Free Republic

~ The FReeper Canteen Presents ~ ~ Remembering Our Troops!! ~ HOIST TRAINING Soldiers conduct hoist training with civilian mountain rescue and law enforcement personnel in Yakima, WA, June 7, 2016. The soldiers provide medical evacuation coverage for local mountain and wilderness areas in partnership with civilian authorities. Army photo by Capt. Brian H. Harris Canteen Mission Statement Showing support and boosting the morale ofour military and our allies' militaryand family members of the above.Honoring those who have served before. REACHING OVER WATER Marine Corps Cpl. Jackson T. Allen reaches for a rope on an over-water obstacle course at...

South Korean and U.S. officials broke off talks on Tuesday aimed at settling the cost burden for Seoul of hosting the U.S. military, South Korea's Foreign Ministry said, amid a public backlash over a $5 billion U.S. demand for the bill. The breakdown in talks was a sharp and rare public disagreement in the 66-year alliance, with each side suggesting the other was not prepared to come to a fair and reasonable compromise on sharing the costs for hosting 28,500 U.S. troops as a deterrent to North Korea.

The Trump administration is reportedly demanding South Korea pay 400% more for U.S. troops in the region, officials said. The president’s demands for an increase in spending of about $4.7 billion came as Defense Department Secretary Mark Esper is visiting South Korea to discuss the change in military costs, saying South Korea is wealthy enough to cover what the president is asking for, according to CNN, citing a congressional aide and an administration official. “Sustaining the costs of our global military presence is not a burden that should fall on the US taxpayer alone but is a responsibility that should...

~ The FReeper Canteen Presents ~ ~ Remembering Our Troops!! ~ EAGER ASCENT Navy divers ascend to the surface after conducting an anti-terrorism and force protection dive during exercise Eager Lion 2016 in the Gulf of Aqaba, Jordan, May 14, 2016. Exercise Eager Lion is a recurring exercise designed to strengthen military-to-military relationships and enhance regional security and stability. Navy photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Sean Furey Canteen Mission Statement Showing support and boosting the morale ofour military and our allies' militaryand family members of the above.Honoring those who have served before. RAIL WATCHERS Marines, sailors and a...

~ The FReeper Canteen Presents ~ ~ Remembering Our Troops!! ~ MONSTER MASH Airmen on Monster Mash Team 4 complete a monkey-bar obstacle at Hurlburt Field, FL, May 12, 2016. Monster Mash is a training tradition in which special operators complete timed scenarios on an obstacle course. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Ryan Conroy Canteen Mission Statement Showing support and boosting the morale ofour military and our allies' militaryand family members of the above.Honoring those who have served before. WASP LANDING An MV-22B Osprey lands on the USS Wasp to bring Marines back from a tactical recovery of...

~ The FReeper Canteen Presents ~ ~ Remembering Our Troops!! ~ DOG DEMO Air Force Senior Airman Chase Shankle gives a demonstration with Arko, a military working dog, for Eglin Elementary School students at Eglin Air Force Base, FL, May 17, 2016. More than 100 children watched two military working dog teams perform during the event. Air Force photo by Samuel King Jr. Canteen Mission Statement Showing support and boosting the morale ofour military and our allies' militaryand family members of the above.Honoring those who have served before. NIGHT TRANSIT The guided-missile destroyer USS Gonzalez travels in the Gulf...

Vice President Pence said Tuesday that President Trump is following through on his promise to bring U.S. troops home from Syria and talked up the prospect of a permanent ceasefire in the region. Pence insisted that a ceasefire the administration helped broker between Turkey and Syria last week “has held” and claimed Trump’s own moves had paved the way for the possibility of a permanent ceasefire. “Earlier today, we received word from the Syrian defense forces commander that all of their military forces have withdrawn from the safe zone under Turkish military control and before I came here, our team...

Hillary Clinton, Your foreign policy was a disaster for our country and the world. It’s time for you to acknowledge the damage you have caused and step down from your throne. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cGBbaYeEUik  

What crap!These Republicans are so horrible! Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell broke with President Trump on Tuesday and introduced a resolution to keep US troops in Syria indefinitely.This is a complete break with the Republican president.  McConnell later lectured President Trump with his lackeys.

The warmongers are pulling out all the stops opposing Trump's attempts to fulfill his promise to bring the troops home and end the endless wars. They are making noises about supporting the Demoncrats' impeachment sham to pressure him to fold or compromise with them to keep their support. Other than opposing impeachment the best way we can support Trump and strengthen his hand is to make "Bring Them Home" the focus of 2020, we need to "pressure" Trump to keep that promise and really pressure the Republicans (particularly in the Senate) and not let up until significant withdrawals have been...

~ The FReeper Canteen Presents ~ ~ Remembering Our Troops!! ~ WASH AWAY Air Force Senior Airman Jacob Nevills washes the concrete from his face after helping fill a footer at Bagram Airfield, Afghanistan, May 3, 2016. Nevills is assigned to the 455th Expeditionary Civil Engineer Squadron, whose members dug eight trenches to house eight footers for placing four relocatable buildings. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Justyn M. Freeman Canteen Mission Statement Showing support and boosting the morale ofour military and our allies' militaryand family members of the above.Honoring those who have served before. TIMEOUT TAP Marine Corps...

Washington — The U.S. is "preparing to evacuate" about 1,000 U.S. troops remaining in northern Syria, Defense Secretary Mark Esper told "Face the Nation" in an interview airing Sunday.The move comes a week after President Trump announced the repositioning of several dozen American troops embedded with Kurdish forces in northern Syria, opening the door for a Turkish offensive.Esper told "Face the Nation" the troops remaining in the country were caught between Turkish forces and the Kurdish-backed Syrian Defense Forces (SDF), the main U.S. ally in the fight against ISIS. Esper said Mr. Trump had authorized "a deliberate withdrawal" on Saturday night, saying it...

~ The FReeper Canteen Presents ~ ~ Remembering Our Troops!! ~ LITTLE RANGER Liam Howard, 5, learns how to aim a machine gun during the 6th Ranger Training Battalion’s open house at Eglin Air Force Base, FL, May 7, 2016. During the event, members of the public could view equipment and weapons, and learn how Rangers train. Demonstrations included hand-to-hand combat, a parachute jump and snake show. Air Force photo by Samuel King Jr. Canteen Mission Statement Showing support and boosting the morale ofour military and our allies' militaryand family members of the above.Honoring those who have served before....

~ The FReeper Canteen Presents ~ ~ Remembering Our Troops!! ~ INVICTUS TRAINING Recovering service members participate in training for the 2016 Invictus Games at MacDill Air Force Base, FL, May 2, 2016. The games are scheduled for May 8-12 in Orlando, FL DoD photo by Roger Wollenberg Canteen Mission Statement Showing support and boosting the morale ofour military and our allies' militaryand family members of the above.Honoring those who have served before. FRAMED Navy Seaman Apprentice Joseph John Rabe sands playground equipment during a community relations event at an orphanage in Yokosuka, Japan, May 2, 2016. Rabe is...

~ The FReeper Canteen Presents ~ ~ Remembering Our Troops!! ~ DENALI DELIVERY At 17,400 feet, Mount Foraker towers above soldiers as they offload equipment and supplies from a CH-47F Chinook helicopter after landing on Kahiltna Glacier in Denali National Park and Preserve, Alaska, April 24, 2016. Army photo by John Pennell Canteen Mission Statement Showing support and boosting the morale ofour military and our allies' militaryand family members of the above.Honoring those who have served before. ENEMY LOCATIONS A Seabee yells out enemy locations to his teammates during a simulated attack as part of a field training exercise...

~ The FReeper Canteen Presents ~ ~ Remembering Our Troops!! ~ TARGET PRACTICE Army Staff Sgt. Paul Cimino, right, observes Army Sgt. William Harpe firing at targets with an M240B machine gun during an aerial gunnery training exercise over Warren Grove Gunnery Range, NJ, April 15, 2016. Cimino is master gunner and Harpe is a crew chief assigned to the New Jersey Army National Guard’s 150th Assault Helicopter Battalion. Air National Guard photo by Master Sgt. Mark C. Olsen Canteen Mission Statement Showing support and boosting the morale ofour military and our allies' militaryand family members of the above.Honoring...

~ The FReeper Canteen Presents ~ ~ Remembering Our Troops!! ~ NATIONAL STRIPES Navy Petty Officer 3rd Class Scott Farrell folds the U.S. flag aboard the guided-missile cruiser USS Chancellorsville in the South China Sea, July 9, 2016. The Chancellorsville is patrolling in the U.S. 7th Fleet area of responsibility supporting security and stability in the Indo-Asia-Pacific region. Navy photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Andrew Schneider Canteen Mission Statement Showing support and boosting the morale ofour military and our allies' militaryand family members of the above.Honoring those who have served before. NIGHT-VISION VIEW Soldiers look through their night-vision...

~ The FReeper Canteen Presents ~ ~ Remembering Our Troops!! ~ GLOBEMASTER MANEUVER An Air Force C-17 Globemaster III aircraft conducts a low-level flight during Large Package Week at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska, April 5, 2016. Air Force photo by Senior Airman James Richardson Canteen Mission Statement Showing support and boosting the morale ofour military and our allies' militaryand family members of the above.Honoring those who have served before. CONCRETE AIM A Marine fires from a kneeling prone position during a deck shoot aboard the USS New Orleans in the Pacific Ocean, April 1, 2016. Marine Corps photo by...

~ The FReeper Canteen Presents ~ ~ Remembering Our Troops!! ~ FEET FIRST Navy Petty Officer 2nd Class Don Harper enters the water for scuba operations during Exercise Dugong 2016 in Sydney, Nov. 8, 2016. The training exercise between the U.S and Australian navies advances tactical-level integration, capacity and interoperability. The U.S. sailors are assigned to Mobile Diving Salvage Unit 1. Navy photo by Petty Officer 1st Class Arthurgwain L. Marquez Canteen Mission Statement Showing support and boosting the morale ofour military and our allies' militaryand family members of the above.Honoring those who have served before. PROPER FIT Air...

The United States is considering withdrawing some of the US troops stationed in Germany, with Poland mooted as a possible new deployment, the US ambassador to Germany has said. The threat of withdrawal comes amid ongoing differences between Berlin and Washington over Germany’s contribution to NATO and a current spat caused by the German refusal to take part in a US-led naval mission in the Persian Gulf. “It is actually offensive to assume that the US taxpayer must continue to pay to have 50,000-plus Americans in Germany, but the Germans get to spend their surplus on domestic programs,” US Ambassador...