Free Republic

Just finished packing for my deployment to Afganistan. My orders start tomorrow and we will be at home station until the 4th. Going to Ft. Bliss for mobility training, then to the sandbox. I know we have internet access there but has anyone heard if any Freepers posting form there? I sure hope this site is not blocked so I can keep-up with whats going on back here.

The daughter of a prominent New York lawyer has told of her amazing transformation from sheltered, society girl to seasoned combat veteran. Former Manhattan jetsetter Jane Blair swapped her pampered life in New York to become one of the first women on the frontline in Iraq. In her new memoir Hesitation Kills, Mrs Blair, now a 38-year-old captain in the Marine Reserves, recalls the moment that changed her life. She said: 'I grew up in this environment where I never had to work for a living. My dad told me, "I will always take care of you".' She was in...

Those who have been following our series of US naval updates will not be surprised to learn that US forces are amassing around Tripoli. The LHD-3 Kearsarge is now within striking distance, and certainly within No Fly Zone enforcement, while the CVN 65, which according to some prior reports had already passed the Suez, is waiting just on the Southern tip of the canal. This is somewhat odd as it indicates that Naval command is still split as to where the Enterprise may be needed more: Libya or off the Persian Gulf where the Vinson is keeping watch for a...

WASHINGTON, July 8, 2010 – A training program is equipping Defense Department civilian employees with the knowledge and skills needed to successfully deploy in support of humanitarian, reconstruction and combat-support military missions across the globe. A class of about 150 Defense Department civilians and contractors, part of the civilian expeditionary work force, learn the basics in emergency medical aid at Camp Atterbury Joint Maneuver Training Center in central Indiana, June 29, 2010, before deploying to Afghanistan and Iraq. U.S. Army photo by John Crosby  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. The joint civilian expeditionary work force training -- a 10-day...

FORT HUACHUCA — Saturday was a day of time changes for the last contingent of 86th Expeditionary Signal Battalion soldiers who were deploying to Afghanistan. Initially, the soldiers and their families were to gather at Eifler Gym at 4 a.m., then 7 a.m., then 11 a.m. and, finally, the time was moved up an hour to 10 a.m., which held. The changing of the arrival of the commercial contract aircraft and its departure time was the reason for the fluctuating times. But soldiers, being soldiers, and family members of GIs took it all in stride. Inside the gym, the goodbye...

A 78 year old financial planner in Killeen has a second job in which she receives...and gives...a lot of love. Laird, who stands 4' 11" tall, is on hand when every deployment of soldiers leaves Ft. Hood to Iraq or Afghanistan, and is there when every plane load of soldiers returns. She hugs every one of them, sometimes having to stand on her tip-toes to do it. "I'm out there because I love our soldiers and I want to support them," she told 1200 WOAI news. "This is how I can make sure they know somebody supports them." Laird, who...

CAMP VICTORY – A transfer of authority ceremony Saturday in the rotunda of Al Faw Palace saw the blue and white colors of the U.S. Army’s Third Corps unfurled as the storied Phantom Corps took its place as a member of the newly-formed U.S. Forces – Iraq.Lt. Gen. Robert Cone and Command Sgt. Maj. Arthur L. Coleman, Jr., present the Third Corps colors during a transfer of authority ceremony, March 13, at Baghdad’s Al Faw Palace aboard Camp Victory. Photo by Lee Craker, USF-I. Third Corps, based at Fort Hood, Texas, is the first corps-level unit to begin its tour...

3/11/2010 - JOINT BASE McGUIRE-DIX-LAKEHURST, N.J. (AFNS) -- Officials from the 305th Air Mobility Wing here welcomed home Airmen from the 6th Airlift Squadron March 2 as they returned from supporting operations Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom. Throughout their four-month deployment, the C-17 Globemaster III squadron Airmen executed more than 3,000 sorties, off-loaded 101 million pounds of equipment and airlifted 146,000 passengers. "Our mission was to provide combat airlift support to operations Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom," said Lt. Col. John Price, the 6th Airlift Squadron commander. "Without combat airlift, operations on this scale simply are not possible. We employed...

CONTINGENCY OPERATING BASE MAREZ, Iraq – The Grafenwoehr, Germany-based 1st Inland Cargo Transfer Company has taken over the Central Receiving and Shipping Point here to assist with the upcoming drawdown of U.S. troops and equipment from theater. "Our mission is to deploy and redeploy units," said Sgt. 1st Class Waldemar Paoli, the first sergeant of the 1st ICTC, 395th Combat Sustainment Support Battalion, 15th Sustainment Brigade, 13th Sustainment Command (Expeditionary). Paoli, a Yauco, Puerto Rico, native, said his unit, which took control of the CRSP yard Jan. 29, will act as the middleman between COB Q-West and bases in central...

CAMP ATTERBURY JOINT MANEUVER TRAINING CENTER, EDINBURGH, Ind., Feb. 18, 2010 – The Civilian Expeditionary Workforce, introduced in January 2009, is up and running at full speed. A range safety official shows Julia Schoenfeld her results after she fired an M-9 pistol. Schoenfeld is with the Civilian Expeditionary Workforce, which trains and equips Department of Defense civiliansto deploy oversees in support of worldwide military missions. She was among the first CEW students who graduated Feb. 3, 2010. U.S. Army photo by T.D. Jackson  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. After an intense 10-day course held from Jan. 25 through Feb....

SAVANNAH, Ga. (AP) -- A single-mom soldier who says she refused to deploy to Afghanistan because she had no family able to care for her young son will be discharged from the military instead of facing a court-martial, the Army said Thursday. Spc. Alexis Hutchinson, an Army cook stationed at Hunter Army Airfield in Savannah, was arrested in November after skipping her unit's deployment flight. Hutchinson, 21, said she couldn't leave her son because her mother had backed out of plans to keep the child a few days before the soldier's scheduled departure. The Army filed criminal charges last month...

<p>A single-mom soldier who says she refused to deploy to Afghanistan because she had no family able to care for her young son will be discharged from the military instead of facing a court-martial, the Army said Thursday.</p> <p>Spc. Alexis Hutchinson, an Army cook stationed at Hunter Army Airfield in Savannah, was arrested in November after skipping her unit's deployment flight. Hutchinson, 21, said she couldn't leave her son because her mother had backed out of plans to keep the child a few days before the soldier's scheduled departure.</p>

HELMAND PROVINCE, Afghanistan, Dec. 31, 2009 – Walking off the loading ramp of a C-17 cargo plane and into vibrant sunlight, members of the 1st Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment arrived at Camp Bastion, Afghanistan, Dec. 15. Marines and sailors with 1st Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment disembark a C-17 cargo plane at Camp Bastion, Afghanistan, Dec. 15, 2009, in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. For many of the junior Marines and sailors of 1/6, this is their first deployment, and in many cases their first time outside of the United States. Courtesy photo  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. The Marines...

ALEXANDRIA, Va., Dec. 30, 2009 – Due to multiple military deployments that have occurred for nearly a decade, many Army families choose to remain in their established neighborhoods or return to a relative’s hometown when their soldier deploys. In many cases this means that family resources commonly found on a military installation aren't available for the duration of the soldier’s deployment. The Army has hired 61 community support coordinators located across the United States, Alaska, Hawaii, Guam, American Samoa and Japan to help connect these geographically dispersed military personnel with community-service systems. Community support coordinators work to engage and invite...

WASHINGTON, Dec. 23, 2009 – Brandy Flotten is tackling her first holiday season without her deployed husband, but she’s still determined to keep the holiday spirit alive for her two sons, she said. Navy spouse Vivian Greentree created a holiday card to keep her deployed husband part of the family’s holiday festivities. In the card, she and her two boys hold a “Daddy on a Stick” to represent her husband. Courtesy photo  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. “It has been tough,” said Flotten, whose husband, Navy Lt. Cmdr. Andrew Flotten, is deployed to Iraq. “We’re just trying to keep...

WASHINGTON, Dec. 22, 2009 – Defense Department officials today identified 6,000 servicemembers to deploy in 2010 as part of President Barack Obama’s order to increase the U.S. footprint in Afghanistan. About 3,400 soldiers from the 101st Airborne Division’s 2nd Brigade Combat Team are headed to Afghanistan in early summer, according to a statement released by the Pentagon. The soldiers are based out of Fort Campbell, Ky. Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates also approved deployment orders for about 2,600 support forces who will begin deploying to various locations at staggered times in the spring. The president announced Dec. 1 that the...

CONTINGENCY OPERATING BASE ADDER, Iraq, Dec. 2, 2009 – A soldier who was badly wounded in a 2005 roadside-bomb explosion is serving in Iraq again, and he’s finding deployed life easier this time around. Army Spc. David Broome is back in Iraq after receiving a Purple Heart for injuries he suffered in 2005. U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Neil Gussman  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. The road back to Iraq has been arduous for Spc. David Broome. In all, he was a patient in four hospitals for nearly two months before going home to begin the rehabilitation process. After...

CAMP BLANDING JOINT TRAINING CENTER, Fla., Nov. 25, 2009 – In the midst of a nondescript Middle Eastern-style village, 53rd Infantry Brigade Combat Team soldiers interact with the local inhabitants the same as they have done day in and day out on routine patrols. A soldier from Bravo Company, 2nd Battalion, 124th Infantry Regiment, secures an insurgent after finding a bomb in a vehicle during an exercise at Camp Blanding Joint Training Center, Fla., Nov. 17, 2009. U.S. Army photo by 1st Lt. Paul O'Leary  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. Today, however, something feels different. You can describe all...

RICHMOND, Va., Nov. 6, 2009 – When he joined the Navy 15 years ago, Cmdr. Trent Kalp probably expected to serve six-month deployments to the middle of the ocean during his career. But at the time, it might have come as a surprise to learn he also would one day be packing his bags at his home in Midlothian, Va., for six months in Afghanistan. Navy Cmdr. Trent Kalp served six months as commander of Defense Logistics Agency’s support team in Afghanistan. His team worked to develop an aviation hub to provide food for U.S. forces in Regional Command South....

WATERLOO --- Northeast Iowa soldiers attached to "Ironman Battalion" are facing another lengthy deployment. The Waterloo-headquarterd Iowa Army National guard 1st Battalion, 133rd Infantry regiment spent nearly two years on active duty --- mostly in Iraq --- starting in 2005. It appears the Iowa National Guard unit will spend another year away from family and friends, this time in Afghanistan. The U.S. Department of Defense announced Tuesday the guard's 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 34th "Red Bull" Infantry Division, of which the 1/133rd is a part of, is on alert. The division will begin deploying in the fall of 2010 to...

With 15 miles (25km) of pristine, undeveloped beachfront property in southern California, it is difficult to imagine wanting to live anywhere else. But for many of the marines at Camp Pendleton, one place beckons above all others. "Afghanistan," says Lance Cpl Alejandra Esqueda, when asked where she would like to be deployed next. "I actually look forward to it. I'm hopefully going to Afghanistan to finish what we got to do there… I've already been to Iraq. Afghanistan is the new place to be." Thirst for action Lance Cpl Esqueda is one of hundreds of marines on the beach preparing...

WASHINGTON, Oct. 19, 2009 – An Army brigade slated to deploy to Iraq in January was relieved of its deployment orders this weekend without current plans for a new mission, Pentagon and Army officials said here today. The 10th Mountain Division’s 1st Brigade Combat Team was off-ramped by Army Gen. Raymond T. Odierno, the top U.S. commander in Iraq, because of the improved security situation there, and not to bolster forces in Afghanistan, Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman told reporters. “This [decision] is based on General Odierno’s assessment of the security environment in Iraq,” Whitman explained. “It reflects the continuing improvements...

WASHINGTON, Oct. 1, 2009 – The deployments of about 1,600 U.S. troops in Iraq could be extended in the weeks following the national election slated to occur in January, Pentagon officials said today. Some 1,000 soldiers from the Army’s 1st Cavalry Headquarters in Baghdad could be asked to stay up to 23 days longer and some 600 Marines from the II Marine Expeditionary Force in Anbar province could be extended up to 79 days, according to defense officials. Gen. Raymond Odierno said current military thinking is to maintain force levels between 110,000 and 120,000 troops for the two months after...

... Maj. Cook has already been joined in his lawsuit by two other soldiers, a retired Army two-star general and an active reserve Air Force lieutenant colonel. But the potential consequences of the major's revoked deployment go far beyond the number of American soldiers with doubts about the legitimacy of orders from their nominal commander in chief. The Pentagon's decision to back down rather than risk exposing Obama's birth records to the public means that every single American soldier, sailor, pilot and Marine now holds a "get out of war free" card. Not only every deployment order, but every order...

WASHINGTON — Four new Advisory and Assistance Brigades (AAB) will deploy to Iraq beginning this fall in the next regularly scheduled troop rotations, a senior defense official announced yesterday.U.S. DoD Iraqi Freedom Rotation Schedule (PDF) The brigades are specially configured Army units focused on training and mentoring Iraqi Security Forces (ISF).The new AABs are among seven brigade-size elements whose upcoming deployments were announced yesterday. One brigade is going to Kuwait and two others to Afghanistan to replace redeploying forces, Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman told reporters.Unlike traditional Brigade Combat Teams (BCT), the AABs will focus less on combat operations and more...

Link is to the first of the videos from my son's Iraq deployment. Iraq'd Up 1, 2, and 3 are in roughly chronological order. All the direct links are below.

http://www.baynews9.com/content/36/2009/4/25/465019.html

N. Korea deploys advanced fighter jets ahead of rocket launch: official By Sam Kim SEOUL, April 2 (Yonhap) -- North Korea has deployed a fleet of MiG-23 fighter jets along the east coast where it is gearing up to launch a rocket to send what it claims is a "satellite" into orbit, a senior Air Force official said Thursday. The latest relocation of the advanced fighter jets comes as the communist North steps up its warnings against any foreign attempt to intercept its rocket. South Korea, Japan and the U.S. maintain the launch will likely be a disguised test of...

WASHINGTON (AFP) – The US is expected this week to announce plans to dispatch more federal agents to its border with Mexico in a bid to combat drug cartel operations there, US officials said. Washington appears poised to bolster its customs and border protection forces along the 3000-plus kilometer (2000 mile) frontier, in what would be President Barack Obama's first major domestic security initiative. The announcement is expected to come "in the next few days" a Department of Homeland Security official told AFP ahead of the announcement. The impending plan comes as Secretary of State Hillary Clinton prepares to visit...

ANDREWS AIR FORCE BASE, Md., March 13, 2009 – Air National Guard civil engineer squadrons comprising hundreds of construction and repair experts will involuntary deploy overseas in historic numbers and scope over the next two years, senior Air Guard officials said. The mobilizations involve nearly one-eighth of the Air Guard’s civil engineer squadrons and differ from previous deployments, when citizen-airmen stepped forward as volunteers to man joint expeditionary groups. "We have large groups being involuntarily mobilized in the beginning and middle of 2009,” Air Force Col. John Elwood of the Air Guard Readiness Center's civil engineer office said. He said...

WASHINGTON, Jan. 21, 2009 – As Wyoming prepares for the largest National Guard deployment in state history, much of the planning has gone into helping those who will be left behind for a year in communities scattered across the rural state. Nearly 1,000 soldiers will deploy in April to Iraq and Kuwait, leaving behind thousands of families and extended family members in nearly every community in the state. “A lot of people think of the ‘spouse’ when they think of military family programs. Not everybody’s married,” William Breckenridge, the state Family Support Program director, said. “We work in terms...

WASHINGTON, Dec. 22, 2008 – Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates has approved the deployment of an Army aviation brigade to Afghanistan this spring, a Defense Department official said today. The deploying unit -- the 82nd Combat Aviation Brigade from Fort Bragg, N.C. -- will comprise about 2,800 soldiers and a fleet of rotary-wing aircraft, Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman said. The brigade will serve the International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan mission as an “enabling type of force” for ground units, Whitman explained. “This is part of the continuing commitment to increase our military capabilities in Afghanistan,” he said. The plus-up...

NORFOLK, VA (NNS) -- Nearly 220 Sailors from Maritime Expeditionary Security Squadron (MSRON) 4 returned home Dec. 15 to the Naval Station Norfolk Air Mobility Command terminal after completing a seven-month deployment. While deployed to the U.S. 5th Fleet area of operations, the squadron's primary mission was to conduct Maritime Security Operations (MSO) in the North Arabian Gulf and help provide security for Iraq's two oil platforms as well as U.S. and Coalition ships in the region. MSO helps maintain security in the maritime environment, which promotes stability and economic prosperity. MSO complements the counterterrorism and security efforts of regional...

CAMP SHELBY, Miss., Dec. 12, 2008 – Nearly 100 California National Guardsmen are preparing for a deployment to Kosovo in the spring, where they will serve as the NATO Kosovo Force’s quick-reaction force. Army Capt. Michael Riley, commander of Company C, 1-185th Combined Arms Battalion, and Army Brig. Gen. Keith Jones, assistant deputy adjutant general for California’s Army National Guard, get front-row action as they observe a M2 Bradley fighting vehicle live-fire exercise at Camp Shelby, Miss. The exercise is part of training to ready the 1-185th CAB for a deployment to Kosovo. U.S. Army photo  (Click photo for screen-resolution...

CAMP TAJI, Iraq, Dec. 5, 2008 – Army Sgt. 1st Class Timothy Nein didn’t have to come back here. He served in Iraq twice before and was awarded a Distinguished Service Cross for his actions as a squad leader under fire. If anyone could have gotten a pass, it was Nein. But he wouldn’t take it. Army Sgt. 1st Class Timothy Nein, who is on his third deployment to Iraq, serves with the Kentucky National Guard's 223rd Military Police Company, at Camp Taji, Iraq. Nein was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross for his actions as a squad leader with...

FORWARD OPERATING BASE FALCON, Iraq, Nov. 14, 2008 – The senior noncommissioned officer of the fire effects and coordination cell for the 4th Infantry Division’s 1st Brigade Combat Team in Multinational Division Baghdad began his mission almost immediately upon arriving at this base in southern Baghdad’s Rashid district in March. Army Master Sgt. Craig Wagner, a forward observer assigned to Headquarters and Headquarters Detachment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, Multinational Division Baghdad, is a veteran of operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm, and is serving his third combat deployment in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. U.S. Army...

WAR MOM PALIN TAKES HARD LINE By CHARLES HURT Bureau Chief September 12, 2008 -- WASHINGTON - Vice-presidential hopeful Sarah Palin saw her eldest son off to war yesterday as she took a hard line on Russia, Iran and terrorists "hellbent on destroying America and our allies." Asked in her first extended interview since becoming John McCain's running mate if she thinks she's qualified to take over the presidency, Palin replied, "I do." "I have the confidence in that readiness and knowing that you can't blink," she told ABC News. "You have to be wired in a way of being...

In the next few weeks, my wonderful husband, Ron, will be re-deploying back to Iraq with the USAF for his FIFTH time flying the not-so-friendly skies over there. He is a pilot, and volunteered for this redeployment. (He just returned home about a month and a half ago from his last deployment and I'd rather hoped to have him home longer.) Prayers for his preparation, protection, and safe return would be greatly appreciated, as always. (Please consider adding him to any prayer lists or prayer pings, please.) Molly in California

WASHINGTON, Aug. 5, 2008 – The Defense Department has extended by one month the deployments of about 1,250 Marines working as trainers to Afghan security forces, a U.S. Marine Corps official said today. The extension will keep the 2nd Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment in Afghanistan through late November, according to an Associated Press report that was confirmed by a Marine official. Ongoing discussions in the Pentagon center on providing additional troops to Afghanistan, where commanders have expressed a desire for three more brigade combat teams, Pentagon Press Secretary Geoff Morrell said today. “We are working to provide them with...

ABC News' Yunji de Nies reports: President Bush announced this morning that beginning tomorrow, US troop tours in Iraq will be reduced from 15 months to 12 months. "The progress in Iraq has allowed us to continue our policy of return on success," the President said from the Colonnade outside the Oval Office, "We have now brought home all five of the combat brigades and the three Marine units that were sent to Iraq as part of the surge. The last of these surge brigades returned home this month." The President gave a brief status report on the Iraq war,...

WASHINGTON, July 11, 2008 – A company that publishes an annual deployment guide has sped up its schedule to release the 2009 guide this fall. AmeriForce Publishing is changing its production schedule to get the 2009 guide out early because large-scale troop rotations are taking place later this year, Julie Miller, senior sales manager for AmeriForce Publishing, said. “Our servicemembers and their families need all the help we can offer,” she said. “We believe that by providing this publication this fall and updating the topics in the guide to remain current, we are providing the kind of support our...

FORT STEWART, Ga., June 29, 2008 – While most people only read about history, the soldiers of the 3rd Infantry Division helped to make history during their 15-month deployment to Iraq, the division’s commander said here June 27. Army Maj. Gen. Rick Lynch had lunch with Savannah and Coastal Georgia new media at Club Stewart here and thanked them for their efforts in telling the division’s story. Lynch expressed his pride in and appreciation for the “Rock of the Marne” soldiers whose dedication and sacrifice helped secure and improve life for the Iraqi people, and he recognized the sacrifices and...

WASHINGTON, June 19, 2008 – The last of the five Army brigades to deploy with the “troop surge” in Iraq will return in July after a 13-month deployment, during which soldiers detained more than 800 terrorist suspects and helped foster Iraqi self-governance. Video The 3rd Infantry Division’s 2nd Brigade Combat Team has operated in the Arab Jabour area of southeastern Baghdad, where the number of attacks plummeted from about 30 a week when they arrived in May 2007 to about one a week now. “All in all, it's been a very successful operation for us,” Army Col. Terry Ferrell,...

CAMP TAJI, Iraq, May 19, 2008 – “Chief, what the heck are you doing?” Army Chief Warrant Officer 3 Christian Smith, a Villa Grove, Ill., native, stands at the open hood of a Humvee at Camp Taji, Iraq, May 16, 2008. Smith is the squadron maintenance technician for 4th Squadron, 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment, Task Force 12, Multinational Division Baghdad. He fought for, and won, the opportunity to deploy to Iraq in November despite being diagnosed with multifocal motor neuropathy. U.S. Army photo by Sgt. 1st Class Chris Seaton, Multinational Division Baghdad  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. Army...

About 3,500 American soldiers are scheduled to leave Iraq in the coming weeks, the U.S. military announced, part of a plan to reduce the number of troops who were part of last year's "surge" by 20,000. The soldiers, part of the 3rd Heavy Brigade Combat Team, will redeploy to Fort Benning, Ga., the military said.

WASHINGTON, March 28, 2008 – A rock star is putting a successful music career on hold as he prepares to deploy overseas as a member of the Army Reserve. “I think it’s the pinnacle of life to be able to say, when my country needed me, … I heeded the call,” Sgt. Frank Cavanagh said in an “America Supports You Live” BlogTalkRadio.com interview a week before deploying for training and eventually to Iraq. Cavanagh was the bass player for the band Filter, and he recently participated in a reunion tour in Kuwait with Operation MySpace. Cavanagh left a successful...

FORT BLISS, Texas, March 5, 2008 – As Army Lt. Gen. Raymond T. Odierno was urging the Army’s return to 12-month deployments, an Army brigade here just back from Iraq was getting word that it’s time to start training for its next combat rotation. Soldiers of 4th Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division, who recently returned to Fort Bliss, Texas, after 15 months in Iraq, already are laying plans to return to the field to train up for their next deployment, feasibly as soon as a year away. U.S. Army photo   (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. Soldiers from the...

DAMASCUS, Syria — Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem said Saturday that a U.S. Navy deployment off the coast of Lebanon threatens security in the region and warned the United States it cannot impose its own solution to the long-running political crisis in Lebanon. "There is a history of American fleet intervention in Lebanon. I think these experiences were not at all useful," al-Moallem said. The planned deployment of at least three warships, announced Thursday, appeared to be aimed at making an American show of strength at a time of increasing international frustration at the volatile political deadlock in Lebanon between...

Russia to deploy 11 new Topol-M ICBMs in 2008 20:33 | 27/ 02/ 2008 MOSCOW, February 27 (RIA Novosti) - Russia's Strategic Missile Forces (SMF) will deploy 11 new silo and mobile-launched Topol-M intercontinental ballistic missiles in 2008, the SMF commander said on Wednesday. Gen. Nikolai Solovtsov said the weapons would be deployed in the European part of Russia adding, "the SMF will receive 11 up-to-date Topol-M ICBMs in two versions [silo and mobile-launched]." The missile (NATO reporting name SS-27), with a range of about 7,000 miles (11,000 kms), is said to be immune to any current and future U.S....

Earlier this month, I wrote that Nicolas Sarkozy might consider showing some leadership in Europe by bolstering France's combat participation in Afghanistan. Le Monde reported earlier today that Sarkozy has all but committed the troops to the front lines: France may send hundreds of ground troops to east Afghanistan where NATO-led forces are fighting al Qaeda-backed insurgents, Le Monde newspaper reported on Tuesday. It said the move would be part of a new Afghan policy being worked out by President Nicolas Sarkozy and his advisers. France has about 1,900 soldiers under NATO's Afghan command, most of them based in relatively...