Iraq's Fragile Transition

Present

Iraq's Fragile Transition

Click here to read the transcript.

With the Security Agreement set to expire at the end of the year, United States forces in Iraq are only months away from their December 31, 2011 deadline for full withdrawal. Many in Washington and Baghdad are debating whether an extension of the U.S. troop presence in Iraq is in the best interest of both countries. Any negotiations to craft a new arrangement permitting American forces to remain have yet to begin.

This panel will examine key questions on the transition in Iraq including: Will the U.S. force withdrawal undermine Iraq’s security? Is a follow-on agreement necessary? Is Iraq’s fragile government prepared to take the lead? Will a transition to a U.S. State Department presence be sufficient to continue U.S.-led training and counterterrorism assistance for Iraq? And what are the broader military and strategic implications of this transition?

Please join the Institute for the Study of War and our all-star panel for a discussion on these and related issues on the future of Iraq and what to expect in 2011.

Friday, April 15th, 2011
Time: 11:00 am–12:30 pm
Location: Reserve Officers Association (ROA)
One Constitution Avenue, NE
4th Floor
Washington, D.C. 20002
Please RSVP via Eventbrite by April 13th.

Panelists:

Michael O’Hanlon is the Director of Research at the Brookings Institution. He specializes in national security and defense policy. His current research agenda includes military strategy and technology, Northeast Asia, U.S. Central Command, and defense budgets. Dr. O’Hanlon is the author of multiple books, including his latest book, A Skeptic's Case for Nuclear Disarmament.

Emma Sky is currently a fellow at Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government. From September 2008 to September 2010, she served as the Political Advisor to General Odierno in Iraq, and as Special Advisor on Reconciliation to General Petraeus in the summer of 2008. She has worked at senior levels on behalf of the U.S. and U.K. governments, in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Jerusalem, across the fields of development, defense, diplomacy, and with multi-civilian and military agencies.

Max Boot is a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations. He has served as an adviser to U.S. commanders in Iraq and Afghanistan and was a senior foreign policy adviser to Senator John McCain’s presidential campaign in 2007 and 2008. He is also a contributing editor to The Weekly Standard and the Los Angeles Times, and a regular contributor to The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal and other publications.

Moderated by:

LTG James Dubik is Senior Fellow at ISW. He served in the U.S. Army for 37 years, rising to the rank of 3-star General. During his final tour, he served as the commander of Multi National Security Transition Command – Iraq and NATO Training Mission-Iraq (MNSTC-I, NTM-I) where he oversaw the accelerated growth of the Iraqi Security Forces during the surge period.