Mullen: Afghanistan troop decision likely in a ‘few weeks’
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs lauds troops’ resilience, cites urgent need to address brain injuries.
The nation's top military officer said on Wednesday that despite enormous pressure on the Army and the Marine Corps to support operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, the services are not near a "tipping point" in their ability to supply ground troops to those wars.
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"For units we look at in the rotation [schedule], while some have had only 12 months [between deployments], most are pushing 18 months," Mullen said.
It's not clear if that trend will continue. "Obviously, it will depend on the demands in Afghanistan," Mullen said. President Obama has been considering a request for tens of thousands of more troops from his top commander in Afghanistan, Gen. Stanley McChrystal.
"I do expect the president will make a decision in the next few weeks," Mullen said.
The issue is of critical importance, especially in the Army, where many soldiers have had multiple combat deployments of one year or more and there is growing concern about the health of the force. Service leaders have been grappling with rising suicide rates and an alarming increase in the number of soldiers suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder.
"For units we look at in the rotation [schedule], while some have had only 12 months [between deployments], most are pushing 18 months," Mullen said.
Increasing the amount of time soldiers spend at home with their families between deployments is seen as a critical step in rebalancing the Army. The goal is to give soldiers at least two years between combat tours.
Military commanders are planning to aggressively cut troop levels in Iraq next spring, reducing the force there from about 115,000 to 50,000 by next fall. While some of those troops might be sent directly to Afghanistan, most will return home.
Mullen said the soldiers and the Marines he talks to around the world "are proud of what they are doing and know they can succeed. It's the best military I've seen in 40 years. I don't see us right now getting near a tipping point."
Still, he said PTSD and traumatic brain injuries have become the signature injuries of the wars.
"I think we are in the early stages of really understanding the impact of [traumatic brain injury]," he said. "This is not like a football head injury. It is the catastrophic aspect of this explosion that just affects the brain differently. There needs to be a real sense of urgency here."
He also emphasized that it is critical for the military to eliminate the stigma associated with PTSD. "It too often gets used against you," Mullen said.
"The leadership -- civilian and military -- is focused on this. We just have a long way to go," he said.