Guard, Reserve call-up largest since 9/11
Reservists and Guard on active duty approaching 79,000
From Mike Mount
CNN
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The National Guard and Reserve have activated the largest number of troops since the massive call-up that followed the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, a Pentagon official said Wednesday.
This week a Pentagon statement said the Army, Navy and Marines combined to call up more than 20,000 Reserve and Guard troops to active duty.
The number activated is about equal to the number mobilized after the September 11 terrorist attacks, according to Pentagon spokesman Lt. Col. Dan Stoneking.
The increased Guard and Reserve troop strength coincides with the steady buildup of active-duty troops headed to the Persian Gulf region for a possible U.S. military strike against Iraq.
With the additional 20,000 troops called up, the number of Guard and Reserve troops on active duty now approaches 79,000.
• Pentagon officials have said they expect that about 100,000 Guard and Reserve troops to be activated by mid-February.
• The Marine Corps last week announced the largest reserve call-up since the Gulf War, activating over 4,500 reserves for a total of more than 8,000 reservists on active duty.
• A tally of announced activations among various branches of the military shows that in addition to the Marines, the Army Guard and Reserve have about 50,000 now on active duty; the Navy Reserves have over 5,000 and the Air Force Reserve and Air National Guard have almost 15,000 called to active duty.
The Pentagon statement didn't specify where the latest Guard and Reserve units will be sent, though the vast majority of them are expected to be part of the buildup for a possible war in Iraq.
Others are assigned to homeland defense jobs, filling in for active duty troops already deployed overseas.
