in gold to the CINCs. They administered the extensive programs of military assistance to the friendly countries in the region. They coordinated and administered foreign military sales, military exercises, military school attendance, training, and other cooperative efforts with local militaries. Along with the military attaches at American embassies, they provided the CINCs and diplomats with a vital link to local leaders. They were the day-to-day connections to the local militaries, and were an invaluable means of communications to the military and political leadership in the various countries. The job they do has never been valued by superiors, and promotions for those in the military have never come easy.
77
One problem we were never able to adequately tackle was the differences in assigned geographical areas from one government agency to another. As an example, the assigned AOR for CENTCOM overlapped four regional bureaus at the State Department, while State’s assigned regions had countries that were not in the CENTCOM AOR.
78
Our six closest friends in the Gulf.
79
DOD has set up several centers to deal with regional security issues. For example, the Marshall Center focuses on Europe, Eastern Europe, and Russia. The Asia-Pacific Center focuses on that area. The Near East, South Asia Center focuses on that area. And the African Center for Strategic Studies focuses on Africa. Some of these centers, like the Near East and the African, had only just recently been formed.
80
The name in Arabic means “base” or “foundation.”
81
Before becoming CINC, I had testified several times before these committees, and also the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
82
The Bright Star exercise was key to pulling together a major coalition operation, and was our major preparation for any future repeat of Desert Storm. Nowhere else in the region did we have the land, air, and sea space for exercises of this scale.
83
Though even the military has its complement of moderates.
84
He has recently left the State Department, and now heads Seeds of Peace, an organization that brings young Palestinians and Israeli kids together.
85
I’d known Mofaz since 1982, when I was an instructor at the Marine Corps Command and Staff College and he was a student there.
86
The Iftar meal breaks the daily Ramadan fast.
87
The Oslo Agreement broke down the occupied territories into three areas: A, B, and C. Area A would be policed by the Palestinians; the Israelis would not go into it. In Area B there would be some kind of interim security. Area C contained the settlements and the areas immediately around them. When violence broke out, the Israelis made incursions into Area A. Though these violated the agreement, they claimed they had to do it for their own security reasons.
88
In its essentials, the Weinberger Doctrine is very close to the Powell Doctrine: We should not consider using military force unless we are prepared to field decisive/overwhelming force; to have clear objectives; and to obtain the full support of the American people.
