10th Mountain Commander: We're Tired

Team Infidel

Forum Spin Doctor
Syracuse Post-Standard
September 18, 2007 He talks of reality, progress and a strange alliance
By Hart Seely, Staff writer
He had seen them come and go. They would touch down in Baghdad, watch a PowerPoint presentation, then announce their conclusions blissfully unaware of Iraq's deep and dangerous complexities.
The commander of the U.S. Army's 10th Mountain Division shook his head.
This would not be such a session, he cautioned.
"I find it humorous when people fly into the Green Zone, spend three hours in a briefing, fly out and declare themselves experts on Iraq," Maj. Gen. Michael L. Oates said.
Then the 10th Mountain Division commander began a blunt, 90-minute discussion of the long, hard war. Oates and Division Sgt. Maj. James Redmore offered a rare public glimpse into uncertainties that their forces confront each day.
Oates said morale runs strong among the 8,000 10th Mountain soldiers, who are currently deployed in Iraq. About half of them the 1st Brigade are just arriving, as the 2nd Brigade concludes its 15-month tour.
"For all the debate about the war, the soldiers know that the American people are behind them," the general said. "They see that, they hear that, and they believe it . . . Let there be no mistake: They know the American people are supportive.
"But they are also very tired. A 15-month tour is very difficult on soldiers and on families, especially if you're on your second or third tour. The strain on soldiers and their families is not cumulative it is exponential."
Oates produced a photograph of Sunni guards clad in security vests. To keep peace in the Sunni-dominated area south of Baghdad, armed tribal volunteers have aligned with the 2nd Brigade. The U.S. military pays daily wages, and the tribes provide weapons. Thus far, the strange alliance has paid dividends.
"This area had extreme violence in the last couple of years," Oates said. "When our 2nd Brigade went in a year ago . . . they were fighting every day . . . All the sudden, a month ago, there was a precipitous decline in violence. They have not had an IED (improvised explosive device) or a death for six weeks."
In the first five months of 2007, 37 soldiers from Fort Drum were killed in combat; two others are missing. Only two have been killed since then, and none since July 17, according to Army records.
"I'm not declaring victory, and I'm not saying that we've turned the corner - none of those silly terms," Oates said. "All I can tell you accurately is that the level of violence has dropped precipitously. I do think it is attributable to these guys (tribal leaders) getting involved. I don't know how it will play out over the long term."
It's an alliance between former enemies.
"It's a pretty safe bet that a number of these guys now wearing the (security) vests were at one time planting IEDs against us," Oates said. "That we're able to do a form of reconciliation locally is at least hopeful in the short term."
The long-term success depends on getting the tribal leaders to reconcile with the Iraqi government. In the meantime, the U.S. troops run patrols.
"I do believe that certain elements of the enemy are restrained by our presence, although I don't believe we're going to completely restrain the Sunni-Shia (religious) difficulties," Oates said. "Fundamentally, my opinion is that the Iraqi government is going to have to figure out how to reconcile with the minority."
Hope for the future? Oates would not say.
"I can tell you that the level of violence has gone down. I can tell you what I see is going on. But I can't tell you with any level of assurance why that is happening exactly and how long it will last.
"And I damn sure can't tell you what would happen if we were to leave right now . . . I think that is going to be the biggest challenge: What happens when you leave? But it's one that has to be made. We can't stay there forever."
Oates discussed several other topics Monday. Some excerpts:
Extended deployment: "The 15-month tour is causing great stress in the force. They're still able to perform their duties, and their morale is still high, but there is no mistaking the stress on the force and on the family, and how it is increasing with the 15-month tour . . . There's not a person in uniform that wants a 15-month deployment. Our Army is trying desperately to get it down to 12 months or less."
The 2nd Brigade, which is finishing its tour: "I think the odds are they will return to Iraq some time in the future. My expectation is that they have more than a year back here in reset. That would be my hope."
Concerns about mental health: "It is an area where we are just now beginning to assess impact, the cumulative effect of multiple tours. I've particularly asked our medical professionals to look at families - spouses and children. To date, we have not spent a lot of time assessing the impacts of these deployments on them . . . Our families are absorbing stress. I just don't know where it's going right now. . . . There has to be some effect."
 
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