Iraqis have not asked for US combat help since withdrawal

Reuters:

Iraqi forces have not called for U.S. help in urban combat since June 30, when U.S. combat troops withdrew from city and town centers under a bilateral security agreement, a senior U.S. official said. "Here's what has not happened: there have been no requests for combat forces to return back into the city, any city," said Lieutenant-General Charles Jacoby Jr, who took over in April as head of day to day operations in Iraq.

"There are established protocols for how (Iraqi forces) might ask for that, but we have not been asked for combat forces," Jacoby told a small group of reporters at the weekend.

Iraqi troops have asked, however, for assistance in pre- and post-combat operations, such as intelligence assistance from U.S. forces with much more sophisticated technology, a vast fleet of planes and helicopters, and logistics resources.

...

Jacoby acknowledged there had been an increase in violence in the last few days, but said it was one that was expected from an insurgency that is holding on in ethnically, religiously mixed areas like Nineveh, Kirkuk and Diyala provinces.

...

"The (insurgent) networks were waiting for this time period and I think they're going to punch themselves out," Jacoby said. He said Iraqi forces were adjusting to the new environment.

In the post-June 30 environment, Jacoby said U.S. forces are seeking to strangle insurgencies in places like Mosul by ringing the city and trying to stem the flow of weapons or fighters.

So far, the insurgents have not had any strategic punch. In fact their attacks have had little strategic effect and Jacoby is probably right that they will punch themselves out. The enemy has a limited capacity to surge with violence before it has to regroup. It has been regrouping in ever smaller cells.

Hopefully, the Iraqis will continue to show sustained resistance to the attacks. The government could help by being smarter politically in dealing with the Sunnis and the Kurds.

If there continues to be no need for the US forces in Iraq, we may see an earlier transfer of some of those troops to Afghanistan.