WASHINGTON – Should U.S. troops be placed in Syria, applying the lessons learned from Iraq would be crucial, according to the U.S. special inspector general for Iraq reconstruction, Stuart Bowen.Over the course of 10 years, the U.S. has lost 719 lives to rebuilding efforts and an estimated $60 billion, at least $8 billion of that wasted, according to Bowen.
“Rather than a 10-year rebuilding program, it’s been a 10 one year rebuilding program in both countries [Iraq and Afghanistan],” Bowen said during a conference at the Institute for the Study of War on Monday.
Stuart Bowen, special inspector general of Iraq reconstruction, spoke on Monday about what the U.S. can learn from Iraq’s 10 year rebuilding efforts. (Paige Sutherland/MNS)
For more than nine years, Bowen has served as the U.S. watchdog on the ground in Iraq. Over the course of his 34 trips to Iraq, Bowen has produced 390 audits and inspections, yielding 86 convictions for fraud and other crimes and has recovered more than $200 million for the government.
“The United States is not significantly better off, structurally, with regard to planning for, executing or overseeing stabilization and reconstruction operations then it was 10 years ago,” he said.
Besides a lack of planning and execution, the U.S. also failed to consult effectively with Iraqis, to establish leadership uniformity and had little to no oversight, he said. These challenges were among the root causes of Iraq’s prolonged reconstruction, he said.
The lessons learned in Iraq should guide U.S. strategy if American reconstruction efforts in Syria are needed in the future, Bowen said.
The past three months have been the bloodiest in Iraq since mid-2008, Bowen said, attributing the increased violence to the Syrian conflict, calling it a spillover effect.
In Iraq, the lead agencies were the Department of Defense, the Department of State and the U.S. Agency for International Development. Little to no coordination existed amongst these organizations, which made executing the more than 90,000 contracting actions that occurred in Iraq over this decade difficult to manage, said Bowen.
This lack of decisive leadership along with the high turnover of contractors halted the progress of the rebuilding efforts. For one project there could be up to 15 to 20 different contracting officers, according to Bowen’s final report on Iraq published in March.
In order to be able to respond to challenges like those faced in Iraq, a pre-established structure and strategy must be in place before the military operation, Bowen said.
“I’m all for no more Iraqs or Afghanistans, but that is more of a policy than a hope,” Bowen said. “It is our responsibility as a country to take on the lessons of Iraq, apply them to our system and improve a structure so we don’t occupy and rebuild year after year after year.”
Last week, Rep. Steve Stockman, D-Texas, introduced a bill that would help establish planning and structuring for future reconstruction efforts by creating the Office for Contingency Operations. The bill has been referred to a committee for review.