Tuesday, March 20, 2007

Claim : US Army Left With No 'Ready' Brigade To Defend American Interests Internationally

Bush's War On Iraq Played Directly Into Al Qaeda/Bin Laden's "Destroy America" Strategy


Before the Iraq War began, there was no shortage of warnings from American and international military, war strategy and intelligence experts that such a war would play directly into the 20 year plan announced by Al Qaeda and Osama Bin Laden after 9/11 to "destroy America" by wearing it down morally, economically and militarily.

From testimony provided by leaders of America's military to the US Senate Armed Services committee in the past weeks, it is clear that the Iraq War, primarily, is the reason why the United States has now been left with no single brigade equipped and 'ready' to emergency-deploy internationally to defend America's interests.

A stunning revelation that leaves the United States extremely vulnerable and gives lie to the president's repeated claims that the Iraq War would make, and keep, America safe.

We've summarised a Washington Post report on the shocking state of the US Army and Marine Corps over at our 'Fourth World War' blog, and provided further comment.

As the United States, and the remaining Coalition of the Willing nations, enter their fifth year of the Iraq War tonight, it is a terrible reality to comprehend that President Bush has led the United States into exactly the kind of state of military decay and homefront chaos that Osama Bin Laden and Al Qaeda hoped that he would.

They knew long, sustained wars in Iraq and Afghanistan (as well as an international manhunt) would wear down the morale and resources of the United States military, and now military leaders have admitted that this is exactly the reality situation today.

Here's the summary of the main points from the Fourth War World blog report :

* The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have left the US Army in a such a state of disrepair, it will take years and tens of billions of dollars for the Army and Marine Corps to get back up to pre-War on Terror levels of efficiency, maintenance and readiness.

* Senior officers of the US Military warn the risk to the United States is "serious and deepening."

* The US Military has been left with a gaping deficit of reserve ground troops required if they are to deal "quickly and decisively with potential foreign crisis", with Iran, Pakistan and North Korea cited as being of particular concern.

* The Bush-backed troop "surge" into Baghdad is believed to have left "critical Army overseas equipment stocks for use in another conflict...depleted."

* Keeping the troop "surge" at the levels demanded by President Bush beyond August this year - more than 32,000 extra combat troops - would become "a challenge".

* The US Army currently does not have one single brigade standing ready and equipped to immediately deploy to a foreign "hot spot" should hostilities break out that put at risk American interests.

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