Joseph Dunford. AP file photo.
General Joseph
Dunford, the nominee to serve as the next chairman of the US Joint
Chiefs of Staff, said that he envisions Iraq breaking into two separate
Kurdish and Shiite states, but was uncertain about a Sunni portion.
“From my perspective, I can imagine two states
in Iraq,” Dunford said Thursday during exchanges with senators at his
confirmation hearing in the Senate Armed Services Committee.
“I have difficulty imagining a third separate
state, given the lack of resources that would be available for the
Sunnis,” said Dunford.
“Frankly, I think from a pure economic and
resources and governance perspective, the Shiites and Kurds are much
more equipped to set up separate states than the Sunni would be,”
Dunford said in response to questions put to him by senators.
Asked whether Kurdish forces are receiving US
weapons delivered through Baghdad in a timely manner for the war against
the Islamic State (ISIS) group, Dunford said his understanding is that
the issue of weapons delays has been resolved. He said that, if
confirmed in his position, he would follow up the issue personally.
“This issue is so important that I will look
into it personally,” he said. “As the matter of fact I will go there
(the Kurdistan region) and visit and will make my own personal
assessment based on the facts on the ground,” he added.
The Barack Obama administration has remained
consistent in its policy towards a united Iraq, where weapons are
channeled via the Shiite-led central government in Baghdad to the
Kurdish and Sunni forces fighting ISIS.
The Kurds and Sunnis have criticized the
roundabout arms deliveries, saying the delays give time to ISIS to
mobilize and regroup its forces. The autonomous Kurdistan Regional
Government (KRG) consistently complains it does not have the weapons to
match those that ISIS has stolen from fleeing or defeated Iraqi forces.
