When President Barack Obama announced on Friday that all U.S. military forces will be withdrawn from Iraq before the end of the year, it seemed like the end of an era. However, in reality, thousands of Americans will still be in harm’s way in the volatile country.

 

Once the U.S. military pulls out the last of the 41,000 troops currently in Iraq, the State Department will ramp up its own force of private security contractors, which is about 3,000 in size right now. By January it’s expected to be 5,500. These guards will be supported by another 4,500 “general life support” contractors who will take care of food, medical services and other needs.

 

Among the financial winners in the new arrangement are Triple Canopy, which has a $1.5 billion contract to protect State Department official in Iraq; SOC Incorporated, which will protect the U.S. embassy in Baghdad for up to $974 million; and Global Strategies Group, which has a $410 million contract to guard the U.S. consulate in Basra. Contracts to protect other consulates in Iraq are still out for bidding.

 

American diplomats predict the number of foreign contractors employed by the State Department will decrease over the next three to five years. This change will be due to the U.S. hiring more local Iraqis and an improved security situation in Iraq.

 

It almost goes without saying the CIA will also maintain a significant presence after the troops are gone.

-David Wallechinsky, Noel Brinkerhoff

 

A look at US Presence in Iraq after Troops Leave (by Kirit Radia, ABC News)

The Iraq War Ain’t Over, No Matter What Obama Says (by Spencer Ackerman, Danger Room)

Renamed Combat Brigades Carry on in Iraq (by Noel Brinkerhoff, AllGov)

U.S. Combat in Iraq is Over…Except for the Air Strikes and Deaths (by Noel Brinkerhoff, AllGov)