US MILITARY IS CONCERNED THAT U.S. POLITICIANS ARE MISSING THE POINT

….Typical destruction of the War in Syria.

 

Politicians Make it sound like dealing with the Islamic State is a short-term issue.

 

As some high level military personnel have leaked to the media, the Republican rants about defeating the Islamic State are totally disgusting and unrealistic.  These politicians such as Donald Trump and Ted Cruz saying that “the most powerful military in the world is going to destroy ISIS”.  But they have no clue about the required level of commitment and sacrifice that is involved.

 

The GOP responses sound tough, from Donald Trump’s “bomb the hell out of the Islamic State” to Ted Cruz’ comment about, “Carpet bombing the Daesh terrorists”.

 

With all this noise being made by the far-right politicians, we American voters never hear much about the costs or sacrifices that will be required for the long-term. US generals and admirals have been at war for the last 15+ years.  They know that success won’t be quick or cheap.  To defeat this enemy will require a much larger and longer commitment by the United States than any leading GOP politician is willing to acknowledge.

 

Based on the latest conference by the US Military Central Command, which oversees all US military activities in the Middle East, Central Command and the Center for Naval Analyses offered a summary that is not very reassuring.

 

US Military leaders acknowledge that they are fighting a ruthless adversary that has adapted new tactics in fighting the United States and its partners.  Even though Daesh (ISIL) has lost 25% of the territory it held 18 months ago, they have devised new and innovative methods to compensate for their weaknesses.

 

Per Central Command: ”They have used tunnels and other concealment tactics to hide their movements; they have developed super-size car bombs, packing explosives in bulldozers and other heavy equipment and sending them in waves against targets; they have deployed small drones for reconnaissance and may be preparing armed drones; they have used chemical weapons, such as chlorine and mustard gas, on the battlefield and may expand use of such unconventional weapons.  They are also looking for nuclear materials for future development projects.”

 

On top of this, the issues between the Sunni’s, the Shia’s, and the Kurds continue to prevent having any long-term successes.  In addition, the local tribal leaders mistrust the United States and doubt that America has real staying power in the Middle East. US efforts to avoid putting “boots on the ground” just reinforces the sense that the United States is still pursuing a strategy of containment, not a commitment to total victory, which the military command says is required.

 

Among the lessons learned from the failed “train and equip” program to build a Syrian opposition force, is the difficulty of working with regional partners, such as Turkey, that has their own internal agendas.

 

But there is another issue that the general American public never sees or hears about.

 

This Middle Eastern conflict will require a decades-long commitment.  But that commitment is that the American military will need to physically fight alongside the fighters in the field.

 

Today, the United States’ in its determination to protect its troops, uses an approach that can be self-defeating. Our allies see the US military living in separate secure compounds, eating special meals and minimizing their exposure to potential terrorist assaults. The United States may say it’s fighting alongside its allies, but on the ground, it looks very different.

 

The generals know that the US military personnel need to be eating, living and fighting alongside our partners in Iraq and Syria, and this would be much more dangerous.  But it is the only way to build a solid relationship in order to actually eradicate the extremists.

 

During this presidential election year, neither party has signed up or echoed what will be needed in order for the US to win and eventually remove its forces from the Middle East.

 

We are either hearing all the boasting from the far-right and the flexing of their useless verbal muscles for defeating the extremists.  Or on the other side, we hear the Democrats saying that we will help those in the region, but the risk here in the homeland “does not seriously threaten our existence’” as was stated by both President Obama and Hillary Clinton.  The US military doesn’t support either party’s attitude to this issue.  It’s not a short term military issue as the GOP candidates seem to imply, and the homeland is threatened today, just as Paris and Brussels were and other areas in Europe are also threatened.

 

Both sides of the aisle are not taking the issue as seriously as it should be considered.

 

It is unfortunate that whomever becomes the next president is going to inherit an expanding war against a global terrorist adversary.  But at this point, neither party is seriously discussing how best to take on an enemy that will take years to defeat.  And the US generals and our allies all know the real truth.  But neither party seems to want to talk seriously about it.

 

It is highly disturbing that this issue is being overlooked in such an important election year.

 

Copyright G.Ater  2016