Rice orders Baghdad embassy posts filled

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has ordered U.S. Embassy posts in Baghdad filled ahead of others worldwide, saying it's essential diplomats sent to Iraq be the most qualified.

In a cable sent to all U.S. missions abroad and obtained Wednesday by The Associated Press, Rice disclosed a new hiring plan amid increasing criticism of American efforts in Iraq. It is designed to prevent a potential severe vacancy problem and, in part, reduce resistance from anti-war elements in the State Department who have been accused of holding up appointments and discouraging diplomats from going to Iraq.

"We must ensure that these top priority requirements are met before any other staffing decisions are made," Rice said in the cable. "To that end, we have decided to take the unprecedented step of creating a special country-specific assignment cycle for Iraq, commencing with the release of this message."

The move could hold up appointments to other posts and force, or "direct," some diplomats to accept positions at what is the largest U.S. embassy in the world. More than 300 foreign service officers and civil service officers report to the Baghdad embassy in Iraq.

As of June 1, 99 percent of those positions were filled, but there are growing concerns that the department may soon face a significant shortfall because of the one-year rotation that diplomats serve in Baghdad.

"It is my fervent hope that we will continue to see sufficient numbers ... volunteering for Iraq service, but we must be prepared to meet our requirements in any eventuality," Rice said in the unclassified cable sent Tuesday.

"While these measures may seem far-reaching, I believe they are necessary and ultimately better for everyone concerned," she wrote.

The steps follow an earlier offer for any diplomat wanting to learn Arabic to leave their current post immediately for two years of language training and onward posting to Iraq and an appeal from the new U.S. Ambassador in Baghdad, Ryan Crocker, for the urgency of the Iraq operation to be made clear to State Department bureaus.

They also come amid private accusations from some senior officials that Iraq war foes inside the State Department and its union have compromised staffing and operations at the embassy through either direct efforts or inaction.

The union denies the charges, but they threaten to re-open wounds from the rancorous debate over the decision to topple Saddam Hussein that many diplomats questioned, and the initial plans for post-war construction, which largely ignored recommendations prepared by a special State Department task force.

They are also likely to exacerbate internal administration disputes about Iraq and the struggle with Congress over growing calls from lawmakers for the speedy withdrawal of U.S. troops from the increasingly violent country.

Most officials would discuss the matter only on condition of anonymity because they were describing potentially volatile claims.

But problems with staffing at the Baghdad embassy have been a subject of much public hand-wringing and Crocker's appeal in a cable, which was first disclosed by The Washington Post.

Crocker's May 31 cable asks for more and better diplomats to be posted to the embassy and for Rice's office on the 7th floor of the State Department's Foggy Bottom headquarters to impress on all bureaus, particularly the one that oversees Iraq, of the mission's importance.

"A clear message from the Seventh Floor to all Assistant Secretaries that staffing Iraq is an imperative," he wrote in the cable, a copy of which was also obtained by AP.

Crocker said the Near East Bureau must have the primary role in appointing diplomats to Baghdad and that no other bureau should be allowed to hamper the process. "No more gaps will be permitted," he said.

The cable was widely interpreted as an appeal for more senior personnel, but the State Department said Tuesday that 85 percent of officers at the Baghdad embassy already have eight or more years of service.

Officals familiar with the situation said Crocker was more importantly addressing concerns that Iraq policy is being obstructed by opponents of the war who have influence on staffing decisions.

They cited numerous examples, including three involving qualified mid-level staffers and two involving more senior diplomats, who volunteered for Baghdad duty but whose appointments were delayed for months or discouraged at the expense of the embassy and its tasks.

One senior State Department official described the resistance as "passive-aggressive," but said it was clearly related to differences over the Iraq war and at odds with the requirement for career diplomats to promote the policies of any administration for which they serve.

Another said that in some cases there appeared to be active sabotage of Iraq staffing plans and claimed that the diplomats' union, the American Foreign Service Association, or AFSA, was interfering in the process by suggesting that Baghdad is too unsafe for civilian diplomats, many of whom are returning home with stress-related disorders.

The official allowed that Iraq is an extremely dangerous hardship post with near daily insurgent mortar attacks on the fortified Green Zone where the embassy is located but accused AFSA and some in the State Department of attempting to hamper policy by advising Baghdad candidates not to go and warning of potential career damage.

The organization's vice president Steve Kashkett denied that the union had ever taken a position on Iraq policy and noted the group has made detailed recommendations about how to encourage diplomats to volunteer to work at the Baghdad embassy.

"Our job is to represent the concerns of our members around the world, including those in Iraq," said Kashkett, who testified about mental health issues and Iraq-based diplomats before Congress on Tuesday. "It's regrettable for anyone to suggest that if we speak out about our concerns we are undermining policy."