Maliki disagrees with the President and Condi Rice...

An interesting article on some public statements from Iraq is in today's Washington Post. Some of the comments made by Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki show that he disagrees with some of the recent decisions and statements made by the President and it appears he wants more military aid as well as weapons/technology for Iraq. I recommend the entire article but some selected paragraphs:

The Iraqi government's need for American troops would "dramatically go down" in three to six months if the United States accelerated the process of equipping and arming Iraq's security forces, Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki said Wednesday.

Maliki disputed President Bush's remarks broadcast Tuesday that the execution of former Iraqi president Saddam Hussein "looked like it was kind of a revenge killing" and took exception to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice's Senate testimony last week that Maliki's administration was on "borrowed time."

The prime minister said statements such as Rice's "give morale boosts for the terrorists and push them toward making an extra effort and making them believe they have defeated the American administration," Maliki said. "But I can tell you that they have not defeated the Iraqi government."

One Maliki aide said the prime minister wants "heavier weapons" and is concerned that Iraqi security forces are outgunned by militias and insurgents.

"Basically the level of weapons in the current army is really a disgrace," said the aide, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he is not authorized to speak publicly about the matter. In many cases, gunmen are "definitely better armed" than the police and the army, the aide said.

It almost sounds like Iraq would prefer to just have the US hand over weapons and leave, which while may sound tempting, who's hands some of the heavier weaponry will end up in has been a past concern. Visions of the movie "Lord of War" come to mind, since I know it's possible for most of these groups to continue to have access to military technology and weapons, as long as they have the money...