A member of the 10-man advisor support team attached to the 6th Battalion, Iraqi Army, Major Mike Sullivan provided advisory and training assistance to two rifle companies and the headquarters company from April to August 2004. Standing up this battalion from scratch, Sullivan and his fellow team members took Iraqi officers trained in Jordan and merged them with NCOs trained by Vinnell Corporation, trained a battalion cadre team, and then ran their own basic and advanced individual training - culminating in this unit eventually conducting joint operations with the 1st Infantry Division. In this interview, Sullivan discusses the full range of his experiences and provides in depth analysis and constructive criticism of the job his team did, as well as the U.S. resources and support (or lack thereof) available to them. He also shares his insightful grasp of history with respect to training indigenous forces and talks about what lessons can, were and should be learned for future operations. Focusing on cultural relations and rapport-building, Sullivan admits his team initially tried “to impose an American military culture on an Arabic society,” which did not go over well. He relates how they adapted their approaches and training plans; endeavored to overcome “the ghost of the old Iraqi Army”; dealt with a myriad of sensitive ethnic and religious issues; and addressed his biggest concern: the Iraqis’ “lack of understanding of the logistics behind the missions.” Offering a wealth of advice for future officers who’ll be working with and training foreign armies, Sullivan says that, “We need to find the right kind of people who, like T.E. Lawrence, are not afraid to go out on their own and take some chances, to immerse themselves in the culture, and work with these people all the time.” Most of all, he adds, what’s needed is an “adventurous spirit.”

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