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| In this July 13, 2011, file photo, U.S. soldiers attend during a transfer of authority ceremony from Task Force Red Horse to Task Force Maverick at the U.S. base in Bagram, north of Kabul, Afghanistan. AP |
The United States Army has announced reduction of its
strength by a whopping 80,000 by 2017 as part of a budget-cutting plan,
making it one of the largest force reductions since World War II.
US Army Chief General Raymond Odierno said that this reduction would
impact a number of US bases and its overseas troops presence, but this
would have no impact on the presence of the US troops in the Asia
Pacific region.
“As a result of budget cuts, the
drawdown of forces in Afghanistan and Iraq and the 2012 Defence
Strategic Guidance, the Army is reducing the authorised end strength of
the active Army from a wartime high of 570,000 to 490,000,” Mr. Odierno
said.
The cut will include the elimination of entire
brigades (approximately 3,000 to 4,500 soldiers) at 10 installations
and two bases in Germany, which would effectively bring the US troop
strength to the pre 9/11 level.
This 14 per cent
reduction is based on extensive analysis, the lessons of 12 years of war
and the need to increase the Army’s operational capability and
flexibility, Mr. Odierno said.
“The Army will
inactivate a total of 12 brigade combat teams. Two overseas teams
stationed at Baumholder and Grafenwoehr, Germany, will complete their
inactivation in Fiscal Year 2013, leaving two brigade combat teams in
Europe to fulfil strategic commitments,” he said.
Mr.
Odierno said the move, which would involve relocating thousands of
soldiers and eliminating some civilian jobs, would not hamper the Army’s
combat readiness and was not linked to automatic budget cuts known as
sequestration.
The restructuring “will reduce the
overall number of headquarters, while sustaining as much combat
capabilities as possible,” he told reporters.
But if
Congress allows the automatic budget reductions to continue, the Army
would face much more dramatic downsizing, with up to 100,000 additional
troops cut, he said.
In that event, the reductions unveiled on Tuesday would be “only the first step”, according to the General.
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| 美國陸軍參謀長奧德耶諾。（法新社） |
奧德耶諾具體說明五角大廈去年宣布裁減陸軍總員額的計畫細節，希望最遲二○一七年底之前，將陸軍從目前戰爭時期所創下的兵力新高紀錄—四十五個戰鬥旅的五十七萬人，降至三十三個戰鬥旅的四十九萬人，回到二○○一年九一一事件前的水準。
裁撤駐紮美、德的12個戰鬥旅
奧德耶諾說，陸軍這次組織重整，將減少旅總數，同時儘量維持戰力，陸軍最後將縮編為三十二個戰鬥旅，但最後一個裁撤單位，還沒有決定。他說，十三個旅已經停止運作，部分兵員將改編至其他旅，讓他們「戰力更強、更有彈性且反應更敏捷」。
準備裁撤的十二個戰鬥旅中，十旅駐紮在美國，兩旅派駐德國，這部分國防部先前已經宣布。
奧德耶諾指出，雖然這些旅總部單位將裁撤，但其麾下的步兵營、史崔克（Stryker）戰鬥車輛及裝甲營，將連同工程及砲兵單位，移轉到其他旅，增強他們的戰力。這意味目前三千五百兵力左右的旅將增加六百至八百人。
這次裁軍主要影響現役部隊，陸軍後備部隊將維持二十萬五千名兵力，各州國民兵將削減八千人，降為三十五萬人。
奧 德耶諾說，裁減戰鬥旅數目不會妨礙陸軍戰備，且與「分段強行削債（Sequestration）」無關，而是依據二○一一年通過的預算控制法。該法規定美 軍在未來十年削減四千八百七十億美元的國防經費。但他指出，如果國會讓自動預算削減繼續實施下去，面臨更大幅度的員額縮減，可能會再裁十萬人
