April 19, 2007:
As the terrorists (both Sunni and
Shia) get shut down in more parts of Iraq, it's been possible to expand
reconstruction efforts. This can be seen in the expansion of the PRT
(Provincial Reconstruction Team) program. Ten more PRTs are being formed this
year, which will double the number in action.
The United States pioneered the use of PRTs in
Afghanistan. There, the PRTs evolved from the JRTs (Joint Reconstruction Teams)
established by U.S. Army Special Forces in 2002. By last year, there were seventeen PRTs run
by U.S. troops (including five in Iraq), with another eleven operated by NATO
forces. The typical PRT has 60-100 people (depending on local needs). Most (80
percent) of these are military personnel. The rest are civilian specialists,
including a police officer from the Interior Ministry.
Earlier American PRTs were commanded by army
lieutenant colonel, who is actually leading two civil affairs teams, an Army
Reserve military police unit, plus intelligence and psychological operations
teams. The civilians usually consist of officials from the State Department,
USAID, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The rest of the troops are
assigned to security duties, which is basically police work (against criminal
gangs and unruly local warlords). These security troops often end up assisting
in reconstruction as well. The Iraqis have been urging the expansion of the PRT
system, not just to get more reconstruction expertise to all areas of the
country, but to provide some protection for reconstruction staff (including the
many NGOs that are not a part of the PRT system.)
The ten new PRTs in Iraq will be led by a State
Department official. The State Department asked for this, but there are doubts
whether the State Department can provide the required number of personnel. In
the past, PRTs have had problems with bureaucratic roadblocks created by
different Department of Defense, State Department and USAID agendas. The State
Department, when told to send people to work with PRTs, often provided very
junior folks, with little experience in anything. The Department of Defense has
people there to provide security and is, technically, not involved in nation
building. But the troops can take over in an emergency, because they are, after
all, in charge of security. But in active areas like Iraq and Afghanistan, the
military is really running the show. Combat needs come first, and everything
else, including nation building, is support. When it comes to nation building,
the Department of Defense wants power, but not responsibility. Same thing with
the State Department, and neither Defense or State wants to take orders from
USAID.
There is now a PRT training program, which gives
non-military members a month or two of preparation, before they ship out.
During this training, problems can be discovered and worked out. The training
also gets everyone familiar with their team members, and enables the team to
get working sooner, and more effectively.