SINGAPORE — U.S. military leaders are searching for ways to bolster Iraqi forces after the Islamic State group’s takeover of Ramadi this month, said Defense Secretary Ashton Carter on Thursday, highlighting the importance of training and equipping the Sunni tribal militias.
It’s an effort that has repeatedly failed to take hold amid sectarian tensions in Iraq.
Days after making the startlingly frank assessment that the Iraqi forces lack “the will to fight,” Carter told reporters en route to Singapore with him that he called a special meeting of top military advisers and asked them to come up with options. President Barack Obama this week said the U.S. and its allies must re-examine the effectiveness of US military aid in Iraq.
“One particular way that’s extremely important is to involve the Sunni tribes in the fight — that means training and equipping them,” Carter said.
But a senior defense official said Carter had ruled out providing weapons and training directly to the Sunni fighters and still wants to work through the Iraqi government, an approach that has been ineffective so far. The official was not authorized to describe the defense secretary’s thinking publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.
Outmanned Islamic State forces took Ramadi on May 16 after Iraqi forces fled, despite superior numbers. The Obama administration has said that none of the Iraqi forces fighting in Ramadi, the capital of the Sunni heartland Anbar province, had been trained by the U.S.
Iraqi officials complain that they are not getting the heavy military equipment they need fast enough.
Carter said the events in Ramadi “highlighted the importance of having a capable ground partner” in Iraq.
