?”What happened in the “Balad base

Of the reasons that has called the United States for the occupation of Iraq in April / May 2003 to establish fixed military bases in it , and that what has been achieved as there are several military bases , including Al-Assad base and the base at Baghdad airport and base in Irbil Airport and other bases. Perhaps the most important US military bases in Iraq is the base ” Balad” because in this base there is a large airport and aircraft “F – 16” and there is also in the base of “Balad” US troops and important Western and international companies on the forefront the company of them is the “Lockheed Martin” this company is the world ‘s biggest ever in the area in the field of military industries noting that in 2009 its military sales formed 74% of total sales, and it was 7.1% of the total Pentagon payments to this company , where the company ‘s sales amounted to US Department of defense Pentagon in 2009, $ 38.4 billion .the company Lockheed Martin is working in four main fields : they are Aerospace industries (Aeronautics) by (27%), and electronic systems (electronic systems) by (27%), and information technology and business solutions (information systems & Global solutions) by (27), and space industries% (space systems) by (19%) . the company produces military transport aircraft and fighter jets and radar systems and satellites and missiles of various types, including surface to air and short – range missiles and ballistic missile) in addition to many of the advanced military equipment . Some of the company Industries: Trident missile , plane B- 3 Orion , the fighter aircraft F -16 fighting Falcon and Titan missile.
The Companies operating in the “Balad” Base are working on training and maintenance of Iraqi “F-16” , in the context of the Convention of “Suva” that was signed in 2008, between the United States and Iraq in the era of former Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, it is a strategic agreement between the two sides aimed at regulating agreement for the presence of US troops in Iraq and supporting Iraqi troops in various military fields. And in unexpected step , on the sixth of this month, a group of militias, its number are estimated by 200 element embarked to storm the base “Balad” by order of Iran, the consequences of this intrusion has not taken into account that led the United States and its operating companies in the base to cease producing its services to the Iraqi aircrafts “F-16” and led to stop the American Air flights .
US companies also are resented for this intrusion and informed the US ambassador in Iraq to what happened inside the base, for his part, the US ambassador told the Iraq’s Prime Minister Haider Abadi about this intrusion, and told him the necessity of the withdrawal of those elements from the base , for his part the Prime Minister kept to contact with the leaders of the popular crowd as he is the first one who is responsible for it and it as shown through discussions that the militia which was responsible for this intrusion is known as the “Brigades of Imam Ali” which was led by ” Shibl Alzerajaoa”, and after long negotiations between the Prime Minister of Iraq and the US ambassador on one side and with the militia of the popular crowd from the other side, but they did not reach to a solution to end this large crisis , in the sense that the militia did not listen to the order of Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi to leave the base immediately. This refusal is considered a explicit breach of the agreement of “Suva” and a breach of the “F-16” project that billions of dollars have been spent by Iraq on it , as this project is very crucial to break the backbone of the terrorist organization in Iraq.
For its part, the US threatened to take several immediate steps unless that militia of “Brigades of Imam Ali” do not withdraw from the base and from these measures first, “the United States halted the work of warplanes, Second US administration has demanded from its employees working at the base and who are currently” licensed “in Gulf Arab states not to return to Iraq, and the US administration threatened if the militia “Imam Ali Brigades do not come out today from the base of the Balad , the rest of the American workers will leave . this is a serious indication by Iran to the United States of America that we are , the Iranians are the decision-makers for your stay or leave from Iraq. Accordingly , we establish to tell how can be to contain this crisis, is the one who plans to break into the base of ” Balad” was aware of the negative consequences , since this base , like other US military bases scattered in different places of the world is an extension of its sovereignty, perhaps hours or coming days will be revealing to the dimensions of this crisis ? It seems that the Iranian ambassador in Iraq was right when he predicted for Iraq a month ago the hottest summer.

Rawabet Research and Strategic Studies Center