BROUGHT TO YOU BY the US Joint Contracting Command: This sprawling 126-page pdf contract solicitation allows a rare look under the hood of what the Pentagon is looking for and requiring of private security operators in Iraq.
FREE DINNER to the reader who guesses the awardee on this one! Hmmmm….Blackwater? Global? DynCorp? Sandi? (Hey, is this a pre-selection?)
SOUNDS LIKE A BIG ONE: You have to scroll down a bit to page 7 to get the actual details in the statement of work, but the idea is to protect logistics sites, i.e., truck depots and warehouses, at Baghdad North/Abu Guraib and the Port of Umm Qasr, “as well as locations all over Iraq” that distribute reconstruction materials throughout the country of Iraq.
OUT OF IRAQ IN 2008? Well, maybe not everyone. This solicitation has one year options through 2010.
QUALITY ASSURANCE? It’s the same-old same-old as far as oversight. The contractor has full reins on this one.

“The Government will rely on the contractor’s existing quality assurance systems as a substitute for full-time Government oversight and inspection. Any in process inspections by the Government shall be conducted in a manner consistent with commercial practice and at the Government’s convenience.”

NO COERCION: The contractor shall ensure that all security personnel at Baghdad North/Abu Ghraib and the Port of Umm Qasr hire individuals who are likely not to be coerced, intimidated, or persuaded by potential insurgent activity in Baghdad and Umm Qasr; further, contractor must hire individuals who will not coerce, intimidate, or mistreat individuals based on race, religion, or sectarian affiliation; thereby enhancing the reliability of subject site security program. Further, employees must have the cultural knowledge of Iraq and its inhabitants.
QUICK REACTION FORCE: “The QRF team shall consist of 4-13 people depending on the situation. QRF personnel shall be equipped with vehicles and have access to a variety of weapons (i.e. M-16A2, M203, M60, M240G, M249, and Mk 19) to resolve hostilities. The standard QRF response time shall be 5-15 minutes.”