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 Obama's decision greatly expands the scope of the U.S. campaign
and the geographic distribution of American forces, some of whom
will head into Iraq's fiercely contested western Anbar province for
the first time to act as advisers.
It also raises the stakes in Obama's first interactions with
Congress after his Democratic Party was thumped by Republicans in
mid-term elections this week. The White House said it would ask
Congress for $1.6 billion for a new "Iraq Train and Equip Fund" and
billions more for operations to battle the group.
Pentagon spokesman Rear Admiral John Kirby said those funds would
need to be approved before the first additional forces head to Iraq,
something one official speculated could happen in just weeks.
"(Iraqi forces are) going on the offense now. And what this is
designed to do is to help them continue to be able to do that, to
improve their capability and their competence on the battlefield,"
Kirby said, stressing no American ground forces will take on combat
roles.
Alarmed by the advance of Islamic State militants across Iraq, Obama
began sending non-combatant troops back to Iraq in the summer for
the first time since he withdrew U.S. forces from the country in
2011.
 At the time of the withdrawal, the Pentagon boasted of Iraqi
military capabilities. But Iraqi forces crumbled in the face of
Islamic State's offensive, exposing the toll sectarian strains and
mismanagement took on the military.
Officials denied the new U.S. troop buildup amounted to "mission
creep" and said it was justified partly because of new Iraqi Shi'ite
Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi's efforts to reach out to Sunni
tribesmen and new calls from Iraq's most senior Shi'ite cleric to
rush to the Sunni tribes' aid.
AUTHORITY FOR 3,100 U.S. TROOPS
One Obama administration official, speaking on condition of
anonymity, pointed to an Iraqi plan to "organize and equip 5,000
tribesmen in Anbar."
"This is now being openly discussed in Iraq and it's starting to
happen," the official said.
About 1,400 U.S. troops are now on the ground, just below the
previous limit of 1,600 troops. The new authorization gives the U.S.
military the ability to deploy up to 3,100 troops.
Kirby said about 870 of the additional U.S. troops would be involved
in "hands-on training," and disclosed that "well over 700 additional
trainers will come from foreign governments."
The Pentagon said it planned to establish several sites across the
country to train nine Iraqi army brigades and three brigades of
Kurdish Peshmerga fighters. They would be set up in northern,
western and southern Iraq.
Kirby said the training would focus on tasks such as battlefield
leadership, tactical organization, logistics and intelligence
matters.
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The remaining 630 or so American forces would help establish "advise
and assist" operations centers, adding to similar centers in
existence in Baghdad and Arbil. Kirby said many of the additional
American troops would be dedicated to securing bases where training
and advising would take place and cautioned that American troops
still face risks.
"We already had a couple of military deaths associated with this
conflict ... Nothing we do is without risk," he said.
FIGHTING IN ANBAR PROVINCE
Officials said one location to which military advisers would soon
travel was western Anbar province, bordering Syria, where Islamic
State fighters are on the offensive.
Iraq's main military divisions in Anbar have been hit hard. At least
6,000 Iraqi soldiers were killed through June and double that number
have deserted, according to medical and diplomatic sources.
The announcement of the force expansion was made on the same day
Obama met with members of Congress at the White House and updated
them on the fight against Islamic State in Iraq and in Syria.
Obama's Iraq campaign has been criticized, particularly by some
Republicans concerned about his determination to limit the U.S. role
to air strikes and advising and training missions far from the front
lines.
U.S. Representative Buck McKeon, a California Republican, said in a
statement: "I would urge the President to reconsider his strategy
and clearly explain how this additional funding supports a new
direction. Such clarity is more likely to find swift Congressional
approval."
(Reporting by Phil Stewart and Roberta Rampton; Additional reporting
by David Alexander, Julia Edwards and Patricia Zengerle; Editing by
David Storey, Andre Grenon, Toni Reinhold and Ken Wills)
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