A1+

Georgia Boosts Iraq Deployment
[09:21 pm] 05 May, 2007

Georgia Boosts Iraq Deployment President hopes extra deployment will
help secure NATO membership. While other nations are looking to pull
out of the world’s most dangerous country, Georgia, which already has
850 peacekeepers in Iraq, plans to more than double its contingent
there.

Georgian president Mikheil Saakashvili announced the plans in early
March, although it is now reported he had made the decision last July
at a meeting with President George Bush in the White House.

`We want to show to the world that Georgians never run from anything,’
he said. `Even in the most difficult situation, we will maintain our
presence. Moreover, we will increase our presence in Iraq in the
coming year, which is going to be as crucial period for operations.’

Deputy chief of the Georgian general staff Vladimir Chachibaia said
the Georgian brigade would be deployed in the northern Iraqi town of
Al-Kut.

`The Georgians will have their own area of activity,’ he said. `Units
from around nine countries will be subordinate to them. A total of
2,000 troops will study the territory, carrying out the same tasks as
those entrusted to other countries.’

For the last two years, American instructors have been training
Georgian recruits to face the challenges of the Iraq war-zone.

On April 20, a graduation ceremony was held at the Krtsanisi training
centre outside Tbilisi for soldiers completing the programme called
Sustaining Stability, which is estimated to have cost 55 million US
dollars.

A brigade will be selected from these graduates to go to Al-Kut in the
summer. Craig Jones, who supervised the drilling, praised the Georgian
troops.

`The 10 months we’ve been here, working with Georgian soldiers was a
real pleasure,’ he said. `Your soldiers are disciplined, diligent and
learn things quickly. They’ve acquired the experience they are going
to need to succeed in Iraq.’

Being prepared to go to Iraq with a peacekeeping mission was an
obligatory condition for all Georgian recruits, who joined the
American programme and signed a three-year contract with the Georgian
state.

Corporal Mamuka Bandzeladze, who lives in Sachkhere, was one of those
who signed up four months ago.

`My family has reconciled itself to my decision,’ he said. `There was
no other way. Besides, no one says this is going to be
dangerous. They’ve got used to the idea. They know I will go anyway
and will give me their blessing. It’s a pity I’m going to establish
peace in Iraq and not Abkhazia. But an order cannot be countered, and
a soldier must carry it out in any situation.’

Georgia has contributed to the coalition forces in Iraq since August
2003. Its original contingent consisted of 79 troops. Nowadays, a
country with a population of only five million people is the fourth
largest contributor of troops to Iraq after the US, Great Britain and
South Korea.

Shalva Pichkhadze, who heads the organisation Georgia in NATO, said
that by increasing its presence in Iraq, President Saakashvili wanted
to prove its loyalty to Washington, which is the main lobbyist for
Georgia’s ambitions to become a member of NATO.

`We are showing them that if we are admitted to NATO, they will have a
really faithful ally,’ he said. `We say, `We will be your ally and
will do whatever we can for you, and you, in your turn, help us join
NATO.’ Maybe, in this way we can compensate for what we are failing
to do inside the country.’

Georgia is already reaping rewards in Washington. A month ago, the US
Congress passed a bill providing Georgia with 10 million dollars to
speed up its NATO accession.

`We are going to make a very significant contribution both in Iraq and
Afghanistan,’ said one of the leaders of the Georgian parliament’s
pro-governmental majority Giga Bokeria. `First of all, because it
meets the interests of our allies, and secondly because it meets the
interests of all of civilised humanity. Georgia always takes the side
of civilization, especially at a time when it stands opposed to
barbarism.’

However, some Georgian experts believe the fight against `barbarism’
is fraught with risks.

`Despite the fact the Georgian contingent has not lost a single
soldier in the four years it’s been deployed in Iraq, the increase of
the Georgian presence will cause the risk to grow too,’ said military
expert Irakly Aladashvili.

`The Georgian contingent will move from the town of Bakub and the
Baghdad Green Zone to the town of Al Kut, which is part of the
so-called `Red Zone’,’ he said. `This will make the Georgian soldiers’
mission much more dangerous. In addition, once it’s increased, the
contingent will become a more obvious target for terrorists.’

Georgian officer Giorgy Shengelia, who was in command of a Georgian
battalion stationed in Iraq two years ago, and works now in an
American security firm there, told IWPR in a telephone interview to
IWPR that the situation in Iraq has deteriorated from several years
ago.

`I think that today the situation is more difficult than in 2005,’ he
said. `But we all understand that this is necessary for us to be
admitted to NATO and to gain military experience that the Georgian
soldiers will be able to apply at other times as well.’

Opposition members in the Georgian parliament have criticised more the
details of the new deployment than the presence of the contingent
itself.

Parliament is currently debating a proposed boost of the military
budget by 400 million laris (240 million dollars) to almost one
billion laris to cover the extra deployment – making military spending
one quarter of the entire government budget.

Bezhan Gunava of the opposition party Democratic Front told IWPR, `I
have a lot of questions to ask the government. For instance, why is
the contingent being increased to 2,000 troops and what’s the reason
for moving the Georgian division from the Green Zone to the more
dangerous red one?’

The opposition Conservative Party and New Rights Party both support
the deployment of Georgian troops in Iraq, but not in such large
numbers.

Mamuka Katsitadze of the New Rights party called the decision
`political coquetry’ by Saakashvili.

`I think that our young, newly formed and still not very battle-worthy
army should not be used as cannon fodder and have its blood spilled
somewhere on the border with Iran,’ said Kakha Kukava of the
Conservative Party. `We have enough of our own problems.’

Ordinary people appear to share this view. In a brief survey on
Tbilisi’s streets, most respondents said the government had ignored
public opinion in its decision.

`This is very dangerous,’ said Nino, 28. `A close friend of mine went
there, and I’m very afraid for him. I don’t want anyone to go there.’

`Georgian young men should not go there and expose themselves to
danger just for the sake of earning some money,’ said a pensioner
named Otari, who lives in Tbilisi. `It would be better if they took
care of their own homeland. The risk is great, and our boys may be
killed if something bad happens. The chances of their coming back safe
and sound are small.’

By Koba Kiklikadze in Tbilisi Koba Liklikadze is a military
commentator with Radio Liberty in Tbilisi.

Institute for War and Peace Reporting