Lt. Gen. Rashid Flayah Muhammad Al-Halifi, Samarra Operations Center commander, and Maj. Gen. Craig Franklin, 332nd Air Expeditionary Wing commander, sign the memorandum of understanding at the opening ceremony for the Iraqi Army’s facilities Aug. 16, Joint Base Balad, Iraq. The memorandum is a formalized foundation of the new partnership between the two forces. The opening of the facility is a step in the responsible drawdown of U.S. forces in Iraq. The entire base will be turned over to the government of Iraq before the end of 2011. General Franklin is a native of Chicago, General Rashid is a native of Baghdad, Iraq.