The Foreign Service Journal, December 2006

DE C EMB E R 2 0 0 6 / F OR E I GN S E R V I C E J OU R N A L 61 A F S A N E W S V.P. VOICE: STATE BY STEVE KASHKETT Stepping Up to the Plate in Iraq W e hear it all the time from right-wing pundits who are always looking for an excuse to bash the State Department, fromneocon ideologues hunting for a scapegoat to blame for the failure of their grand schemes to reshape theMiddle East, and—sadly—fromsome of ourmil- itary colleagues at the Pentagon. Our detractors love to whis- per that we diplomats of the ForeignService are just not onboard with the president’s agenda, that we are not taking the tough jobs in the tough places, that we are not “stepping up to the plate” in Iraq. Meanwhile, the Secretary of State has created the largest U.S. diplomatic mis- sion in the world in Baghdad and is also staffing 16 provincial outposts scattered across Iraq with dozens of our people. The director general hasmade far-reach- ing changes in our assignment system and is conveying repeatedly to ourmem- bers that service in Iraq is the adminis- tration’s highest priority. The Foreign Service is answering the call. The facts speak for themselves: dur- ing the past four years, more than 1,400 members of the Foreign Service have volunteered to serve in Iraq. Many State civil servants have leapt at the opportunity to serve there as well. All these patriotic employees assume the risks of living in a war zone, taking on an incomparably diffi- cult task and spending a year or more away from their fami- lies. The number of volunteers is striking when you consider that the entire active-duty State ForeignServiceworldwide, which has to staff 250 other embassies and consulates around theworld — most of which are also in hardship spots — only hovers around 10,000. Contrast this 10,000 with the Pentagon’s 2.5millionmem- bers of the combined uniformed armed forces and reserves. Unlike our military counterparts, who go to war when their units are called up and ordered to go, our 1,400-plus Foreign Service members have all volunteered for Iraq; State has had no need to order anyone to go. Unlike our military counter- parts, Foreign Service members courageously plunge into that war zone unarmed, untrained for combat and willing to take on the daunting task of trying to establish a new, democratic society and to rebuild a country while the war rages on around them. Some would consider this task to be impossible to accom- plish until the military has succeeded in pacifying and securing the country. The stated mission of the Iraq Provincial Reconstruction Teams, which are led by Foreign Service members, includes ensuring stability and transparent democratic governance in each region of Iraq, fostering respect for human rights and the rule of law, ending corruption, establishing civil-society institutions, stim- ulating economic development and overseeing reconstruction of the country’s infrastructure. Members of the Foreign Service and State Department Civil Service in Iraq are daily undertaking heroic efforts to accomplish this ambitious mission under the most difficult and dangerous conditions imag- inable—but it is a tall order for unarmed diplomats struggling to function in a country still at war. Security problems over which our people have no control affect every aspect of their work. Foreign Servicemembers can only venture out of the International Zone in Baghdadwith extensive protec- tion and undermilitary escort. These limitations on ourmem- bers’ ability to move about the country are often even more severe at PRTs, which are supposed to cover vast regions of Iraq, some of which remain dangerous even for U.S. military convoys. Threats and fears of reprisal often inhibit Iraqi con- tacts from coming to meet with our people in the IZ or at the PRTs. Despite all this, Foreign Service employees have bravely put themselves in the forefront of the mission to rebuild Iraq and are doing their best in the chaotic environment created by the ongoing sectarian violence and the struggle between the U.S. armed forces and the insurgency. We understand the insur- mountable challenges confronting ourmilitary colleagues and do not blame them for the lack of progress in bringing peace to Iraq. In the same vein, we expect understanding of the extreme constraints onunarmedForeign Servicememberswhen they try valiantly to accomplish the Herculean tasks that have been left to them in Iraq. We at AFSA hear frequently from our members serving in Iraq, andwe knowbetter thanmost the personal sacrifices they are making and the obstacles they have to overcome in their daily work. They deserve our highest consideration. Foreign Service employees have bravely put themselves in the forefront of the mission to rebuild Iraq and are doing their best in the chaotic environment.