Rep. Courtney Demands Transparency and Consultation In President's Long-term Military Negotiations with Iraq

Letter

Rep. Courtney Demands Transparency and Consultation In President's Long-term Military Negotiations with Iraq

Congressman Joe Courtney announced today that he has sent the attached letter to President George W. Bush ahead of the President's final State of the Union Address.

In the letter, Congressman Courtney calls on the White House to work in a transparent manner open to the scrutiny of the Congress in any discussions over a long-term military relationship with the government of Iraq.

Congressman Courtney has taken other steps in Congress to oppose the President's plan as well. On January 17, 2008, he questioned Mark Kimmet, the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for the Middle East, during a hearing on the Iraqi Security Forces before the House Armed Services Committee and expressed his concern that a security agreement between the United States and might be seen as an open-ended enabler for the Iraqi government not to move and to take more responsibility for their own future.

In addition, he is a cosponsor of the Iraq Strategic Agreement Review Act of 2008 (H.R. 4959), introduced by Congresswoman Rosa Delauro (D-CT), which requires the Administration to consult with Congress on any long-term security, economic and political agreement with Iraq.

Below is the text of the letter.

January 23, 2008

President George W. Bush
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20500

Dear President Bush:

I write today to express my deep concern with reports of a long-term military or security agreement between the United States and Iraq that both keeps our troops deployed in a prolonged military commitment there and is implemented without Congressional consultation or approval.

In November 2007, you signed a "Declaration of Principles for Friendship and Cooperation" with Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki. This agreement laid out the broad tenants of a long term economic, political, diplomatic, and security agreement between our two nations. It is my understanding that since signing this declaration, your Administration has been working with representatives of Iraq to formalize the details of this declaration later this year prior to the end of your term in office.

It is clear that your administration envisions the kind of agreement with Iraq that the United States made with Europe, Japan and South Korea. In fact, Secretary of Defense Robert Gates has specifically expressed his support for a "long and enduring presence" in Iraq that borrows from the "Korea model" and the "security relationship that we have with Japan." However, mutual cooperation and security agreements such as those with Japan and South Korea came as a result of treaties which, under the Constitution, required the advice and consent of two thirds of the Senate.

Therefore, I am deeply troubled by the prospect that an agreement between the US and Iraq, which General Douglas Lute has clearly said will not "lead to the status of a formal treaty which would then bring us to formal negotiations or formal inputs from the Congress," will commit the Congress, the next President and the American people to a long and enduring military presence in Iraq.

Even more troubling is the fact in expert testimony before the House Armed Services Committee, on which I serve, the most optimistic assessments of the Iraq Security Force do not anticipate that they will gain the ability to provide effective, non-sectarian security capabilities for several years. In addition, Iraq's own defense minister, Abdul Qadir, believes that Iraq will not be able to take full responsibility for its internal security until 2012 or be able to defend its own borders from external threat at least until 2018.

Taken together, this leads me to the conclusion that any agreement entered into between your administration and Iraq will commit our military to security operations there for another decade or more without the input, consultation or approval of Congress.

As you well know, the American people remain divided about our continued presence in Iraq. While our troops have served bravely and sacrificed on behalf of the Iraqi people, the Iraqi government continues to fail to meet the political benchmarks for progress and reconciliation laid out by both our nation and the Iraqis themselves. I strongly believe that any agreement that lays out our future relationship with Iraq must include clear measures to require the Iraqi government to dramatically accelerate their political reconciliation.

To this end, I strongly encourage you pursue negotiations on a long term military and strategic agreement between our nation and Iraq in an open and transparent manner that will be presented to Congress for approval.

Sincerely,

JOE COURTNEY
Member of Congress

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