Pentagon considers extending Iraq deployments
By Wolf Blitzer
CNN
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WASHINGTON (CNN) -- My heart goes out to those soldiers in the U.S. Army's Third Infantry Division in Iraq who had been told they'd be coming home soon -- only to be updated with word in recent days that they have to remain in Iraq for a bit longer. They have been on the ground since September 2002. They are clearly disappointed, but they are professional soldiers committed to serving their country, and will, of course, deal with their orders.
But what is very disturbing is the impact this has on their loved ones back home. They, of course, are so anxious to hug and kiss these soldiers after worrying about them for so long. Psychologically, they had been prepared for the homecoming. Unfortunately, those spouses, children and parents are going to have to wait again.
"There's no question that the biggest problem for them is this uncertainty of when their loved ones come back," says retired U.S. Army Lt. Gen. Dan Christman.
The soldiers are all volunteers. With the draft no longer being used, the troops know what they are getting themselves into when they enlist. That is the case with the active duty personnel as well as those from the Reserves and National Guard -- many of whom have been activated in recent months. They're professional and highly motivated. But it's a very different situation for their family members.
Now, there's word the Pentagon may decide to increase the length of deployments of soldiers in Iraq to as long as one year. That's because the U.S. Army is currently strapped pretty thin. Most of the nearly 148,000 U.S. troops in Iraq right now are from the Army. This is a major national security challenge facing the Pentagon right now.
So far, the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marine Corps don't seem to be having any serious problem meeting their enlistment requirements. Young men and women want to serve. The high unemployment rate in the civilian sector -- relatively speaking -- probably helps encourage some volunteers to look for a career in the military. They are lining up for join. But that's now. One key question is what will happen to enlistment if the volunteers know going in that they may have to travel to Iraq, Afghanistan, Liberia or other hotspots for a year at a time. Will they keep on volunteering?
And Gen. Christman says the impact also could be even more serious on retaining valuable, highly-trained troops in the military. "When the Army went to the so-called "hollow force" in the early 1970's, the first contingent that left were those junior leaders that had been rotated over and over again to Vietnam," he said. "The Pentagon is extremely sensitive to avoid precisely that exodus."
The challenges for the U.S. military remain very serious indeed.
