“It ain’t mission creep if the mission ain’t changing,” he told a daily briefing in response to a question. “And the mission’s not changing in Iraq with respect to what U.S. troops are doing in a train, advise, and assist capacity.” Earlier in the day Defense Secretary Ashton Carter during a visit to Baghdad announced the U.S. will deploy an additional 560 troops, in support of the Iraqi effort to retake the city of Mosul from the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS/ISIL). The authorized level now stands at around 4,600. Kirby said the latest deployment was decided upon in full consultation with the government of Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi. “All of our troops in Iraq are there at the invitation and the support of the Iraqi government,” he said. “That won’t change with this additional deployment.”
Iraqi forces in recent days captured a key airfield about 60 miles south of Mosul, which Carter said in Baghdad could now be used as “a logistics and air hub” for the Mosul offensive. “At every step in this campaign, we have generated and seized additional opportunities to hasten ISIL’s lasting defeat,” Carter said. “These additional U.S. forces will bring unique capabilities to the campaign and provide critical enabler support to Iraqi forces at a key moment in the fight.” In mid-2014, two-and-a-half years after President Obama oversaw the withdrawal of the last U.S. forces after an eight-year war launched by his predecessor, the jihadists of ISIS overran Mosul, Iraq’s second-largest city, prompting Obama to send up to 300 military advisers to help the Iraqis face the new threat.
Since then the number of U.S. troops on the ground has picked up steadily, with the administration stating repeatedly along the way that the mission was to “train, advise and assist,” – not a combat one:
--By July 2014, the number had doubled
--In August, a further 130 troops were deployed, taking the total to more than 700
--In September, the president authorized another 475 troops, pushing the new total to above 1,200
--By November, an additional authorization of 1,500 troops took the new total to more than 3,000
--In June 2015, another 450 troops were sent, raising the total to “up to 3,550 authorized across Iraq.”
--By March 2016, the Pentagon was speaking about a cap of 3,870 U.S. troops
--In April 2016, that cap was raised to 4,087, with the deployment of another 217 personnel, in support of Iraqi troops preparing for the battle for Mosul
--The new numbers announced by Carter on Monday takes the total authorized level to about 4,600.
Three U.S. personnel have been killed in action since Operation Inherent Resolve, the mission aimed at defeating ISIS, was launched. In Oct 2014, special forces Master Sgt. Joshua Wheeler was killed during a joint U.S.-Kurdish raid on an ISIS prison. In March this year, U.S. Marine Staff Sgt. Louis F. Cardin was killed when ISIS fighters struck a coalition base near Mosul And in May, Special Warfare Operator 1st Class Charlie Keating IV was killed when ISIS attacked a Kurdish peshmerga position close to the front line in northern Iraq. White House press secretary Josh Earnest said Keating had been “killed in combat” – but was “not in a combat mission.”
State Dept. on Increasing Troops in Iraq: ‘It Ain’t Mission Creep if the Mission Ain’t Changing’
