Transformation plans to be addressed soon, says U.S. ambassador to Germany

Stars and Stripes ^ | 23 Jan 04 | David Josar

[xzins]

Transformation plans to be addressed soon, says U.S. ambassador

By David Josar, Stars and Stripes European edition, Thursday, January 22, 2004

STUTTGART, Germany — The U.S. ambassador to Germany on Tuesday said he expected an announcement about the U.S. European Command’s transformation plans in the next few months and definitely before U.S. elections in November.

Ambassador Dan Coats met with EUCOM officials and later had a private lunch meeting with members of the local German media. His comments were printed in the Stuttgarter Zeitung and confirmed by a spokesman for the U.S. Consulate in Frankfurt.

Coats’ words are one of the few statements to address when EUCOM’s much-discussed transformation plan would be revealed.

EUCOM officials have maintained, as they did on Wednesday, that there is no timetable of any transformation announcement.

The article quoted Coats as saying the plan will still include a substantial U.S. presence in Germany.

And despite some members of the Bush administration talking about less reliance by the United States on “Old Europe” countries such as Germany, Coats said in the article that old partners still have substantial influence in what the United States does.

Coats visited EUCOM this week to meet with U.S. officials and ambassadors from other countries.

The EUCOM transformation plan, spearheaded by EUCOM Commander Marine Gen. James Jones, has sparked speculation by Europeans and American military personnel as to how quickly it will occur and what communities will be affected by it.

Jones has talked of rotating troops to temporary camps in places such as Bulgaria, Romania and Poland in Eastern Europe and Djibouti in Eastern Africa, while cutting back substantially on the U.S. military presence — currently at about 100,000 troops — elsewhere in Europe, particularly in Germany.

Jones has pledged to keep several U.S. bases in Germany, including the air bases at Ramstein and Spangdahlem and the training area in Grafenwöhr, but he never specified which ones would close.

A fresh story runs nearly every week in the European media speculating over which bases would close.

Jones has said, however, that troops deployed to the Middle East from Europe would be returning home to Europe, and that bases would not be closed in their absences.

[xzins]

"Old Europe" -- Paybacks are H...eck!" ping

Jones has talked of rotating troops to temporary camps in places such as Bulgaria, Romania and Poland in Eastern Europe and Djibouti in Eastern Africa, while cutting back substantially on the U.S. military presence — currently at about 100,000 troops — elsewhere in Europe, particularly in Germany.

[Ragtime Cowgirl]

Old Europe" -- Paybacks are H...eck!"

Bump! (^:

[serurier]

You have mail .

[Alamo-Girl]

Bump!

[Grampa Dave]

When this war against terrorism is over, there will have been massive regime changes in Germany.

France is a lost cause. The Frogs like the members of the Lunatic Left in America will continue to vote for more socialism/facism and anyone who hates America.

If we have a regime change in Iran, the new Iranian government discards the Euro for the American $, France and Germany will suffer massive economic disruptions. Of course part of that will be the illegal sales that they make to Iran for dangerous weapons and sweetheart deals on Iranian oil.

It is time for payback for these two socialist and Anti America/American countries.

[rrrod]

you are 100% right!!!!!!!!! pay back time!!!!! just hope it doesnt hurt the brits or other real allies

[xzins]

The nuclear and military issues in the mideast make me wonder if france & germany EVER were allies.

[rrrod]

its debatable whether they ( france germany ) were ever allies but ........in the last few yrs all pretense has evaporated..more like future adverarys france is a joke but an alliance is now forming between germany france and good ole russia.... comments?

[Grampa Dave]

I believe that the French start to hate us soon as WWII was over. They couldn't/wouldn't defend themselves, and we were the embarrassing younger brother who defended them twice in less than 30 years.

Who knows when the Germans reverted back to socialism/fascism and hatred of America. I believe that started when Opec was founded.

The middle east has been like a vast and secret economic honey pot for the Frogs and the Germans since OPEC came into power and in particuliar after Jimmy Carter helped the Islamofascist thugs to take over Iran.

Both countries have sold massive amounts of regular military equipment to the Islamofascists and despots in charge of Iran, Iraq, Syria and Lybia.

Only God knows how much nuclear technology has been sold for at least two decades to the Islamofascist Despots in control of those countries.

[Grampa Dave]

There will be some economic hurt, but our allies will recover very fast.

If they are smart, they can see this payback coming to France and Germany. They will decrease their reliance trade wise to F&G and increase it with our allies and the US.

[xzins]

A cold war alliance between france, germany, and russia would have doomed the made freedom seem like a lost cause.

Now they're socialist together rather than communist. That means their intent is for freedom to have a slow death and be a long-term lost cause.

[blackie]

Transformation ~ now ~ Bump!