Posted on 12/07/2009 1:33:20 PM PST by markomalley
Even as the U.S. military scrambles to support a troop surge in Afghanistan, it is donating passenger vehicles, generators and other equipment worth tens of millions of dollars to the Iraqi government.
Under new authority granted by the Pentagon, U.S. commanders in Iraq may now donate to the Iraqis up to $30 million worth of equipment from each facility they leave, up from the $2 million cap established when the guidelines were first set in 2005. The new cap applies at scores of posts that the U.S. military is expected to leave in coming months as it scales back its presence from about 280 facilities to six large bases and a few small ones by the end of next summer.
Some of the items that commanders may now leave behind, including passenger vehicles and generators, are among what commanders in Afghanistan need most urgently, according to Pentagon memos.
Officials involved say the approach has triggered arguments in the Pentagon over whether the effort to leave Iraqis adequately equipped is hurting the buildup in Afghanistan. Officials in the U.S. Central Command, which oversees both wars, have balked at some proposed handovers, and previously rejected an approach that would have granted base commanders even greater leeway.
U.S. commanders in Iraq say they have been judicious in assessing what equipment to earmark for donation. Alan F. Estevez, a deputy undersecretary of defense, wrote in an e-mail that "an important and vital goal is to leave behind fully functioning bases to the Government of Iraq to enable Iraq's civil capacities."
But a U.S. military official critical of the process said the new regulations allow too much latitude to commanders, provide little oversight and fail to account for the urgent need of American forces in Afghanistan, which need the same kinds of items...
(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonpost.com ...
That’s “our” equipment folks. This goes to show you that they could give two sh!ts about the taxpayer.
For instance, I could sure use one of them thar fancy generators for when the next hurricane hits.
More importantly, though, are the tons of military supplies like magazines, LBEs, up-armored Humvees, etc that we will be needing for the coming Civil War.
Just another move to ‘gut’ the military.
Or it could be the fact the equipment is wore out and it would cost more to move it than its worth.
“For instance, I could sure use one of them thar fancy generators for when the next hurricane hits.”
Ok, you pay for shipping and I bet they’ll give it to you.
I just thought that conspiracy up, but it sure fits the template!
Glad to see some common sense. Six months in that sandy $hithole called the Middle East will destroy mechanical equipment.
Little does the VA know that they merely helped him stockpile Chivas, and the generators are most likely far, far away by now.
Obama is taking our enemies’ belief “that we will give them enough rope to hang us†to a new high!
I don’t think the VA is buying generators for vets. At least I never got mine.
Am I the only one here that doesn’t see this as a problem?
Look, if we want the Iraqi Army to be able to stand up to al-Qaeda, Iran, and Syria, then the sooner that we can equip them, the better. If it means giving them old hand-me-downs instead of shipping them back to the US where old equipment probably would have been recycled/sold as surplus anyway, that’s fine with me. In a perfect world, the Iraqi MoD would be paying market value, but considering that they are still in the developing phase, you can’t expect that yet.
He gives staggering, bitter, drunk veterans a bad name.
Them’s the breaks...
In other news, it's interesting to see that the Compost has returned to sniping at the war in Iraq... I wonder what they're up to.
Ding Ding Ding!
The costs associated with returning or transferring such equipment is insanely prohibitive for all but the most expensive items. Packing up and shipping a 5kw generator, preclude any other option than simply buying a new one.
I’ve been on the shipping and receiving end of this equipment and it’s takes manpower, resources and money that would be better spent on new stuff (especially after a harsh duty cycle in the desert).
It got so bad that some equipment was simply “combat lossed” (ie, buried in the desert).
Nothing nearly as heartbreaking as watching the films of Hueys and Chinooks being pushed off carrier decks during the fall of Saigon.
Hey Uncle Sam! I could use a generator or extra vehicle!
My thoughts exactly. If IA/IP can make use of it, I say let them.
There are literally thousands of cargo containers that are suppose to come back. Odd thing is that there 10,000 of thousands sitting idle all over Asia.
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