CAMP UR, Iraq - A ribbon-cutting ceremony was held March 28 at Iraqi Army Camp Ur, Iraq, commemorating the completion of a $27 million project funded by U.S. forces for the Iraqi Army.
Air Force Lt. Col. Steven Ramsay, the senior adviser with the Tallil Logistics Military Advisory Team and a Fitzgerald, Ga., native, said the LMAT has worked with IA Soldiers at Camp Ur for 12 of the 15 months it took to complete the project.
The new buildings will give Camp Ur the capability to support and house 9,000 Soldiers, said Ramsay.
"It is new warehouse capability, office capability, new barracks, new latrines for both the location command and the training center, including a very large (dining facility) for troops that are here for training," he said.
Ramsay said he believes the new facilities will help the Iraqi Army stand on its own after the responsible drawdown of forces from Iraq.
"(This) is the U.S. forces giving the Iraqis the necessary facilities to continue their security journey, to make them a stronger, more secure military, so they can take the final step as we transition out in 2011, for the final security here in the Dhi Qar province," he said. "The Iraqi Army, here specifically, they are very excited about the new buildings. They are very excited about that next step forward, and we are excited as the LMAT team to have been a part of this journey for the last 12 months."
Chief Warrant Officer 3 Michael J. Hoover, the officer in charge of the Ur Logistics and Technical Advisory Team with the 36th Sustainment Brigade, 13th Sustainment Command (Expeditionary) and a Gatesville, Texas, native, worked with the Iraqi Soldiers in the Ur Iraqi Army Regional Maintenance Center from August through November, to improve their skills in maintenance and supply.
Hoover attended the ceremony March 28 and said he was pleased that the IA Soldiers finally have the proper equipment and facilities to succeed in their mission, and support the competent mechanics already present.
"If the facilities are used the way they are supposed to be, the (IA Soldiers) will have a very good working environment and learning environment, and that is what is needed," he said. "They have got a good place, to be housed and to train. If they have that, they have no problems."
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