Vol. 73/No. 30      August 10, 2009

The announcement confirms the course Washington has been on to bolster its military capacity as it prepares for expanding imperialist war against expected growing resistance by workers to a deepening worldwide capitalist crisis.

The number of U.S. troops in Iraq and Afghanistan combined is approaching the level that it was at the height of the so-called surge in Iraq in 2007. There are currently 177,000 U.S. troops total in both countries. The Pentagon says its goal is to have 68,000 U.S. soldiers stationed in Afghanistan before the end of the year.

“The army faces a period where its ability to continue to deploy combat units at acceptable ‘fill rates’ is at risk,” Gates said during a Pentagon news conference. “The persistent pace of operations in Iraq and Afghanistan over the last several years has steadily increased the number of troops not available for deployment in the army.”

The boost in the army’s size will bring its total number to 569,000 troops from the current 547,000.

U.S. Navy admiral Michael Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, took part in the same press conference where Gates announced the increase.

“I’ve grown increasingly concerned over the last year and a half about stress on the force and our ability to meet the demands out there,” Mullen said. “This temporary increase helps us address that concern. It will also help us get a better handle on [time at home between deployments] and boost the number of people we can deploy with the capabilities our commanders most need.”

Gates said one goal of the increase is to lengthen the amount of time U.S. troops have to recover between combat deployments, which the military calls “dwell time.” In 2007 Gates made a decision to require 15 months of deployment before receiving a year of “dwell time.”

The day after the Department of Defense requested the additional troops, the U.S. Senate approved an increase of 30,000 troops—8,000 more than requested. The amendment to the defense authorization bill, crafted by Sen. Joseph Lieberman of Connecticut, passed with overwhelming bipartisan support—only one senator voted against.
 
 
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