As many of you are aware, the President of the United States of America and Commander in Chief of the American Military addressed a joint session of Congress and the nation earlier this evening. Overall, I think he gave an honest assessment of the State of the Union and outlined a sensible, comprehensive agenda engaging several important domestic and foreign affairs facing our nation today. As this is a Milblog, and I am an active duty Soldier, I was keenly tuned into his remarks regarding the change in strategy in Iraq and the Global War on Terror.
This is not the fight we entered in Iraq, but it is the fight we are in. Every one of us wishes that this war were over and won. Yet it would not be like us to leave our promises unkept, our friends abandoned, and our own security at risk. Ladies and gentlemen: On this day, at this hour, it is still within our power to shape the outcome of this battle. So let us find our resolve, and turn events toward victory.
In order to make progress toward this goal, the Iraqi government must stop the sectarian violence in its capital. But the Iraqis are not yet ready to do this on their own. So we are deploying reinforcements of more than 20,000 additional soldiers and Marines to Iraq. The vast majority will go to Baghdad, where they will help Iraqi forces to clear and secure neighborhoods and serve as advisers embedded in Iraqi Army units. With Iraqis in the lead, our forces will help secure the city by chasing down terrorists, insurgents, and roaming death squads. And in Anbar province — where Al Qaeda terrorists have gathered and local forces have begun showing a willingness to fight them — we are sending an additional 4,000 United States Marines, with orders to find the terrorists and clear them out. We did not drive Al Qaeda out of their safe haven in Afghanistan only to let them set up a new safe haven in a free Iraq.
My fellow citizens, our military commanders and I have carefully weighed the options. We discussed every possible approach. In the end, I chose this course of action because it provides the best chance of success. Many in this Chamber understand that America must not fail in Iraq — because you understand that the consequences of failure would be grievous and far reaching. If American forces step back before Baghdad is secure, the Iraqi government would be overrun by extremists on all sides. We could expect an epic battle between Shia extremists backed by Iran, and Sunni extremists aided by al Qaeda and supporters of the old regime. A contagion of violence could spill out across the country — and in time the entire region could be drawn into the conflict.
This is where matters stand tonight, in the here and now. I have spoken with many of you in person. I respect you and the arguments you have made. We went into this largely united — in our assumptions, and in our convictions. And whatever you voted for, you did not vote for failure. Our country is pursuing a new strategy in Iraq — and I ask you to give it a chance to work. And I ask you to support our troops in the field — and those on their way.
That final paragraph brings me to the other critical address that occurred today, one you may not be aware of; that of Lieutenant General David H. Petraeus this morning before a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing on his nomination to be the commander of U.S. forces in Iraq.
The situation in Iraq has deteriorated significantly since the bombing this past February of the Al-Askari mosque in Samarra, the third-holiest Shi’a Islamic shrine.
The increase in the level of violence since then, fueled by the insurgent and sectarian fighting that spiraled in the wake of the bombing, has made progress in Iraq very difficult and created particularly challenging dynamics in the capital city of Baghdad.
Indeed, many Iraqis in Baghdad today confront life-or-death, stay-or-leave decisions on a daily basis. They take risks incalculable to us just to get to work, to educate their children and to feed their families.
For a military commander, the term “secure” is a clearly defined doctrinal task, meaning to gain control of an area or terrain feature and to protect it from the enemy. Thus, the tasks will be clear-cut, though difficult. Certainly upcoming operations will be carried out in full partnership with Iraqi forces, with them in the lead whenever possible and with arm’s length when that is not possible. Transition of Iraqi forces and provinces to Iraqi control will continue to feature prominently in the coalition plan, and as recommended by the Iraqi (sic) Study Group, the adviser effort will be substantially reinforced.
The primacy of population security in the capital will mean a greater focus on that task, particularly in the most threatened neighborhoods. This will, of course, require that our unit commanders and their Iraqi counterparts develop a detailed appreciation of the areas in which they will operate, recognizing that they may face a combination of Sunni insurgents, international terrorists, sectarian militias and violent criminals.
Together with Iraqi forces, a persistent presence in these neighborhoods will be essential.
Some of the members of this committee have observed that there is no military solution to the problems of Iraq. They are correct.
Ultimate success in Iraq will be determined by actions in the Iraqi political and economic arenas on such central issues as governance, the amount of power devolved to the provinces and possibly regions, the distribution of oil revenues, national reconciliation and resolution of sectarian differences, and so on. Success will also depend on improvements in the capacity of Iraq’s ministries, in the provision of basic services, in the establishment of the rule of law, and in economic development.
It is, however, exceedingly difficult for the Iraqi government to come to grips with the toughest issues it must resolve while survival is the primary concern of so many in Iraq’s capital. For this reason, military action to improve security, while not wholly sufficient to solve Iraq’s problems, is certainly necessary. And that is why additional U.S. and Iraqi forces are moving to Baghdad.
Indeed, the objectives of helping Iraqis increase the capacity of their governmental institutions, putting Iraq’s unemployed to work, and improving the lot and life of Iraqi citizens requires additional resources, many of which will be Iraqi. In carrying out the non-kinetic elements of this strategy, however, our soldiers, sailors, airmen, Marines, and civilians downrange must get all the help they can from all the agencies of our government. There is a plan to increase that assistance, and it is hugely important. This clearly is the time for the leaders of all our governmental departments to ask how their agencies can contribute to the endeavor in Iraq, and to provide all the assistance that they can.
Our military is making an enormous commitment in Iraq. We need the rest of the departments to do likewise, to help the Iraqi government get the country and its citizens working, and to use Iraq’s substantial oil revenues for the benefit of all the Iraqi people.
One has to wonder if General Petraeus routinely reads Sgt Hook, but if so, he certainly explains things much better than I. General Petraeus delivered a straight forward, honest assessment of the current conditions on the ground and the challenges we face and I think clearly explained the need for a strategic plan that employs our military tactically while calling on other agencies and entities both here and in Iraq to step up to the plate and contribute to winning the fight. The General knows what he’s facing and is not shying away from it; not even flinching.
If confirmed, this assignment will be my fourth year or longer deployment since the summer of 2001, three of those to Iraq. My family and I understand what our country has asked of its men and women in uniform, and of their families, since 9/11.
In fact, I would like to take this opportunity to thank the American people for their wonderful support in recent years of our men and women in uniform. Tom Brokaw observed to me one day in northern Iraq that those who have served our nation since 9/11 comprise the new “Greatest Generation.” I agree strongly with that observation, and I know the members of this committee do too.
Many of the e-mails I’ve received in recent weeks have had as their subject line “Congratulations — I think.” I understand the message they are conveying. I know how heavy a rucksack I will have to shoulder in Iraq if confirmed. I am willing to take on the position for which I have been nominated because I believe in servings one (sic) nation when asked; I — because I regard it as a distinct honor to be able to soldier again with those who are part of the brotherhood of the close fight; and because I feel an obligation to help the shab el-Iraqi, the people of Iraq, the vast majority of whom have the same desires of people the world over: security for themselves and their loved ones, satisfaction of their basic needs and an opportunity to better their life.
In closing, the situation in Iraq is dire. The stakes are high.
There are no easy choices. The way ahead will be very hard. Progress will require determination and difficult U.S. and Iraqi actions, especially the latter, as ultimately the outcome will be determined by the Iraqis. But hard is not hopeless, and if confirmed, I pledge to do my utmost to lead our wonderful men and women in uniform and those of our coalition partners in Iraq as we endeavor to help the Iraqis make the most of the opportunity our soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines have given to them.
Thank you very much.
Both of these men, leaders, Americans gave important addresses today, and if nothing else, I took away that both are vehemently committed to the security of this great nation of ours. Both understand the current world war in which we find ourselves while grasping the complexities entailed with fighting it and are willing to stand up, face our enemy, and defeat him. President Bush and General Petraeus know that victory today will not come with a front-page headline and photo of a defeated enemy signing articles of surrender aboard a naval battleship, but have no doubts that achieving victory today is just as important as it was in the past.
Understand that the consequences of failure would be grievous and far reaching.
Whatever you voted for, you did not vote for failure.
This We’ll Defend. Sgt Hook out
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