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| Rumsfeld orders review of special operations forces' needs | |
| 2005-10-27 | |
| US Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld has ordered an outside review of US special operations forces to determine how well they are positioned for a growing role in the war on terrorism, a spokesman said. Retired General Wayne Downing, a former head of the US Special Operations Command, has been selected to lead the review and is in the process of starting it up, said Lawrence DiRita, the chief Pentagon spokesman. DiRita said Rumsfeld was seeking the outside appraisal not out of unhappiness with the special operations forces but to make sure investments in the elite commando forces were having the desired impact. Their performance "has been outstanding," DiRita told reporters. "The question is there is a lot more they might be able to do if we know what they will need to do it." He noted that a new national strategy for the war on terrorism assigns a growing role to the special operations forces in counterterrorism and irregular warfare. A four-year strategy review that is near completion also raised questions about special operations that prompted Rumsfeld to order the Downing review, he said. US special operations forces have been focused mainly on Iraq and Afghanistan,
The Marine Corps, meanwhile, is expected to contribute forces to the US Special Operations Command in Tampa, Florida for the first time. Special forces from the army, air force and navy were placed under the command when it was established in 1986. But the marines, jealous of their autonomy, opted out of the joint command even though they have special units for reconnaissance and direct action. "The secretary has been squeezing the marines for four years to get into special operations, and they are doing that," DiRita said. "They will be coming soon with some specific recommendations on how they will be organizing that," he said. National Review Online reported Thursday that the marines have been developing a special operations detachment that will be assigned to the Special Operations Command. A prototype of the unit has been fighting in Iraq, conducting raids and other special operations missions, it said. | |
| Posted by:Steve |
| #2 Old Spook, I must be reeally slow tonight. Would you please be so kind as to translate that statement into Civilian. Thanks! And I'm awfully glad you have a little time to poke your head into Rantburg to give us your thoughts. :-) |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2005-10-27 23:01 |
| #1 Marines will never be a factor in the SpecOps community until the Corps backs off and doesn't screw guys for going into a Joint Ops environment. Quickest way to kill a USMC career is to go work for any joint SpecOps. USMC bucket-headed view of the world is one of the thing the makes the crotch what it is, for good and for ill. |
| Posted by: Oldspook 2005-10-27 22:46 |