Such firepower would transform postwar Iraq's emerging armed forces, which are having to take over responsibility for security in violence-battered Iraq as the Americans pull out.

It would also cause some concern in Iraq's neighbors, particularly Kuwait and Saudi Arabia whose memories of the 1990-91 Persian Gulf conflict are still bitterly sharp, and in Iran, which seeks to dominate its former enemy.

U. S. Army Gen. Ray Odierno, the U.S. commander in Iraq, said Friday that he expects the Pentagon to meet Baghdad's request for Lockheed Martin's multi-role Fighting Falcons, one of the world's most powerful combat aircraft, in he near future.

But he stressed that this was unlikely until the U.S. military withdrawal has been completed. That is scheduled for the end of 2011.

"This will be an evolving process over the next several years," he said in Washington.

The Iraqi defense ministry has said it would like 96 F-16s by 2020 but Odierno gave no indication as to the number of aircraft the Pentagon had in mind for the Iraqi air force.

Initially, the Iraqis want 18 aircraft, enough to equip one squadron, within a year and eventually have a combat force of at least five F-16 squadrons.

The Iraqis are prepared to expend tens of billions of dollars on rebuilding their military following the toppling of Saddam Hussein's tyrannical regime in April 2003 and have been examining other options if Washington doesn't agree to sell them F-16s.

France, Russia and China have offered to provide aircraft but the Americans would clearly prefer Iraq bought American since the infrastructure of the new air force uses U.S. equipment and standardization with U.S. forces would be preferable.

Iraqi Defense Minister Abdel Qader Jassim said in July that Baghdad had "many alternatives," stressing: "Wherever we can get it, we're going to obtain it."

If the Pentagon does agree to provide the F-16, the Iraqis won't be able to take delivery on before late 2013 at the earliest because of Lockheed Martin's production backlog.

In May, the Financial Times reported that Baghdad was negotiating with Britain's BAE Systems to buy up to 24 Hawk jet trainers, which are used to train pilots for supersonic fighters, in a deal worth as much as $1.6 billion.

If the new deal is concluded, it would constitute Britain's biggest arms deal with Iraq since the 1980s when Saddam was deemed a Western ally against Iran.

In 1989, Iraq was negotiating to buy 50 Hawk trainers from BAE's predecessor, British Aerospace. But Britain's conservative government, by then leery of the Iraqi dictator, blocked the deal citing concern that the aircraft could be converted for combat.

Such a purchase, given Iraq's history of military confrontations under Saddam, is viewed with considerable misgivings by its neighbors.

The 3,000-strong air force, which will arguably be more oriented toward external threats than much of Iraq's new security apparatus, is slowly re-emerging since the Americans began to rebuild it in 2005 and switched from Saddam's Soviet-era weaponry.

But its composition and firepower is still being questioned while the Americans, and to some extent the Iraqi government, seek to balance the requirements for self-defense, and deterrence of potential enemies, against an offensive potential that threatens other states.

The Baghdad government has been moving toward large-scale investment in air power. But the Americans have made clear it won't be allowed to grow to the proportions of the air power -- some 750 aircraft -- that Saddam had when he invaded Kuwait Aug. 2, 1990.

The U.S.-approved plan to rebuild a self-sufficient air force from the ashes of defeat envisions a strength of 350 aircraft and 20,000 personnel by 2020.

Iraq has no fixed-wing combat aircraft at this time, although it has acquired some 18 Russian-designed Mi-17 transport helicopters that can be armed with rockets for ground-attack missions.

del.icio.us	Digg	Reddit
YahooMyWeb	Google	Facebook

Memory Foam Mattress Review

SPACE MEDIA NETWORK PROMOTIONS Solar Energy Solutions Tempur-Pedic Mattress Comparison ... Newsletters :: SpaceDaily :: SpaceWar :: TerraDaily :: Energy Daily XML Feeds :: Space News :: Earth News :: War News :: Solar Energy News