them to do that, they have got to make political accommodations. They're going to have to decide that they want to resolve their differences through constitutional means and legal means. They are going to have to focus on providing government services that encourage confidence among their citizens.

All those things they have to do. We can't do it for them. But what we can do is make sure that we are a stalwart partner, that we are working alongside them, that we are committed to their success, that in terms of training their security forces, training their civilian forces in order to achieve a more effective government, they know that they have a steady partner with us. And so just as we thank you for what you've already accomplished, I want to say thank you because you will be critical in terms of us being able to make sure that Iraq is stable, that it is not a safe haven for terrorists, that it is a good neighbor and a good ally, and we can start bringing our folks home.

US military presence key to deterrence and peace. Fareed Zakaria April 13, 2009 “A military for the real world” WashingtonPost Accessed by LexisNexis

American military budgets should be based on two competing imperatives. The first is that we are likely to be engaged in small, complex conflicts with much weaker opponents in

The Gates budget makes intelligent provision for these kinds of wars -- in which manpower and intelligence are key. The second requirement is deterrence. The U.S. military protects global sea lanes and, in a general sense, preserves the peace. If Somali pirates were to cause too much trouble, eventually the U.S. military would help to tackle them. If the Chinese were considering offensive action in Asia, it is the possible American response that would make them cautious. difficult terrain. In other words, Iraq and Afghanistan.