[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 52 (Wednesday, April 21, 2004)]
[Senate]
[Page S4183]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




            THE ROTATION OF U.S. FORCES INTO AND OUT OF IRAQ

   Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, I rise today to inform the Senate of an 
undertaking that has, in my view, not received adequate attention in 
the press or by the American public. This undertaking has required 
tremendous planning, and has been on a massive scale.
   As the news from Iraq dominates our attention, an important and 
notable success story has gone largely unnoticed. I refer to the 
massive troop rotation in the Iraq theater that is now nearing 
completion by our Armed Forces. This is the largest U.S. troop rotation 
since World War II--more than 250,000 U.S. service members have been 
involved.
   Planning for this rotation of forces in Iraq has been underway for 
many months. The meticulous quality of that planning, the absolute 
attention to detail by thousands of military planners, logisticians, 
and transportation specialists has resulted in a near flawless rotation 
of forces.
   Consider for a moment the sheer size of the logistics effort 
involved in rotation over a quarter million combat troops, in 
mobilizing them, in transporting them by sea or air, supplying them, 
and in simply keeping them sheltered and fed. And now, consider doing 
all of that in a place that is nearly half a world away, and at the 
same time, continuing the pace of military operations and combat in 
Iraq, without skipping a beat.
   New units began flowing into the region in December of last year, 
and to date, over 95 percent of the service members deploying to Iraq 
have arrived in the region.
   I would like the Senate to consider some of the facts and figures 
for the deployment and redeployment, or return, of forces in that area.
   Over 900,000 short tons of equipment and supplies have been shipped 
to support operation Iraqi Freedom.
  Over fifty-seven sealift ships have sailed, delivering more than 
426,000 short tons into theater, and 13 ships have returned 88,000 
short tons back stateside.
  Nearly 3,000 airlift missions have been completed, and over 63,000 
flight hours.
  Ninety-seven thousand soldiers scheduled for redeployment have 
returned home from Iraq.
  Over 91,000 reserve component soldiers were mobilized for Operation 
Iraqi Freedom 1, and over 54,000 for Operation Iraqi Freedom 2.
  Last month I was privileged to travel to the Central Command Theater 
to see first hand the magnitude of this effort. I traveled with my good 
friends the chairman of the Armed Services Committee, and John Warner, 
and the senior Senator from South Carolina, Fritz Hollings. We saw our 
forces in Baghdad and in Balad, Iraq and traveled into Afghanistan to 
visit our forces there.
  I simply cannot say how absolutely impressed we were with the 
fighting spirit and combat power displayed by these young Americans.
  We spent some time with the 1st Armored Division in Baghdad, and MG 
Martin Dempsey's absolutely impressive forces. General Dempsey's forces 
are providing stability and security in a dangerous part of Baghdad. 
They know they have an important mission. You could see the dedication 
and courage in each of their faces. They know why they are there.
  We also spent some time with Joint Task Force 180, in Baghram, 
Afghanistan. MG Lloyd Austin, a really impressive commander of the 10th 
Mountain Division. His soldiers are pursuing Taliban and al-Qaida 
remnants in the mountains of Afghanistan. His forces, too, are 
remarkably bright and dedicated young men and women. Spending time with 
them was inspiring to us all.
  We had planned to visit the 1st Battalion of the 501st Parachute 
Infantry Regiment from Alaska. They are deployed to Khost, Aghnanistan, 
in the rough mountains near the Pakistan border.
  Unfortunately, an aircraft malfunction required that we change 
planes, and that delay meant we were unable to make that stop to see 
those Alaskan forces. We are terribly proud of them and all of the 
forces there around the country in that area.
  My friends and I also went to Kuwait and saw forces moving into and 
out of Iraq. Kuwait is where much of the logistics operation for the 
troop rotation is based. The level of this effort is nothing short of 
remarkable to see.
  In Kuwait, we visited with troops from the 4th Infantry Division, the 
division that captured Saddam Hussein, as they were moving home and 
preparing their gear for return. We visited with these troops at the 
``wash rack'' where each vehicle is cleaned from top to bottom before 
returning home so there is no contamination from the wartime area.
  It takes nearly 8 hours to fully clean a vehicle of all the dirt, 
sand and wear that accumulate. Dozens of these wash racks were 
operating day and night, 
24/7, until every last piece of gear is cleaned and ready to return 
home.
  Many of the division's vehicles were staged and lined up, ready to 
return home. That was truly a sight to see--rows of rows and rows of 
all types of military vehicles, scores of vehicles. I saw the 
remarkable size and scope of our logistics effort to rotate these 
forces in Iraq, and the magnitude of that effort is simply amazing.
  General Robert Barrow, a former commandant of the Marine Corps, in 
1980 said: ``Amateurs talk about tactics, but professionals study 
logistics.'' That statement has again been proven true by the nearly 
flawless rotation of U.S. forces in and out of Iraq. That rotation is 
now nearly complete, and it is a remarkable achievement. This massive 
movement of forces and equipment, the largest since World War II, has 
largely gone unreported and little noticed by the American people. 
However, it is a true success story and one that needs to be told, and 
needs to be told on the floor of the Senate.
  This rotation of forces is an absolute testament to the will, 
dedication and commitment of our men and women in uniform. They are to 
be commended for what they do for all Americans, and once again, they 
have made us proud.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from New Hampshire.
  Mr. GREGG. Mr. President, I ask to proceed as in morning business.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

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