Drones have become a cornerstone of American efforts in Iraq. Pretty soon, the Iraq military may get the robotic planes, too. Speaking today at the Iraq Security and Defense Summit in Washington, Iraqi Army Lt. Gen. Anwer Hamed Ahmed said the Iraqi military needed more sophisticated surveillance tools for border security.
Asked if this might include unmanned aerial vehicles, or UAVs, Ahmed said: "Yes, the borders need all means and all equipment, whether this is aircraft, or vehicles, or expertise. And I am here in order to be able to take whatever you have... in order to make this happen."
Some border security measures in Iraq -- like the berm along the Syrian border -- are decidedly low tech. But the the Iraqi Air Force is already building a fleet of surveillance aircraft, including Cessna turboprops tricked out with Hellfire missiles for counterinsurgency ops. While Ahmed gave no specifics, it seems the Iraqis may be in the market for unmanned aircraft as well.
Stopping insurgents is only one reason for the Iraqi interest in border surveillance. Maj. Gen. Hussein Ali Kamal Ahmedfahmi said narcotics traffic was also an issue. "Right now we are in great need of technical assistance concerning the drug business that is coming from Iran into Iraq," he said. "Iraq is a 'clean 'country and we do not agree with getting drugs and then sending them to other countries from Iraq."
[Photo: USAF]
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