Stop-loss likely to continue in 2009

Stop-loss likely to continue in 2009

By Tom Vanden Brook - USA Today
Posted : Tuesday Oct 28, 2008 8:22:28 EDT

WASHINGTON — The Army’s use of involuntary extensions of combat duty will likely continue through 2009 despite pledges earlier this year by top military officials to reduce reliance on the policy known as stop-loss.

In September, 12,204 soldiers were affected by stop-loss, a policy that forces them to remain in the Army after their service commitment has expired. The same number likely will be affected each month through 2009, Army Lt. Col. Mike Moose said Thursday.

Stop-loss strains troops and their families, Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Adm. Michael Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, acknowledged in May. But Gates and the Army say the policy is needed to maintain the cohesion of units heading to battle.

“The secretary understands the stress on the Army, but ... he wants to see the Army rely less on stop-loss. They need to make better progress on this,” Pentagon press secretary Geoff Morrell said Sunday.

Poor planning is to blame, said Rep. Joe Sestak, D-Pa., a retired vice admiral and member of the House Armed Services Committee.

“I understand the need to ensure our troops are fully manned in combat,” he said. “However, because of the failures to properly plan and execute this conflict, there have unfortunately been many false promises and additional burdens placed on our brave troops.”

The number of soldiers affected by stop-loss peaked in 2005 at 15,758. Gates ordered stop-loss to be minimized in January 2007. It fell to 8,540 in May 2007 but rose to about 12,000 in March and has stayed near that level. The troop buildup in Iraq and extension of Army tours from 12 to 15 months last year resulted in more stop-loss orders.

The five combat brigades associated with the escalation of U.S. forces in Iraq returned this summer, and combat tours were reduced to 12 months on Aug. 1. But 151,000 troops remain in Iraq — 25,000 more than before the escalation began in early 2007.

In Afghanistan, there are 32,000 U.S. troops, and commanders there are seeking four more brigades. A brigade has about 3,500 to 5,000 troops.

If demand for U.S. combat troops stays constant through 2009, Moose said, the number of soldiers affected by stop-loss will remain at about 12,000.

“Stop-loss is a function of how many units are preparing to deploy,” he said. “We only use stop-loss when we have to.”

Stop loss can keep a soldier in the Army if his or her unit deploys within 90 days of the end of their commitment. In August, 55 percent of those affected were privates through specialists, and 45 percent were noncommissioned officers, Moose said. About 1 percent of active-duty, National Guard and reservists are affected. More than 140,000 soldiers have had tours extended by stop loss since January 2002.

Joe Davis, a spokesman for the Veterans of Foreign Wars, criticized the Pentagon for not deploying more of its personnel: 43 percent of active-duty soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines have not served in Iraq or Afghanistan.

“Being stop-lossed means you and your family have to place your future plans on hold, he said, when “half the military has never set one foot in Iraq or Afghanistan.”

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