YOU ARE DEFINITELY THERE FOR THE LONG HAUL CHRISTY
Bases move signals US pull-out of Iraq
By Bradley Graham and Michael Howard in BaghdadMay 24, 2005
US military commanders plan to pull back their troops from Iraq's towns and cities and redeploy them in four giant bases in a strategy they say is a prelude to eventual withdrawal.
The plan also foresees a transfer to Iraqi command of more than 100 bases that have been occupied by US-led forces since the invasion in March 2003.
But the decision to invest in the bases, which will require the construction of more permanent structures such as blast-proof barracks and offices, is seen by some as a sign the US expects to keep a permanent presence in Iraq.
Politicians opposed to a long-term US presence on Iraqi soil questioned the plan.
"They appear to be settling in a for the long run, and that will only give fuel for the terrorists," said a spokesman for the mainstream Sunni Iraqi Islamic party.
A US official in Baghdad said: "It has always been a main plank of our exit strategy to withdraw from the urban areas as and when Iraqi forces are trained up and able to take the strain. It is much better for all concerned that Iraqis police themselves."
Under the plan, for which the official said there was no "hard-and-fast" deadline, US troops would gradually concentrate inside four heavily fortified air bases, from where they would provide "logistical support and quick reaction capability where necessary to Iraqis".
The new bases would be built around airfields. The four probable locations are: Tallil in the south; Al Asad in the west; Balad in the centre and either Irbil or Qayyarah in the north.
US officers told The Washington Post the bases would have a more permanent character to them, with more robust buildings that would be built to withstand direct mortar fire.
Iraqi forces would gradually take over many of the bases now inhabited by US and other foreign troops. Eventually, US units would end up concentrated at the four heavily fortified,
strategically located hubs, enabling them to provide continued logistical support and emergency combat assistance, officers said.
They said US central command's plan for the positioning of US forces in the Middle East did not envisage keeping US forces in Iraq permanently. Instead, it called for what one army colonel described as "strategic overwatch" from bases in Kuwait, meaning US forces there would be near enough to respond to events in Iraq if necessary.
Funding for the first group of redesigned barracks was included in the $US82 billion ($108 billion) supplemental war-spending bill approved by Congress this month, a military engineer said.>>>>CONTINUED
http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2005/05/23/1116700652526.html
Bases move signals US pull-out of Iraq
By Bradley Graham and Michael Howard in BaghdadMay 24, 2005
US military commanders plan to pull back their troops from Iraq's towns and cities and redeploy them in four giant bases in a strategy they say is a prelude to eventual withdrawal.
The plan also foresees a transfer to Iraqi command of more than 100 bases that have been occupied by US-led forces since the invasion in March 2003.
But the decision to invest in the bases, which will require the construction of more permanent structures such as blast-proof barracks and offices, is seen by some as a sign the US expects to keep a permanent presence in Iraq.
Politicians opposed to a long-term US presence on Iraqi soil questioned the plan.
"They appear to be settling in a for the long run, and that will only give fuel for the terrorists," said a spokesman for the mainstream Sunni Iraqi Islamic party.
A US official in Baghdad said: "It has always been a main plank of our exit strategy to withdraw from the urban areas as and when Iraqi forces are trained up and able to take the strain. It is much better for all concerned that Iraqis police themselves."
Under the plan, for which the official said there was no "hard-and-fast" deadline, US troops would gradually concentrate inside four heavily fortified air bases, from where they would provide "logistical support and quick reaction capability where necessary to Iraqis".
The new bases would be built around airfields. The four probable locations are: Tallil in the south; Al Asad in the west; Balad in the centre and either Irbil or Qayyarah in the north.
US officers told The Washington Post the bases would have a more permanent character to them, with more robust buildings that would be built to withstand direct mortar fire.
Iraqi forces would gradually take over many of the bases now inhabited by US and other foreign troops. Eventually, US units would end up concentrated at the four heavily fortified,
strategically located hubs, enabling them to provide continued logistical support and emergency combat assistance, officers said.
They said US central command's plan for the positioning of US forces in the Middle East did not envisage keeping US forces in Iraq permanently. Instead, it called for what one army colonel described as "strategic overwatch" from bases in Kuwait, meaning US forces there would be near enough to respond to events in Iraq if necessary.
Funding for the first group of redesigned barracks was included in the $US82 billion ($108 billion) supplemental war-spending bill approved by Congress this month, a military engineer said.>>>>CONTINUED
http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2005/05/23/1116700652526.html
posted by Kangaroo Brisbane Australia at 3:29 PM
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