|
CAMP ARIFJAN, Kuwait (December 21, 2008) -
Soldiers stationed at Camp Arifjan, Kuwait received a visit from
the Army Chief of Staff, Dec. 21.
Gen. George W. Casey Jr. arrived at the Camp Arifjan Zone 6
Morale, Welfare and Recreation Stage and talked to troops about the
progress being made in both Iraq and Afghanistan, rebalancing the
Army, fixing the Army's "dwell time" and the challenges that are
ahead.
Before stopping in Kuwait, Casey had visited troops in Korea,
Japan and Afghanistan to discuss his plans for the Army, and will
continue his trip to other countries in the Middle East.
Casey addressed Soldiers at Camp Arifjan about the role they
play in the war effort.
"You all are doing a remarkable job," said Casey. "As you
continue to sustain our forces and continue to support the flow of
over 150,000 [servicemembers] over the course of a year, we would
not be able to sustain [the campaign] without your efforts
here."
Casey discussed the plans put forth in 2007 of increasing the
size of the Army by 74,000 Soldiers rebalancing the Army and
sequentially fixing the "dwell time."
The current deployment length for troops leaving to the Middle
East is 12 months with a scheduled "dwell time" of a year. Casey
said the goal is, by the end of 2009, to get the "dwell time" to 18
months, and by 2011 have it at two years.
"Our top priority is a continuation of what we set out to do in
2007," said Casey. "It's to put ourselves back in balance, where we
are deploying at a sustainable rate and that we have flexibility to
do other things beyond regular warfare."
He mentioned the 290,000 men and women who either enlisted or
re-enlisted last year as a key indicator of meeting those
goals.
"That's a heck of a lot of patriots," said Casey. "Because those
men and women did that knowing that we were at war."
In addition to speaking to the troops, Casey participated in a
re-enlistment ceremony and a promotion ceremony.
"It was great to see the Army Chief of Staff promote new
noncommissioned officers," said Sgt. Timothy Chatlos, 20th Public
Affairs Detachment and Orlando, Fla., native.
Before leaving the stage, Casey made one final address to the
troops about next year.
"The Secretary of the Army and I have declared next year, the
year of the noncommissioned officer," said Casey proudly. "This is
to recognize the role that our NCO Corps has played in holding this
Army together and leading it to victory in this long war. I firmly
believe that we would not be where we are today without the role
that our NCOs have played every day."
After speaking to the Soldiers in Zone 6, Casey departed Kuwait
to continue his trip in the Middle East.
|
