Top US general says Ukraine war has 'greater meaning' for the world

Defence Leaders' Perspective on the Ukraine Crisis

On 28 January 2022,the Secretary of Defense General Lloyd Austin III,US Army retired,and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff,General Mark Milley,US Army,briefed reporters at the Pentagon.The following is this blog's notes on their presentations. General Austin: Russia's buildup has progressed at a consistent and steady pace,supported by increased naval activity in the North Atlantic and Mediterranean.The forces they have assembled are capable of the seizure of cities and portions of territories.We remain focused on their use of disinformation and our commitment to national sovereignty,territiorial integrity and self-determination.We're unified against Russia's attempt to undermine our values,but conflict is not inevitable.Diplomacy is still possible.* We have supplied Ukraine with Javelin anti-tank missiles;grenade-launchers;artillery;and small arms.Another shipment arrived today. The situation on Ukraine's borders is changing rapidly.We will continue to provide President Biden with options.We will continue to consult with our Allies.A move by Russia into Ukraine will result in the very opposite of what they say they don't want.There's no reason why this situation has to devolve into conflict.Whatever Putin decides,we will stand with our Allies and Partners.* General Milley: Ukraine has the right to be independent,as it has been since 1991.Russia guaranteed the sovereignty of Ukraine.We strongly encourage Russia to stand down.They have over 100,000 ground manoeuvre forces in place on Ukraine's borders,along with air,naval,Special Operations Forces,and logistics elements. Ukraine is the second largest country in Europe,with 44 million people.When its high water table freezes,it is ideal for the transit of tracked armoured vehicles.If war were to break out,the Ukrainian people will suffer immensely. Ukraine's combat capabilties have improved since Russia's 2014 invasion.There is a small contingent of US military advisors in Ukraine (Yavoriv),but they have no offensive capabilty.NATO,minus the US,has more than 130 brigades of ground manoeuvre forces;93 squadrons of high-end fighter aircraft;four aircraft carriers;and other surface combatants.The President has authorised us to reassure and reinforce our NATO Allies.* General Austin: We always consider the impact our troop movements will have on other leaders.If and when we do move in,the purpose is to reassure and support NATO.Russia's moves are an overt act of coercion against Ukraine.With north of 100,000 troops,that gives Putin a number of options.We can't predict what he will decide,but we remain concerned about the range of options he has. General Milley: They could move against Ukraine with ground manoeuvre forces and air power.They could launch ballistic missiles. General Austin: Their force posture far and away exceeds what we typically see for exercises.We're focused to provide the President with options to support and reinforce NATO. General Milley: Russia's force posture does feel different than anything we have seen in recent memory-since the end of the Cold War.* General Austin,when asked whether US troops might assist Americans in Ukraine to evacuate: Any troops that we deploy have multiple capabilities.The President has been clear about not using troops in Ukraine for combat operations,but we prepare for a range of activities and options.Whatever task the US military is called upon to accompish,we'll do our best to do it.The US military is prepared to do whatever we are directed to do.We have significant capabilties to protect and defend the homeland. Let me thank Canada and our other Allies for what they do to support Ukraine.We are in constant communication with Canada and the UK on support for Ukraine. I don't think this is about trusting Putin.This is about our Allies trusting us.Right now,we don't think Russia's final decisions have been made.* General Milley: All of Russia's forces are packaged together.If they were unleashed on Ukraine,there would be significant civilian casualties.It would be horrific.It would be terrible.* General Austin: There was no provocation that caused them to move those forces to the borders of Ukraine.*

Fortress Kabul:Thousands of Marines and Soldiers Going In

Since last Friday,the Taliban Islamist extremisits have taken over at least 16 provincial capitals in Afghanistan,including Herat,the country's third largest city,and Mazar-i-Sharif,the capital of Northern Afghanistan.The status of Kandahar,the second largest city,was unclear at this writing,but at the very least,Taliban militants had breached the perimeter yeaterday,causing chaos as small groups of them fired weapons near the Governor's palace.This blitzkrieg so alarmed US officials,including Secretary of State Antony Blinken,Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Mark Milley,US Army,they devised a military plan to evacuate US diplomats and as many as possible of the Afghan friends of the US who served as interpreters,contractors and in other roles to assist the US Forces-Afghanistan.These friends number in the tens of thousands,by some estimates.The plan was presented to US President Joseph R. Biden yesterday,who authorised the operation,which has no name as of yet.The fresh troops will arrive in 24-48 hours and consist of: Two US Marine Corps battalions and a US Army battalion,totaling 3,000 troops,who will be based at Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul; an Army and Air Force support element numbering 1,000 troops to be stationed in Qatar,but who can be relocated as needed;they are to process our Afghan friends for eventual resettlement in the US; an Infantry Brigade Combat Team numbering 3500 troops of the Army's 82nd Airborne Division out of Fort Bragg,North Carolina,who are to fly to Kuwait and wait there to assist in the evacuation from Kabul if needed.* The three battalions of Marines and Soldiers were already in the US CENTCOM Area of Responsibility.They will be armed with mortars,machine guns and personal weapons for self-defence,according to Pentagon spokesman Rear Admiral John Kirby,US Navy retired.* The ANDSF were plagued by poor lines of communication,including inadequate logistics;a loss of confidence following the announcement of the US withdrawal;and the tribal culture of the country,coupled with a weak,corrupt and incompetent central government under President Ashraf Ghani.* Mr.Kirby declined to specify when the evacuation operation would conclude.About 1400 US diplomats reportedly remain in country,down from the original 4,000.They will be reduced further to a core group capable of carrying out a range of diplomatic functions,and,indeed,the US Embassy may even be relocated to the international airport to facilitate swifter evacuation if necessary.* An anonymous official said that Kabul could fall to the militants in as little as thirty days,but other observers believe it could fall even sooner.In the event of militant attacks on the evacuation,the operation could be designated a Non-Combatant Evacuation Operation (NEO).* Mr.Kirby also said that we will be ready to help our NATO Allies if they desire it and they decide they need to further reduce their footprints in Afghanistan.Both military and civilian aircraft may be used in the evacuation process.*

Two US Troops Killed in Afghanistan Mission Identified

Two US Soldiers killed in Afghanistan on 20 November 2019 have been identified as CWO 2 David C. Knadle,33, of Tarrant, Texas and CWO 2 Kirk T. Famiguchi,25,of Keaanu, Hawaii.They were piloting a helicopter during a mission to provide security for troops on the ground in Logar Province, Eastern Afghanistan near the Afghan capital Kabul.This brings the US Combat death toll up to 19 for 2019;in 2018, the US lost 13 service members in Afghan War combat.*
About 13,000 US troops remain in Afghanistan serving in support of NATO's Resolute Support Mission and the counterterrorism Operation Freedom's Sentinel.The incident is being investigated.Although the Taliban Islamist extremists claimed responsibility,they routinely falsely claim to have shot down US aircraft.A Defense Department source said initial reports suggest the Soldier's AH-64 Apache crashed when the rotor blade clipped a mountain peak.*
The Soldiers were members of 1st Battalion,27th Aviation Regiment,1st Air Cavalry Brigade,1st Cavalry Division out of Fort Hood, Texas.They were both posthumously awarded the Bronze Star Medal.*
President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump,as well as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff GEN Mark Milley and National Security Advisor Robert O'Brien were on hand for the dignified transfer of the Soldiers' remains at Dover Air Force Base, Delaware.*
"Though an host should encamp against me, my heart shall not fear: though war should rise against me,in this I will be confident.
One thing I have desired of the Lord, that I will seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord, and to enquire in His temple."
Psalm 27:3-4

Operation Inherent Resolve:US Troops Continue to Pursue IS in Syria

GEN Mark Milley, US Army,Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, says 500-600 US troops will stay in Syria in a counterterrorism capacity.They will ensure that Islamic State militants do not regroup and take advantage of the chaotic, war-torn environment in much of Syria.
Although President Donald Trump wanted to withdraw completely from Syria, pushback from the Pentagon and Republicans in Congress persuaded him to partially reverse course.GEN Milley said:
There are still ISIS (another name for IS) fighters in the region and unless pressure is maintained...then there is a very real possibility that conditions could be set for a reemergence of ISIS.The footprint will be small, but the objective will remain the same-the enduring defeat of ISIS.*
Another 150 US troops remain in Southern Syria on the border with Jordan.*
A senior OIR Commander,US Air Force MGEN Eric Hill told the Associated Press:
The mission still continues.And Daesh (another name for IS) is trying to resurge wherever they can.We've destroyed many and war remnants, and we continue to do so as we find them.*
Indeed,a newly arrived US Army mechanised infantry unit has been deployed to a remote base in Syria to do just that in their Bradley Infantry Fighting Vehicles.*

Closing Ranks:NATO Responds as Russia Violates Treaty

At the end of a NATO Foreign Ministerial in Brussels,Belgium that was attended by US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo,on 4 December 2018,NATO Allies certified that Russia is in a substantive breach of the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty.According to NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg:
All Allies have concluded that Russia has developed and fielded a new ground-launched cruise missile system-the SSC-8,also known as the 9M729.Allies agree that the missile system violates the INF Treaty and poses significant security risks to Euro-Atlantic security.And they agree that Russia is therefore in material breach of its obligations under the INF Treaty.*
This is really serious,because,of course,all missiles are dangerous,but these missiles are particularly dangerous because they are hard to detect;they are mobile;they are nuclear capable.*
Despite the US and others raising the matter with Russia over 30 times,Russia has continued to develop and deploy the forbidden missiles,eroding effective arms control and undernining the security of the NATO Allies.*
Mr.Stoltenberg continued:
This is part of Russia's pattern of behaviour,intended to weaken the overall Euro-Atlantic security architecture.There are no new US missiles in Europe;but there are new Russian missiles in Europe.*
In conclusion,Mr.Stoltenberg warned:
Russia now has a last chance to come back into compliance with the INF Treaty,but we must also start to prepare for a world without the treaty.*
The US has given Russia 60 days to come back into compliance with the INF Treaty.*
Analysis:NATO has to be very watchful as it is not sure what the Putin regime will do next in Ukraine;perhaps Russia will take covert actions that will be used to justify another land grab.NATO finds itself in a position that approaches the danger at the height of the Cold War-at the time of the Cuban Missile Crisis,for example.A conflict with Russia and/or China could necessitate a reinstatement of conscription in the US.It could mean a war of the order not seen since Vietnam-or even Korea.*
The Chief of Staff US Army,GEN Mark Milley,has been nominated by US President Donald Trump to be the next Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff,the senior commander in the US military.GEN Milley has said of Putin's Russia that:
I see Russia as aggressive,not just assertive.They attacked Georgia (in 2008);they illegally seized Crimea (2014);they have attacked Ukraine (2014-present)...all those countries were free and independent and have been sovereign nations now for a quarter of a century,since the fall of the Berlin Wall.I would say,Russia's recent behaviour is adversarial to the interests of the United States.