US Force in Gulf Said to be Rising to 150,000 Troops

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Sunday, January 12, 2003

US Force in Gulf Said to be Rising to 150,000 Troops

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US Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld signed two deployment orders in the last 24 hours for a total of 62,000 troops, massing a military force of well over 150,000 troops in the Gulf by mid- to late February, military officials said Saturday.

After signing an order late Friday to send 35,000 troops, half of them marines, to the Gulf, Rumsfeld sent out an order overnight to direct 27,000 additional personnel to the region.

The latest order, which was first reported by The New York Times on its web site, affected thousands of marines, an Army airborne infantry brigade, a squadron of Air Force F-117 Night hawk x stealth fighters, and two squadrons of F-16CJ radar-jamming fighters.

Rumsfeld signed the first of the three major deployment orders on Dec. 24, sending to the Gulf region about 30,000 armored and infantry troops.

Well under half of the 150,000 troops are already in the Gulf region. The three deployment orders have set in motion crucial reinforcements of troops, armor, warships and combat aircraft.

Until recently, the buildup had focused on bringing in equipment, ammunition and supplies and on putting logistics and command-and-control specialists in the region to receive and direct major ground forces. The recent orders signal a new and important phase in the campaign: the flow of the main battle force.

US President George W. Bush has threatened to use force to oust Iraqi President Saddam Hussein, accusing him of developing nuclear, chemical and biological weapons. Iraq denies having such arms.

"By mid- to late February, we'll be in the best position to provide the president immediate flexible options to respond," said a senior US military official.

General Tommy R. Franks, the commander of American forces in the gulf, briefed Bush at the White House Thursday on the impending movement of troops and the military's Iraq strategy.

General Richard B. Myers, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said this week that the Pentagon would continue a steady, deliberate buildup to provide Bush the flexibility he needs to do what he thinks he needs to do.

Pentagon officials have said that if Bush orders an attack, a force of about 250,000 troops would be needed -about half the number who fought the gulf war in 1991. But the initial "rolling start" of the assault would begin with a smaller force, with the rest held in reserve.

Acting on Rumsfeld's directive signed in December, the US Army last week ordered more than 11,000 soldiers from the Third Infantry Division at Fort Stewart, Georgia, to join a brigade of 4,000 troops from the division already in Kuwait.

The Third Infantry Division is the first of perhaps three or four heavy Army divisions that could be sent, along with a lighter division, like the 101st Airborne, officials said.

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