U.S. Vets Who Served In Iraq Are Frustrated With U.S. And Iraqi War Strategy In The War Against The Islamic State

Washington Times: Fall of Ramadi has ex-troops frustrated with Iraqi forces, Obama’s strategy

Echoing concerns of Defense Secretary Ashton Carter, who said Iraqi troops have not shown a “will to fight” the Islamic State, many U.S. servicemen and women have expressed frustration over the Iraqi army’s inability to defend its nation, and hold varying views on how much U.S. engagement is the right way forward.

Carlos Madden, who returned from an Army deployment to Iraq in 2010, believes most service members aren’t eager to go back, saying it’s up to the Iraqis to ensure that terrorists aren’t welcome in their country.

“We gave up a lot to be there, and the problem right now is that, at the end of the day, the Iraqis need to do it themselves,” Mr. Madden told The Washington Times. “We’ve done so much for them. We’ve spilled a lot of blood on their streets. At some point, if they don’t stand up and do it themselves, it’s not going to happen.”

WNU Editor: One vet who served two tours in Iraq told me that when he left Iraq in 2011 he felt confident that he would not go back again. Today .... with mission creep becoming the rule for U.S. policy in the Middle East .... he has now reconcile himself to the fact that U.S. forces are going back ... the question that needs to be answered is when.