Multinational Division Central-South
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Multinational Division Central-South (MMN-CS), created in September 2003, is a part of the Multinational Force Iraq. Headquartered in Camp Echo and supported by NATO, it is under Polish command, and the Polish contingent forms its largest part. During various periods, other participants have included: the Republic of Armenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Kingdom of Denmark, the Republic of Kazakhstan, the Republic of Latvia, Republic of Lithuania, Mongolia, Republic of Romania, the Republic of El Salvador, Slovak Republic, the Kingdom of Spain, Ukraine and the United States of America. As of 2008, the Lithuanian, Ukrainian, Spanish and Slovakian forces have withdrawn.
The South Central zone (formely the Upper South zone, also known as the Polish zone) which is under the authority of the Division covers the area south of Baghdad: the Al-Qādisiyyah Governorate, Karbala Governorate, Babil Governorate and the Wasit Governorate. The region had a population of about 5 million spread over 65 632 km². The Najaf Governorate was passed back to American control in 2004, due to reduction in strength of the forces under Polish command; this reduced the zone to about 3 million of population spread over 28 655 km². On January 5, 2006, Polish troops handed over control of the central Babil province to U.S. troops. Major cities in the Polish zone include Diwaniyah, Kut, Hillah, and Karbala and Najaf.
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[edit] Description in State of Denial
In Bob Woodward's book State of Denial he recounts the experience of Frank Miller, who as of March 2004 was the senior director for defense on the National Security Council. During the course of a fact finding trip to Iraq in that month he visited the leadership of the Multinational Division. Woodward's description is as follows:
Miller moved on to meet with the Polish commander of the Multinational Division, made up of troops from 23 nations. This was the shakiest part of the coalition--but an important fig leaf to suggest that the war was a broad international effort.
The Polish division commander told Miller, "I've got 23 separate national units. They have 23 separate rules of engagement. I pick up the phone, I tell the colonel in charge of the Spanish Brigade what to do. He picks up his phone, calls Madrid, and says, 'I've been told to do this. Is it okay?'"
Miller understood that this meant the Multinational Division had little or no fighting capability.
[edit] Strength and Casualties
The strength of the Division has decreased over time, it currently numbers about 2,000 troops. Casualties of the entire division are 65.
The strength of the Polish forces have decreased from 2500 (2003) to 900 (2007); Polish casualties number 25.
The Ukrainian forces numbered 1650 in 2003, by mid 2005 the number decreased to 900. Currently there is 34 officers deployed, serving in headquarters and in a unit of military assistance.[1]
The Division has been switching from stabilization tasks (patrols, etc.) towards training the Iraqi Army (8th Iraqi Army Division and security forces - Iraqi Police and Iraqi Border Police).
The headquarters of the zone were moved in 2004 from Camp Babilon to Camp Echo.
According to mission statement the primary task of the MND CS is to oversee the transfer of the military and security in the areas under its control to the provisional Iraqi authorities.
[edit] Commanders
| Rotation | Commander | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| I | Andrzej Tyszkiewicz | 17 May 2003 | 11 January 2004 |
| II | Mieczysław Bieniek | 11 January 2004 | 18 July 2004 |
| III | Andrzej Ekiert | 18 July 2004 | 7 February 2005 |
| IV | Waldemar Skrzypczak | 7 February 2005 | 26 July 2005 |
| V | Piotr Czerwiński | 26 July 2005 | 6 February 2006 |
| VI | Edward Gruszka | 6 February 2006 | 18 July 2006 |
| VII | Bronisław Kwiatkowski | 18 July 2006 | 24 January 2007 |
| VIII | Paweł Lamla | 24 January 2007 | 25 July 2007 |
| IX | Tadeusz Buk | 25 July 2007 | 30 January 2008 |
| X | Andrzej Malinowski | 30 January 2008 | - |
[edit] Forces
[edit] Polish
| Rotation | Division | Strength |
|---|---|---|
| I | 12th Polish Mechanized Division | 2500 |
| II | 11th Lubusz Armored Cavalry Division | 2500 |
| III | 16th Pomeranian Mechanized Division | 2400 |
| IV | 11th Lubusz Armored Cavalry Division | 1500 |
| V | 1st Warsaw Mechanized Division | 1500 |
| VI | 12th Polish Mechanized Division | 900 |
| VII | 16th Pomeranian Mechanized Division | 900 |
| VIII | 11th Lubusz Armored Cavalry Division | 900 |
| IX | 1st Warsaw Mechanized Division | 900 |
[edit] Spanish and Latin America (partially withdrawn)
[edit] Ukrainian (withdrawn)
| Rotation | Division | Strength |
|---|---|---|
| I | 5th Mechanized Brigade | 1,614 |
| II | 6th Mechanized Brigade | 1,793 |
| III | 7th Mechanized Brigade | 1,399 |
| IV | 81st Tactical Group | 896 |
[edit] See also
[edit] References
[edit] External links
- Multi-National Division - (Central South) at globalsecurity.org
- Lieutenant Colonel Robert Strzelecki, Polish Army, Lessons Learned: Multinational Division Central-South
- Multinational Division Central-South Commemorative Medal
| Active troops | Withdrawn troops | Multinational Force Iraq units |
|---|---|---|
TOTAL INVASION DEPLOYMENT
APPROXIMATE NUMBER OF CONTRACTORS AS OF 2/08
NATO Training Mission – Iraq |
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