Pentagon Announces 35,000 Troops to Deploy

iraqslogger

Units Supposed to Replace Others Coming Home, Not Add to Surge

The DoD on Tuesday announced the 10 brigade combat teams involving approximately 35,000 personnel who will deploy to Iraq by the end of the year.

Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman said the units, which will begin deploying in August, are replacements for others currently operating in Iraq, not any addition to the surge.

"This deployment announcement of the next 10 units that are in the queue has nothing to do with a decision to extend the surge," Whitman said.

"It would be inaccurate to look at this announcement today as some sort of decision with respect to the surge.... It is simply identifying units that will receive deployment orders," he said.

However, Whitman did indicate that the replacement troops would give US commanders the ability to maintain the higher troops numbers of the surge through the end of 2007.

The Pentagon statement said the "deployments will provide commanders in Iraq the flexibility to maintain the appropriate level of effort based on their assessment of the security situation on the ground."

The specific units affected include:

3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment, Fort Hood, Texas.
1st Brigade, 101st Airborne Division, Fort Campbell, Ky.
3rd Brigade, 101st Airborne Division, Fort Campbell, Ky.
2nd Brigade, 101st Airborne Division, Fort Campbell, Ky.
4th Brigade, 10th Mountain Division, Fort Polk, La.
1st Brigade, 4th Infantry Division, Fort Hood, Texas.
4th Brigade, 3rd Infantry Division, Fort Stewart, Ga.
2nd Brigade, 25th Infantry Division, Schofield Barracks, Hawaii
2nd Cavalry Regiment (Stryker), Vilseck, Germany.
2nd Brigade, 1st Armored Division, Baumholder, Germany.