U.S. to Sell Apache Helicopters, Equipment to Iraq
On Monday, the U.S. Defense Department announced its intent to conduct two sales of military equipment to Iraq; one sale is for 24 Apache longbow attack helicopters and another is a lease of an additional six helicopters, plus support equipment. Reports indicate the decision was made after Congressional holds on the deal were lifted, although Congress still has 30 days to block the sales. In addition to the helicopters, the sales include associated training, parts, and equipment (such as 480 Hellfire missiles and 30mm Automatic Chain Guns) amounting to a combined total cost of $6.17 billion.
The sales are meant to provide Iraq with better equipment to fight Al Qaeda. However, concerns over the Iraqi government’s marginalization of Sunnis, as well as a rise in sectarianism and violence, have created significant resistance from many lawmakers. In particular, Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Robert Menendez (D-NJ) feared the Apaches could be used against civilians rather than al-Qaeda fighters. In anticipation of a visit from Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki to the U.S. in October, Senator Menendez was one of six U.S. senators who sent a letter to President Obama accusing al-Maliki of “pursuing a sectarian and authoritarian agenda” that has led to a “failure of governance.” Additionally, the senators asserted that this failure “enabled al-Qaeda in Iraq to transform into the larger and more lethal Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS).”
Since the capture of the cities of Fallujah and Ramadi by ISIS and other militants in early January, however, the Obama administration has been advocating for the sales. The fighting in Fallujah and Ramadi, and the subsequent failure of negotiations between the government and ISIS, resulted in the flight of more than 140,000 people from their homes. Al-Qaeda has also contributed to a recent spike in violence: at least 7,818 civilians and 1,050 members of security forces were killed in attacks in Iraq in 2013, the highest death toll in five years, according to the United Nations. As such, administration officials have recently criticized Menendez for his “shortsighted” opposition to the sales. A military source argued that refusing Iraq military aid would be damaging to the United States’ own interests, and that, “if we see them as an ally, we should treat them like one."
Once the sales were announced on Monday, news reports indicated that Senator Menendez agreed to the sales after he received a letter earlier this month from al-Maliki that addressed his main concerns. Moreover, the State Department assured Menendez that the department’s “end-use monitoring measures” guarantee “the Apaches would be used in a responsible manner.”
Apart from the debate over the Apaches, the U.S. government has sold Iraq a litany of military equipment and training that amounts to over $14 billion, recently including surveillance balloons sent in September and three Bell IA-407 helicopters last month. However, even with the Apache sale proceeding, the helicopters will take years to build and deliver—the F-16 warplanes purchased by Baghdad in 2011 are set to arrive sometime this fall. The six leased helicopters, however, will be delivered to Iraq this summer.
This blog was written by Transperancy and Accountability Intern Aleksandra Zaytseva