The
willingness with which our young people are likely to serve in any war, no
matter how justified, shall be directly proportional to how they perceive how the veterans of earlier wars were treated and
appreciated by their nation"..............George Washington
U.S. Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates walks down the flightline of
Baghdad International Airport after departing Camp Victory en route to Kabul,
Afghanistan, Sept. 2, 2010. DoD photo by U.S. Air Force Master Sgt. Jerry
Morrison.
Story
U.S. Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates talks with President Hamid
Karzai at the Presidential Palace in Kabul, Afghanistan, Sept. 2, 2010. DoD
photo by U.S. Air Force Master Sgt. Jerry Morrison.
P E N T A G O N N
E W S A N D S E R V I C E B R I E F S
"The Patriots who have volunteered to serve in our armed services have no
equal in the world. I made a solemn commitment to the Congress, to the nation,
and to you to keep the welfare of men and women in uniform uppermost in my mind
at all times."
................Defense Secretary
Robert M. Gates
U.S. Combat Mission Ends in Iraq, Obama Says
By Donna Miles
American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, Aug. 31, 2010 – President Barack Obama today announced the
official end to combat operations in Iraq during a prime-time Oval Office
address, declaring “a new beginning” for the Iraqi people.
“Operation Iraqi Freedom is over,” Obama said, speaking just hours after the
launch of Operation New Dawn in Iraq. “The Iraqi people now have the lead
responsibility for the security of their country.” Obama offered high praise for
the men and women in uniform whose service and sacrifice led to this “historic
moment” in time.
“The Americans who have served in Iraq completed every mission they were given,”
he said. “They defeated a regime that had terrorized its people. Together with
Iraqis and coalition partners who made huge sacrifices of their own, our troops
fought block-by-block to help Iraq seize the chance for a better future.” That
effort came at tremendous cost, he said, noting more than 4,400 U.S. troops
killed and thousands more wounded during Operation Iraqi Freedom.
“Ending this war is not only in Iraq’s interest; it is in our own,” Obama said.
“The United States has paid a huge price to put the future of Iraq in the hands
of its people. We have sent our young men and women to make enormous sacrifices
in Iraq and spent vast resources abroad at a time of tight budgets home.
“We have persevered because of a belief we share with the Iraqi people: a belief
that out of the ashes of war, a new beginning could be born in this cradle of
civilization,” he continued. “Through this remarkable chapter in the history of
the United States and Iraq, we have met our responsibility,” he said. “Now, it
is time to turn the page.”
Obama outlined the future role of the transitional force of U.S. troops to
remain in Iraq through December 2011. They’ll advise and assist Iraqi security
forces, support Iraqi troops in targeted counterterrorism missions and protect
U.S. civilians. “Consistent with our agreement with the Iraqi government, all
U.S. troops will leave by the end of next year,” he said.
And as the military draws down, civilian diplomats, aid workers and advisors
will step up to help Iraq strengthen its government, institutions and ties with
the region and the world. “This new approach reflects our long-term partnership
with Iraq – one based upon mutual interests and mutual respect,” the president
said.
Obama conceded that violence in Iraq will not stop with the end of the U.S.
combat mission there, and that enemies of Iraq will keep up their attempts to
derail progress. He expressed confidence, however, that the Iraqis have the
will, and Iraqi security forces, the capability, to stand up to the extremists.
“Ultimately, these terrorists will fail to achieve their goals,” the president
said, offering assurance that the United States will continue to support Iraq as
a friend and partner. While building that long-term partnership, the United
States will take the lessons learned in Iraq as it confronts what Obama called
its most pressing security challenge: the fight against al-Qaida.
“As we speak, al-Qaida continues to plot against us, and its leadership remains
anchored in the border region of Afghanistan and Pakistan,” he said. “We will
disrupt, dismantle and defeat al-Qaida, while preventing Afghanistan from again
serving as a base for terrorists. “And because of the drawdown in Iraq,” he
said, “we are able to apply the resources necessary to go on the offense.”
The surge forces in Afghanistan will serve for a limited time to break the
Taliban’s momentum and help the Afghans build their capacity and secure their
future, Obama said. As in Iraq, he said Afghanistan’s future ultimately will
depend on its own government and security forces’ capabilities.
Toward that end, the United States will begin a transition to Afghan security
responsibility next July, with the pace of troop reductions based on conditions
on the ground. Obama offered assurance of enduring U.S. support for Afghanistan
as this transition takes shape. “But make no mistake: this transition will
begin,” he emphasized, “because open-ended war serves neither our interests nor
the Afghan people’s.”
One of the lessons of Iraq, he said, is that “American influence around the
world is not a function of military force alone.” “We must use all the elements
of our power, including our diplomacy, our economic strength and the power of
America’s example, to secure our interests and stand by our allies,” he said.
Obama called the milestone achieved today in Iraq a reminder to all Americans
that "the future is ours to shape, if we move forward with confidence and
commitment." "It should also serve as a message to the world that the United
States intends to strengthen our leadership in this young century," he added.
MORE NEWS-----
-------Gates:
War in Iraq Over, Transition to Iraqis Begins
The war in
Iraq is over and the United States is entering the final phase of the U.S.
engagement in Iraq, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said.
Story
-------Mullen
Notes Significant Progress in Iraq
On his way to
Baghdad to see the U.S. combat mission officially transfer to the civilian-led
Operation New Dawn, Navy Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of
Staff, paused to take stock of the progress he’s seen in Iraq since he took
office in 2007.
Story
-------Obama
Urges Nation to Salute Service in Iraq
During his weekly radio
address, President Barack Obama called on the American people to provide new
care, opportunity and commitment to the million military men and women who've
served in Iraq.
Story
The single biggest threat to
national security is the national debt, Navy Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the
Joint Chiefs of Staff, said underscoring the importance of good fiscal
stewardship and a need to stimulate economic growth.
Story
The United States Library of Congress
To Whom It May
Concern:
The United States Library of Congress has selected your Web site for inclusion
in its historic collections of Internet materials related to the Presidential
Transition during a Time of Crises. The Library's traditional functions,
acquiring, cataloging, preserving and serving collection materials of historical
importance to the Congress and to the American people to foster education and
scholarship, extend to digital materials, including Web sites. We request your
permission to collect your web site and add it to the Library's research
collections. We also ask that we be allowed to display the archived version(s)
of your web site.
With your permission, the Library of Congress or its agent will engage in the
collection of content from your Web site at regular intervals over time. The
Library will make this collection available to researchers onsite at Library
facilities. The Library also wishes to make the collection available to offsite
researchers by hosting the collection on the Library's public access Web site. The Library hopes that you share its vision of preserving Internet materials and
permitting researchers from across the world to access them.
VA/NIH
Award $6 Million for Substance Abuse Research - The Department of Veterans
Affairs is partnering with the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to award $6
million in grants for research examining the link between substance abuse and
military deployments and combat-related trauma. (8/26/10)
Veterans
with Disabilities to Learn Life-Changing Skills at Summer Sports Clinic in San
Diego - The National Veterans Summer Sports Clinic is an event like no
other, uniquely designed to teach recently-injured Veterans how to surf, kayak,
sail, cycle and enjoy other sports. The 3rd National Veterans Summer Sports
Clinic, sponsored by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), will be held
September 19 - 25 in San Diego. (8/26/10)
Veterans
with Disabilities to TEE Off in Iowa - Nearly 200 military Veterans are
registered to tee-off in a unique golf tournament in Riverside, Iowa, September
6 - 9, 2010, proving that having a visual impairment or other disability does
not mean they cannot lead a full and rewarding life. (8/25/10)
Indianapolis
VA Medical Center Launches Health Information Exchange - The Department of
Veterans Affairs (VA) today announced a new pilot in the Indianapolis region
that will improve the delivery of Veterans health information. The Richard L.
Roudebush VA Medical Center in Indianapolis will partner with the Indiana Health
Information Exchange (IHIE), the largest health information exchange
organization in the United States, to securely exchange electronic health record
(EHR) information using the Nationwide Health Information Network. (8/24/10)
VA
Reaches Out to Homeowners Affected by Gulf Oil Crisis - Veterans in the Gulf
States impacted by the recent oil spill may qualify for delayed mortgage
payments if their mortgages are already guaranteed by the Department of Veterans
Affairs (VA). (8/20/10)
VA
Research Finds Possible Link Between Head Trauma and Chronic Traumatic
Encephalomyopathy - Researchers with the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)
and the Center for the Study of Traumatic Encephalopathy (CSTE) at Boston
University School of Medicine have provided the first pathological evidence of a
link between repeated head injuries—such as those experienced by athletes in
contact sports such as boxing, football, and hockey—and a disease (chronic
traumatic Encephalomyopathy) that resembles amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS),
also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease. The results will appear in the September
issue of the Journal of Neuropathology and Experimental Neurology. (8/19/10)
The
Following Links Provided by "The National Archives"
La versión en Español del folleto “Beneficios Federales
para los Veteranos, Dependientes y Supervivientes" (edicion 2009), el cual
explica la variedad de beneficios disponibles para los veteranos y sus
dependientes, se encuentra disponible en versión PDF.
La versión 2009
"There is many a boy here
today who looks on war as all glory, but boys, it is all hell. You
can bear this warning voice to generations yet to come. I look upon
war with horror".........William Tecumseh Sherman,
August 11th 1880.
T H E W A R I N A F G H A N I S T A
N
O P E R A T I O N
E N D U R I N G F R E E D O M
Let’s be clear that the date of July 2011 to begin transferring security
responsibility and thinning our troops and bringing them home is firm.
What is 'conditions based' is the pacing at which our troops will come home and
the pace at which we will turn over responsibility to the Afghans. And
that will be based on conditions on the ground.
............Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates ABC Face the
Nation,Washington, D.C. Dec. 6, 2009
U.S. Army soldiers patrol through
Mangow village in eastern Afghanistan’s Nuristan province, Aug. 26, 2010.
The U.S. soldiers are assigned to security forces within the Nuristan Provincial
Reconstruction Team, which works closely with the provincial government to
achieve enhanced security, facilitate economic and infrastructure development,
and extend the reach of the Afghan government. U.S. Air Force photo by Staff
Sergeant Steven R. Doty.
U.S. Navy Petty Officer 3rd Class
Dain Dillonan, right, and an Asia security group guardsman perform tower
watch at a forward operating base in Afghanistan, Aug. 23, 2010. Dillonan is a
gas turbine system technician assigned to the Paktika Provincial Reconstruction
Team as a convoy driver. The Paktika team is assisting the Afghanistan
government with governance, development, agricultural and security
initiatives. U.S. Air Force photo by Master Sgt. Demetrius Lester.
Teddy Roosevelt – not a businessman,
but an entrepreneur in other respects – once said: "A man who is good enough to
shed his blood for his country is good enough to be given a square deal
afterwards."
.......... Speech Excerpt by Defense
Secretary Robert M. Gates
U.S. Army soldiers with
Fox Company, 52nd Infantry Regiment, 2nd Battalion, 12th Field Artillery
Regiment, 4th Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division cross from Iraq
into Kuwait on Aug. 15, 2010. DoD photo by Sgt. Kimberly
Johnson, U.S. Army. (Released)
U.S. Air Force Tech. Sgt.
Lindy Snodgrass, a C-17 Globemaster III loadmaster, connects the plane's
emergency oxygen system to a seat at Sather Air Base, Iraq, on Aug. 10, 2010.
Snodgrass and airmen with the 447th Expeditionary Logistics Readiness Squadron
reconfigured the aircraft from air freighter to passenger aircraft in less than
an hour. The C-17 is redeploying U.S. personnel from Iraq. DoD photo by Senior Airman
Perry Aston, U.S. Air Force. (Released)
U.S. Army UH-60 Black
Hawk helicopters depart from Forward Operating Base Warhorse in Diyala
province, Iraq, on July 21, 2010. Black Hawks are used to transport troops that
are redeploying home after serving in Iraq in support of Operation Iraqi
Freedom. DoD photo by
Spc. Brandon D. Bolick, U.S. Army. (Released)
Ali, a U.S. Air Force
military working dog, runs to the next obstacle on a training course at Asad
Air Base, Iraq, on July 25, 2010. The obstacle course provides exercise and
obedience training for military dogs. DoD photo by Perry Aston,
U.S. Air Force. (Released)
