Regards, Ivan
Posted on 03/14/2003 6:17:02 PM PST by MadIvan
THE US’s most senior general in the Gulf yesterday took time out to address the massed ranks of Britain’s forces in the Kuwaiti desert and to give the clearest sign yet that war with Iraq is imminent and that British troops will be expected to play a key role in whatever action the military commanders are planning to take.
In a call to arms, the commanding general of the 1st US Marine Expeditionary Force, General Jim Conway, flew in by helicopter to address troops from the 7th Armoured Brigade and the 16th Air Assault Brigade at a camp near Kuwait’s northern border with Iraq.
With the British tanks, armoured cars, artillery and other heavy machinery drawn up in front of him, the general stood on a tank to deliver a gutsy speech designed to raise the spirit of the men who and set out the reasons why the US believes that force may be necessary to disarm Saddam Hussein.
The US had suffered the terrible effects of terrorism at first hand on 11 September, he told them, and President George Bush was not prepared to stand by and let other terrorists get their hands on weapons of mass destruction. Saddam Hussein had been given a chance, he said, and his choice was to get rid of weapons of mass destruction or face war.
But after days of speculation that the US might be prepared to go to war with Iraq without Britain’s help, he was eager to stress the importance that the US placed on British involvement.
"Two hundred and twenty five years ago in my country the expression, ‘the British are coming’ used to scare the children. When we were here in December and heard that the British were coming it was very different. It’s good to have you all aboard."
And if war came, he said, Britain and the US would triumph because they had better troops, better weapons and the ability to defeat the Iraqi army. Military commanders worried about a lot of things, he said, but the ability of the troops to do what was asked of them was not one of those worries. The British forces and the Marines under his command were all professionals and they were there because they had volunteered and because they had chosen to do that.
General Conway said that whatever happened in the coming days, those troops assembled in front of him would look back on their time in the Gulf as one of the most significant moments in their lives.
"How you do will govern how you see yourself, how your mates see you and how your family sees you," he said.
If war came, he said, fear would be a natural emotion which they had to consider, but if they were to be afraid of anything, it should be the fear of failing to do their duty.
Regards, Ivan
I wonder they didn't just say Tommy Franks?
I propose that Britain and the U.S. pull out of the U.N. simultaneously.
We form a new organization and only invite worthwile countries.
I agree!!!
A very sobbering article MadIvan
Who was/is the most senior general there?
In a call to arms, the commanding general of the 1st US Marine Expeditionary Force, General Jim Conway, flew in by helicopter to address troops from the 7th Armoured Brigade and the 16th Air Assault Brigade at a camp near Kuwait’s northern border with Iraq.
THE REASON.
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