Iraqis form their own navy, given control of new base

With the handover of the sovereignty less than three weeks away, Iraq yesterday gained one of its clearest signs of nationhood with the formation of its own naval fleet.

It might be a humble collection of five patrol boats, five ribs and the promise of two corvettes, but the significance of the Iraqi Coastal Defence Force (ICDF) appears to go far beyond the volume of its hardware.

Naval top brass from the coalition gathered yesterday in the new naval base they built in the Umm Qasr to carry out a ceremony handing over control of the fleet to its Iraqi officers.

The naval base is perched on Iraq's narrow stretch of shoreline on the Gulf, and it was here, in the corner of an empty parade ground that Iraqis gained control of their first functioning military service since the fall of Saddam Hussain.

Umm Qasr port really does seem to be in the middle of nowhere, yet the security at the handover was exceptionally high. The austere buildings of the port have sprung up in a matter of months. Cranes, hangars and the briefing rooms dominate the scenery.

About 150 members of the ICDF paraded at the ceremony, and the significance of the occasion was certainly not lost on any of them. In fact, they were the first to point out that it was a sign that their country was "being reborn."

One of the first waves of recruits is Lt. Haider Kadhem, aged 24, a mechanical engineer, who was keen to point out that he was "happy and proud" to be a part of the handover ceremony.

"I am also happy to be serving my country," he said. Asked about those people who take a hostile stance on the coalition and the Iraqis who work with the coalition, he said, "this is something. They are free to think, this is freedom. But we have to have a friendship with the coalition and with the rest of the world as they have already liberated us from the Saddam regime."

"In general I think the people in Iraq will be happy, just like me, to know their country has its own navy."

The ICDF consists of 62 officers, both navy and marines, as well as 160 non-commissioned officers. The force will grow to 410 by September.

The new personnel have been training since January and the preparation involved lessons coordinated by British officers and a stay at the Britannia Royal Naval College in Dartmouth, England. The ships were given by China when it was found that the country still owed Iraq some money, while bulk of the funding for the new fleet, the naval base and its personnel have come from the US.

Britain's Royal Navy was running the show in Umm Qasr port. And one of the principal speakers at the handover was First Sea Lord Admiral Sir Alan West, who said, "having a navy is one of the clearest signs of a nation being a nation."