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The U.S. military’s top-ranking officer encountered one of Iraq’s most dangerous areas July 7 and saw first-hand the improvements Iraqi and U.S. forces have made during recent months. Navy Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, received a glimpse of the success that has seen attack levels in Iraq fall to their lowest in four years - a 90 percent decline in attacks during the past year alone. The progress in security has allowed Coalition forces to focus more on other issues, military officials in Baghdad said. Less than 60 days ago, the streets of Jamilla Market...

Setting a timeline for U.S. troop withdrawals from Iraq would be “dangerous,” and troop reductions there should continue to be made based on security conditions on the ground, the nation’s top military officer said July 20. President Bush and Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki this week agreed to set a general “time horizon" for bringing more U.S. troops home from the war, Navy Adm. Mike Mullen said in an interview on “Fox News Sunday,” but he added that to his knowledge, the agreement does not include specific dates. “I think the consequences could be very dangerous in that regard,” he...

The Democratic candidate would like to shift resources to Afghanistan, but one military leader said a deadline to withdraw "could be very dangerous." KABUL, AFGHANISTAN - As Sen. Barack Obama heads to Iraq for his first visit as a presidential candidate, his plan for bringing the war to a swift conclusion is triggering a political furor abroad and at home, with a U.S. military leader declaring Sunday that setting a hard deadline for withdrawing troops is risky. Obama is scheduled to meet with Iraqi political leaders who were scrambling over the weekend to clarify an apparent endorsement of his proposal...

Top Military Commander Hopes for Improved Iraq Security Trend Adm. Mike Mullen, the nation's top military officer, says that, for now, he would likely recommend withdrawing more U.S. troops from Iraq this fall if improved security trends continue over the summer. The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said at a Pentagon briefing today that security is "unquestionably and remarkably better," and that "if these trends continue, I expect to be able early in the fall to recommend to the secretary and the president further troop reductions." Mullen, who recently returned from a tour of Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan,...

ISLAMABAD: Speculation over possible U.S. hot pursuit of Taliban and Al-Qaeda militants hiding in Pakistan rose after an unannounced visit by a top U.S. military official to Islamabad on Saturday for a meeting with the Pakistan Army chief. Admiral Mike Mullen, the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman, is said to have urged the Pakistani military to act decisively against terrorist safe havens in the tribal areas, the Dawn reported. Admiral Mullen is said to have conveyed Washington’s frustration at the Pakistan government’s apparent unwillingness or inability to end cross-border infiltration by the Taliban into Afghanistan. He met Pakistan Army...

KORENGAL VALLEY, Afghanistan, July 12, 2008 – The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff yesterday took the opportunity to present 12 paratroopers with awards here for valorous and heroic achievements in combat. Navy Adm. Mike Mullen pinned five Army Commendation Medals with valor devices, five Purple Heart Medals, one Bronze Star with valor device, and one Silver Star on the troopers’ chests during a ceremony at their combat outpost here. “It’s an honor and privilege to be here,” Mullen said to the awardees. “This ceremony is about individuals who represent the sacrifice of so many.” The paratroopers are assigned...

Mullen to ‘read the riot act’ to Pakistan * US army chief says Pakistan govt needs to crack down on insurgent safe havens By Khalid Hasan WASHINGTON: United States Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Admiral Mike Mullen will be in Pakistan to “read the riot act” to the government and express his country’s frustration with Islamabad’s lack of ability or willingness, or both, to move decisively against terrorist groups. A well-informed source, when asked if US patience with what it sees as Pakistani “flip-flop and procrastination” is running out, said: “It is very close to that.” When it does, the...

WASHINGTON - The top uniformed U.S. military officer told Congress on Tuesday that Iran is directly jeopardizing any potential for peace in Iraq, prompting fresh calls from senators that the U.S. pursue diplomatic talks with Tehran. Adm. Michael Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said that "irresponsible actions" by Iran's Revolutionary Guard "directly jeopardize" peace in Iraq.

The Pentagon has ordered military commanders to develop new options for attacking Iran, CBS reported Tuesday, as a second US aircraft carrier steamed into the Persian Gulf. According to the report, the planning was being driven by what one officer called the "increasingly hostile role" Iran is playing in Iraq - smuggling weapons into Iraq for use against American troops. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates said that "what the Iranians are doing is killing American servicemen and -women inside Iraq." CBS said that US officials were also concerned by Iranian harassment of US ships in the Persian Gulf as well...

PHILADELPHIA, April 29, 2008 – The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff called on the citizens of Philadelphia last night to embrace those who have lost loved ones or who have been wounded in service to America. Navy Adm. Mike Mullen received the Gold Medal of the Union League of Philadelphia during a ceremony at the 1862 building, right down the street from City Hall. The league was established during the Civil War as an organization to help restore the Union, and it has pursued its mission to uphold the nation for the 135 years since. Mullen challenged...

"...his comments be construed as a challenge to any particular presidential candidate. He has consistently and repeatedly resisted a hasty withdrawal from Iraq not based on operational conditions." Captain John Kirby, USN "...it is unquestionably true that a victory by Sen. Clinton or Sen. Obama in the general election would result in a pull out order, whereas a victory for Sen. McCain would not. Therefore, I stand by the article's assertion that Adm. Mullen's comments can be interpreted as particularly directed at the Democratic candidates." Mark Impomeni

WASHINGTON, April 28, 2008 – Iraqi security forces fought and performed well during recent battles against insurgents in the Iraqi cities of Baghdad and Basra, a senior U.S. military officer posted in Iraq said yesterday. “We’ve had significant achievements in the fight against criminal groups over the last several weeks,” Navy Rear Adm. Patrick Driscoll, a Multinational Force Iraq spokesman, told reporters at a Baghdad news conference. “In Basra and Baghdad, Iraqi security forces have demonstrated bravery and professionalism and have made great strides in securing those areas where Iraqis were held hostage by those who oppose the rule of...

An Iraqi soldier inspect Katyusha rockets that were seized in Basra BAGHDAD (AFP) — Iraqi and US military commanders on Sunday claimed a clear Iranian role in violence engulfing Baghdad's Sadr City, where Shiite militiamen have been battling security forces for the past month.The claims come after the top US military leader, Admiral Michael Mullen, last week expressed concern at what he said was Iran's growing and lethal interference in Iraq and elsewhere in the region.Iraqi army spokesman Major General Qasim Atta told a news conference in Baghdad that 712 rockets and mortars had been fired in Baghdad in...

Making it crystal clear to Iran, Adm. Michael Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said Friday that the United States is preparing for "potential military courses of action" against it if Tehran does not stop aiding insurgents in Iraq and fails to stop building nuclear weapons. Admitting that a third conflict in the region would be "extremely stressing" for America's military, he warned Iran that it was mistake to suggest the United States did not have the resources to strike Iranian military targets. "I have reserve capability, in particularly our Navy and our Air Force, not just there,...

The United States has the combat power to strike Teheran if needed, Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff warned Friday. He alleged Iran was ratcheting up its support for militias in Iraq by providing them with newly manufactured weapons and bringing them across the border to receive training from members of Teheran's Republican Guard. Mullen said the military is preparing to roll out evidence, including date stamps on newly found weapons caches, to prove that recently made Iranian weapons are flowing into Iraq at a steadily increasing rate. He would not detail the evidence, which...

The nation's top military officer said yesterday that the Pentagon is planning for "potential military courses of action" as one of several options against Iran, criticizing what he called the Tehran government's "increasingly lethal and malign influence" in Iraq. Adm. Michael Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said a conflict with Iran would be "extremely stressing" but not impossible for U.S. forces, pointing to reserve capabilities in the Navy and Air Force. "It would be a mistake to think that we are out of combat capability," he said at a Pentagon news conference. Speaking of Iran's intentions, Mullen...

The government of Iran continues to supply weapons and other support to extremists in Iraq, despite repeated promises to the contrary, and is increasingly complicit in the death of U.S. soldiers, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said Friday in a stark new assessment of Iranian influence. The chairman, Admiral Michael Mullen, said he was "extremely concerned" about "the increasingly lethal and malign influence" by the government of Iran and the Quds Force of Iran's Revolutionary Guards, a special force that aids and encourages Islamic militants around the world. The Quds Forces in Iran were created during the...

WASHINGTON, April 25, 2008 – Syria’s building of a secret nuclear facility with North Korean help reinforces the need to prevent the spread of weapons of mass destruction, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said today. “It should serve as a reminder to us all of the very real dangers of proliferation and need to rededicate ourselves to prevent the spread of weapons of mass destruction, particularly into the hands of a state or a group with terrorist connections,” Navy Adm. Mike Mullen said during a Pentagon briefing. The reactor, destroyed by Israel in September before it...

WASHINGTON, April 10, 2008 – Sharply decreased violence in Iraq has set the stage for the departure of the remaining surge forces by the end of July, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates testified before the Senate Armed Services Committee here today. Violence in Iraq “has declined dramatically since this time last year,” Gates told committee members. “In addition to the drop in U.S. casualties, we have seen a dramatic and encouraging decline in the loss of Iraqi civilians.” Gates and Navy Adm. Mike Mullen, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, were on Capitol Hill to update legislators on...

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Pentagon's top military official on Wednesday said it was too soon to say who won and who lost in last week's Iraqi government offensive in the southern city of Basra, but he praised the fact that the government attempted it."We've been looking forward to a time when the Iraqi security forces would in fact take the lead and be aggressive in terms of providing for their own security," said Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman Adm. Mike Mullen. "So from that standpoint, that strategic intent was very positive."He said the effort was planned and led by the...

Insubordination at Guantanamo By Henry Mark Holzer FrontPageMagazine.com | Thursday, January 17, 2008 On January 13, 2008, Admiral Mike Mullen, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, visited the Guantanamo Bay Naval Base in Cuba, the detention facility that holds hundreds of enemy combatants, including some of the worst of the worst terrorists. Mullen is the seventeenth chairman in a line beginning with the appointment of General of the Army Omar N. Bradley in 1949, and which included, like Bradley, other combat-tested military figures. While at Guantanamo, Mullen—a subordinate of the Commander-in-Chief, President George W. Bush—gratuitously opined that “I’d like...

RAMADI, Iraq, Dec. 19, 2007 – Driving through downtown Ramadi today is a strange experience for anyone who saw the city in 2006. Navy Adm. Michael G. Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, visited the city today and said he’s amazed at the differences from a year ago. There is construction in the streets of the city; school is out of session and children play on playgrounds, including riding on a makeshift Ferris wheel that would give a safety inspector fits. The firehouse stands full of trucks, and firefighters sit outside waiting for a summons. Iraqi police patrol...

President Bush met with his economic team today in the Oval Office. August 2007 marked the 49th consecutive month of job growth since 2003. “And that's the longest uninterrupted job growth on record for our country.” (Transcript) The president also took this opportunity to speak about terrorism and to defend US interrogation policy since some people, like Senator Jay Rockefeller (Democrat-W.Va.) and the good folks at the New York Times, apparently have nothing better to do than worry about terrorists’ rights. (Source) By the way, according to a recent FOX News poll, “1 in 5 Democrats thinks the world will...

The Iraqi government is failing and the U.S. must plan cautiously for a withdrawal, Navy Admiral Michael Mullen, President George W. Bush's nominee to be chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said today.

WASHINGTON, July 31 (UPI) -- U.S. Joint Chiefs chairman-nominee Adm. Michael Mullen told his confirmation hearing in Washington Tuesday he is increasingly perturbed about Iran. In testimony before the Senate Armed Services Committee, Mullen, who would replace Marine Gen. Peter Pace, warned strife in the Arab and Islamic worlds "bear directly on the safety of the United States." "I'm especially concerned about the increasingly hostile role played by Iran," Mullen said. "I support diplomatic efforts to counter Iran's destabilizing behavior and hope their leaders will choose to act responsibly, but I find their support for terrorism and their nuclear ambitions...

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President George W. Bush's nominee to be top military adviser said on Tuesday the United States will be in Iraq for "years not months" and a Pentagon official said the war was costing even more than expected. Navy Adm. Michael Mullen, picked as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, warned U.S. lawmakers unhappy with the conflict against seeking a rapid pullout from Iraq, saying it could turn the country into a "caldron." While prudence dictated planning for an eventual pullout, Mullen said that under one scenario it could take three to four years just to halve...

Mike Mullen's Surprise Promotion By Tom Bowman CNO will carry a reputation as a pragmatist and problem-solver to the JCS Chairman’s office. When American Airlines Flight 77 slammed into the Pentagon on 11 September 2001, Admiral Mike Mullen was talking budgets with then-Chief of Naval Operations Admiral Vern Clark. Suddenly he felt something that reminded him of an earthquake in his native California. His office down the hall was closer to the impact. It quickly filled with smoke. His staff said the plane, slicing into the Pentagon some four floors below, appeared to roll under their feet. “It was a...

Pace’s not being renominated has nothing to do with his performance as chairman of the JCS. It has everything to do with what he symbolizes (American leadership while fighting a difficult war in Iraq) to the usual salivating suspects on Capitol Hill. And it was clear to Defense Secretary Robert Gates, and surely to President Bush, that Pace’s reconfirmation hearings would have been turned into a congressional circus: With poll-driven politicians focusing less on Pace’s performance and plans for the present and future prosecution of the war, and more on what has gone wrong in Iraq for the purposes of...

have no inside information, but I see the fingerprints of SASC member Sen. Hillary Clinton all over this. To win in 2008, the New York Democrat and feminist must convince voters that she supports the troops and can be trusted as Commander in Chief. A vote on the re-nomination of Chairman Pace would have put her on the spot between her gay activist constituency and millions of voters who admire Peter Pace.

WASHINGTON - Defense Secretary Robert Gates announced Friday he has recommended Adm. Mike Mullen, currently chief of naval operations, to become the next chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Gates said that Mullen has the "vision strategic insight and integrity to lead America's armed forces." If formally appointed by President Bush and confirmed by the Senate, Mullen would replace Marine Gen. Peter Pace as the nation's top military officer.