US Seeks To Boost Iraqi Security Forces.

US military equipment and trainers are once again flowing into Iraq as Washington continues efforts to bolster the Iraqi Security Forces (ISF).

US Seeks To Boost Iraqi Security Forces.

On 8 January US Embassy Baghdad announced it had delivered 250 mine-resistant ambush-protected (MRAP) trucks to the Iraqi Army to help protect against roadside bombs.

The vehicles were from stocks based within US Central Command (CENTCOM), likely meaning stored in Kuwait, and images released by the embassy appeared to show BAE Systems Caiman MRAPs.

The Pentagon on 19 December announced a potential sale of more M1A1 Abrams main battle tanks (MBTs) and M1151A1 Up-Armored Humvees to Iraq that would, if approved by the US Congress, be worth nearly USD3 billion. Most notably, 175 M1A1 Abrams and associated equipment and support are included in that for about USD2.4 billion.

Iraq received 140 M1A1 Abrams from the United States over the past few years, plus six more recently, but it is believed that at least 28 of those have been damaged to some degree during fights with the Islamic State.

Meanwhile, Pentagon spokesman Rear Admiral John Kirby told reporters on 8 January that he expects "additional [US military] trainers to flow into country this month". He added that US training for ISF has already started on a limited scale, and is initially designed to train 12 total brigades: nine Iraqi brigades throughout the country and three Kurdish brigades in Irbil.