Iraqi paramilitary officers on patrol in Dora, a neighborhood in southern Baghdad that was once consumed by sectarian violence. Christoph Bangert for The New York TimesFrom The New York Times:
BAGHDAD — Iraq’s security forces, despite significant improvements, remain hobbled by shortages of men and equipment, by bureaucracy, corruption, political interference and security breaches that have resulted in the deaths of dozens of Iraqi and American troops already this year, according to officials from both countries.
The security forces are not on the verge of collapse. American officers who work closely with Iraqi forces emphasize the progress that has been made from the days when the security forces barely functioned, and point to a rising professionalism. Nor are rogue units routinely carrying out sectarian killings, as they were a couple of years ago.
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My Comment: To transform a corrupt and dysfunctional military with a history and culture of being ineffective is going to take more than 5 years. Maybe in 20 years they will be up to par with the best of the best .... but for the moment they are far away from that.