Training Iraqis to take charge of their destiny

Lieutenant Colonel Thomas Edward Lawrence counselled his peers to be hands off and stand back when helping the Arab people in their war against the Turks - not to win it for them.

The legendary officer's words, published 90 years ago in the Arab Bulletin during the First World War, offer valuable guidance for British soldiers working with the Iraqi Security Forces (ISF) in modern-day Iraq. And his advice took on even greater importance when the responsibility for security in Basra province switched from British to ISF control at the end of last year.

No longer a fledgling army, Iraqi soldiers are suited and booted and taking charge of Basra and its future. This sits well with the British Army - the less the ISF depends on coalition forces to intervene with warring militias or stopping arms being smuggled into the city, the quicker the end game of reducing troop numbers can be reached.

But the Army, police and border enforcement agency that make up the ISF have recognised they need more training to handle the aftermath of five years of instability before the Brits can leave. British soldiers have learned they must strike a delicate balance between fully equipping the ISF with potentially life-saving skills but not over-stepping the cultural mark and teaching their counterparts to suck eggs.

A mix of hands-on instruction in advanced skills such as marksmanship and hands-off mentoring while on the ground with the ISF conducting operations is proving to be a winning formula.

About 250 Iraqi soldiers are trained each month on two-week advanced drill courses at Shaibah's Divisional Training Centre (DTC) to prepare them for controlling security around Basra province.

Mons Company of the 1st Battalion, The Royal Regiment of Scotland, runs the DTC. Iraqi company commanders are asked what training they want and, after assessing the men's strengths and weaknesses, the British instructors get to work on those areas in need of attention. Sergeant Stevan Skinner, 1 Scots and DTC instructor, emphasised the benefits of getting the Iraqi Army up to speed:

"The more we train them, the more they can go out on the ground and the more the public will respect and have confidence in them," he said. "Training this army up to rely on itself is, in my eyes, an achievement."

Mentoring needs a different approach. Treading the fine advisory line on combined operations led by the ISF, Corporal Dougie McLean, 1 Scots, patrolled with his Iraqi Army counterparts after they had completed their combat vehicle training on the British Warrior.

He had noticed a competitive streak when they got out on the ground with their own Russian BMP armoured personnel carriers:

"We use the same vehicle drills so they can understand the similarities but they like to see the difference too - they have competitions and race us," he laughed, adding that his mentoring role had turned out to be very different to what he had expected.

"A lot of them are really motivated because they realise they have to step up and do things themselves if they don't want us here. And they are getting better with the skills that are now being tested in the field."

One of the major challenges had been strengthening the Iraqi Army mission command structure by proving the worth of the junior and senior NCOs. Leading by example, and despite being on his first tour, Private Dylan Hughes, 1 Scots, appreciates the difference between training and mentoring:

"We let them do their own thing, as we're there to make sure nothing goes wrong. So we need to sit back and watch to see if we are needed. They've picked up the training we've given them quite well and most of them are really keen," he said.

"It's been good for me, as it has given me confidence in speaking up and trying to train people.

"And it's rewarding to get the Iraqi Army trained to a level where the local people have full confidence in their own forces and our guys can go home."

This article first appeared in the February 2008 edition of Soldier, Magazine of the British Army.