The current American war in Iraq is a struggle in search of a goal. It began in August as a humanitarian intervention, morphed into a campaign to protect Americans in-country, became a plan to defend the Kurds, followed by a full-on crusade to defeat the new Islamic State (IS, aka ISIS, aka ISIL), and then… well, something in Syria to be determined at a later date.<\/p>\n
At the moment, Iraq War 3.0 simply drones on, part bombing campaign, part mission to train the collapsed army the U.S. military created for Iraq War 2.0, all amid a miasma of incoherent mainstream media coverage. American troops are tiptoeing closer to combat (assuming you don’t count\u00a0defensive operations<\/a>, getting\u00a0mortared<\/a>, and flying\u00a0ground attack<\/a>\u00a0helicopters as \u201ccombat\u201d), even as they act like\u00a0archaeologists<\/a>\u00a0of America\u2019s warring past, exploring the ruins of abandoned U.S. bases. Meanwhile, Shia militias are using the conflict for the\u00a0ethnic cleansing<\/a>\u00a0of Sunnis and\u00a0Iran<\/a>\u00a0has become an ever-more significant player in Iraq’s affairs. Key issues of the previous American occupation of the country —\u00a0corruption<\/a>,\u00a0representative<\/a>\u00a0government, oil\u00a0revenue-sharing<\/a>\u00a0— remain largely unresolved. The Kurds still keep \u201cwinning<\/a>\u201d against the militants of IS in the city of Kobani on the Turkish border without having \u201cwon.\u201d<\/p>\n In the meantime, Washington\u2019s rallying cry now seems to be: \u201cWait for the\u00a0spring offensive<\/a>!\u201d In translation that means: wait for the Iraqi army to get enough newly American-trained and -armed troops into action to make a move on Mosul. That city is, of course, the country\u2019s second largest and still ruled by the new \u201ccaliphate\u201d proclaimed by Islamic State head Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. All in all, not exactly inspiring stuff.<\/p>\n You can’t have\u00a0victory<\/a>\u00a0if you have\u00a0no idea<\/a>\u00a0where the finish line is. But there is one bright side to the situation. If you can’t create Victory in\u00a0Iraq<\/a>\u00a0for future VI Day parades, you can at least make a profit from the disintegrating situation there.<\/p>\n Team America’s Arms Sales Force<\/strong><\/p>\n In the midst of the December holiday news-dumping zone, the U.S. Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA<\/a>) quietly\u00a0notified<\/a>\u00a0Congress of several pending arms deals for Iraq. DSCA is the Pentagon office responsible for coordinating arms agreements between American defense contractors and foreign buyers.<\/p>\n Before those thousands of not-boots-on-the-ground troops started hemorrhaging back into Iraq late last year, DSCA personnel made up a significant portion of all U.S. military personnel still\u00a0there<\/a>. Its staff members are, in fact, common in\u00a0U.S. embassies<\/a>\u00a0in general. This shouldn\u2019t be surprising, since the sales of weaponry and other kinds of war equipment are big business for a range of American companies, and the U.S. government is more than happy to assist. In fact, there is even a\u00a0handbook<\/a>\u00a0to guide foreign governments through the buying process.<\/p>\n