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 How many contractors will deploy to Iraq - beyond the roughly
1,800 now working there for the U.S. State Department - will depend
in part, the official said, on how widely dispersed U.S. troops
advising Iraqi security forces are, and how far they are from U.S.
diplomatic facilities.
Still, the preparations to increase the number of contractors - who
can be responsible for everything from security to vehicle repair
and food service - underscores Obama's growing commitment in Iraq.
When U.S. troops and diplomats venture into war zones, contractors
tend to follow, doing jobs once handled by the military itself.
"It is certain that there will have to be some number of contractors
brought in for additional support," said the senior U.S. official,
speaking on condition of anonymity.
After Islamic State seized large swaths of Iraqi territory and the
major city of Mosul in June, Obama ordered U.S. troops back to Iraq.
Last month, he authorized roughly doubling the number of troops, who
will be in non-combat roles, to 3,100, but is keen not to let the
troop commitment grow too much.
 There are now about 1,750 U.S. troops in Iraq, and U.S. Defense
Secretary Chuck Hagel last week ordered deployment of an additional
1,300.
The U.S. military’s reliance on civilians was on display during
Hagel's trip to Baghdad this month, when he and his delegation were
flown over the Iraqi capital in helicopters operated by State
Department contractors.
The problem, the senior U.S. official said, is that as U.S. troops
continue flowing into Iraq, the State Department's contractor ranks
will no longer be able to support the needs of both diplomats and
troops.
After declining since late 2011, State Department contractor numbers
in Iraq have risen slightly, by less than 5 percent, since June, a
State Department spokesman said.
CONTROVERSIAL PRESENCE
For example, in July, the State Department boosted from 39 to 57 the
number of personnel protecting the U.S. consulate in Erbil that came
under threat from Islamic State forces during its June offensive.
That team is provided by Triple Canopy, part of the Constellis Group
conglomerate, which is the State Department's largest security
contractor. Constellis did not respond to a phone call seeking
comment.
The presence of contractors in Iraq, particularly private security
firms, has been controversial since a series of violent incidents
during the U.S. occupation, culminating in the September 2007
killing of 14 unarmed Iraqis by guards from Blackwater security
firm.
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Three former guards were convicted in October of voluntary
manslaughter charges and a fourth of murder in the case, which
prompted reforms in U.S. government oversight of contractors.
U.S. troops in Iraq are not using private contractors to provide
them additional security, a second U.S. official said.
Virtually all the U.S. government contractors now in Iraq work for
the State Department. The withdrawal of U.S. combat troops from Iraq
in 2011 left it little choice but to hire a small army of
contractors to help protect diplomatic facilities, and provide other
services like food and logistics.
The number of Pentagon contractors, which in late 2008 reached over
163,000 - rivaling the number of U.S. troops on the ground at the
time - has fallen sharply with reduced U.S. military presence.
Pentagon spokesman Mark Wright said there is only a handful left now
and they report to the State Department. In late 2013, the Pentagon
still had 6,000 contractors in Iraq, mostly supporting U.S. weapon
sales to the Baghdad government, Wright said.
But there are signs that trend will be reversed. The Pentagon in
August issued a public notice that it was seeking help from private
firms to advise Iraq's Ministry of Defense and its Counter Terrorism
Service.
The notice appeared intended as preparation, in case military
commanders need to surge contractors into Iraq. The announcement did
not specify the size or cost of the proposed effort.
The Pentagon also said in a quarterly census in October that it
would resume reporting on contractors supporting it operations in
Iraq in its next update due in January.
(Editing by Tomasz Janowski)
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