Posted on 04/30/2003 12:11:25 PM PDT by bruinbirdman
Pentagon plans to move U.S. troops out of Germany and station them in smaller bases in Eastern Europe reflect America's evolving military priorities, conservative lawmakers said Tuesday.
But it should not come as a surprise that many see the proposals as an attempt to punish Germany for its opposition to the U.S.-led war in Iraq, they said.
U.S. bases need to be realigned because there is no longer a threat of a land invasion from the former Soviet Union, said Rep. Curt Weldon (R-Pa.), a senior member of the House Armed Services Committee.
However, plans to move installations from Germany - which opposed the war - to countries such as Hungary, Romania, Poland and Bulgaria - which supported the U.S.-led action against Saddam Hussein - could be seen in a context of punishment and reward, he said.
"What's interesting is almost all of those former Soviet states and client states supported the U.S., and so France and Germany are feeling some isolation right now, and I think [French President] Jacques Chirac is looking at what France's new role is going to be in the world and certainly within Europe," Weldon said.
The lawmakers commented on statements by Gen. James Jones, who serves both as commander of U.S forces in Europe and NATO commander. Jones said Monday that the United States is considering proposals to move its military installations to some former Soviet-bloc countries, where the cost of living is less than in Germany.
While the United States would retain some major Western European bases, such as Ramstein Air Base in Germany, military planners are thinking in terms of maintaining smaller bases in Eastern Europe that could be used as staging areas to move troops quickly to Africa and the Middle East, Jones told reporters.
Rep. Chris Cannon (R-Utah), a member of the House Government Reform Committee, said the debate on realigning forces reflects the changes of a world that is transforming itself.
"The military view of the world from every country's perspective has been transformed by what happened in Iraq. And given the reality of that, it's perfectly appropriate to say that this is not political, and it's part of the reevaluation of what our military strategy is and how we project influence through the military worldwide," he said.
Paul Weyrich, president of the Free Congress Foundation, said Eastern European countries are showing a greater willingness to accept U.S. bases.
"Yesterday, [Defense] Secretary Rumsfeld said we don't want to be in places that don't want us. He mentioned this with respect to Saudi Arabia and the announcement that we were closing operations there and moving them to Qatar. I think the same thing is true in Europe," Weyrich said.
America has no political or military incentive to stay in Germany, where the government of Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder twice saved itself by bashing the United States, Weyrich noted.
"He can't have it both ways," Weyrich said of Schroeder. "If he's going to stay in power because of anti-Americanism, then America is going to respond to that and move on. We don't need all those troops in Germany anyway, protecting them from what?" he said.
Eastern European countries, on the other hand, have legitimate concerns about Russia and threats from fundamentalist Muslims, Weyrich said.
Senators Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-Texas) and Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) on Tuesday introduced bipartisan legislation to establish an overseas basing commission to look at troop deployments in a rapidly changing environment.
"America faces new threats since the Cold War, yet our allocation of military resources abroad has remained static," Hutchison said in a statement. "We are overdue for a thorough examination of whether those installations adequately meet our changing needs."
The "Overseas Military Facility Structure Review Act," introduced by Hutchison and Feinstein, seeks to establish a congressional commission to review U.S. military facilities abroad and assess whether U.S. infrastructure is in place to meet current and future missions.
"The proposed overseas military construction budget for 2004 is over $1 billion. Over 70 percent is in Europe and Korea," Hutchison said. "As we approach a new round of closures, overseas bases should be scrutinized as closely as those stateside to ensure we spend defense dollars wisely. This commission will ensure that is accomplished."
The Defense Department currently has 119,000 troops stationed in Europe, 37,000 in Korea and 45,000 in Japan. The fiscal year 2004 budget includes new construction funding of $173 million and $288 million for bases in Korea and Germany, Hutchison said.
Not only is maintaining these bases expensive, but local environmental and other restrictions can also make it difficult for troops to train, Hutchison said. Germany has limited U.S. forces' ability to fly helicopters at night, conduct live-fire exercises or move vehicles over the countryside during war games.
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