Gates Seeks Changes On Iraq Contractors« Thread Started on Oct 20, 2007, 10:54pm » --------------------------------------------------------------------------------Gates Seeks Changes On Iraq ContractorsHe Says Their Goals Clash With Military'sBy Ann Scott TysonWashington Post Staff Writer Friday, October 19, 2007; Page A16 read at source> http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/co ... terDefense Secretary Robert M. Gates said yesterday that the mission of private security contractors guarding individuals in Iraq is fundamentally at odds with the broader U.S. military objective of stabilizing Iraq, and that changes would be required to reconcile them. "Right now those missions are in conflict, because the objective of . . . delivering a principal safely to a destination" has led to the mistreatment of Iraqis "to put it mildly," Gates said at a Pentagon news conference. "So those kinds of activities work at cross-purposes to our larger mission in Iraq." --------------------------------------------------------------------------------