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American Forces Press Service

Cohen, Shelton Praise Desert Fox Warriors

 

 By Linda D. Kozaryn
 
American Forces Press Service


 WASHINGTON -- America's military men and women deserve high 
 praise for executing Operation Desert Fox, the Pentagon's 
 senior leaders said Dec. 17.
 
 "It is inevitable that during conflict our focus will be on 
 our weapons and their effectiveness," said Army Gen. Hugh 
 Shelton, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, "but we 
 must not lose sight of the fact that it is our people who 
 make the difference." 
 
 Shelton and Defense Secretary William Cohen saluted service 
 members on the second day of Desert Fox, the air campaign 
 designed to degrade Saddam Hussein's weapons of mass 
 destruction program and his ability to threaten his 
 neighbors.
 
 The chairman said the nation's soldiers, sailors, airmen 
 and Marines make America the super power that it is. "We 
 owe our men and women in uniform carrying out this 
 operation a great deal," Shelton said.
 
 Cohen noted that military men and women frequently work 
 under adverse conditions, and each day, they risk their 
 lives practicing wartime skills. 
 
 "In wartime or peacetime, they're out there training," the 
 secretary said. "When I was in the Gulf in August, the 
 temperature on the ships was 160 degrees -- combined 
 humidity and heat. Nonetheless, they had made 2,000 
 launches during the month of August."
 
 Each week, as units work to maintain high combat readiness, 
 Cohen said, troops' lives are lost. "Their lives are in 
 danger just by virtue of the fact that they are the best 
 fighting force in the world," he said. And during 
 operations like Desert Fox, they face new threats. 
 
 "Those pilots flying over Baghdad run the risk of being hit 
 by surface-to-air missiles," Cohen said. "They run the risk 
 of being captured. Service members in Kuwait or Saudi 
 Arabia run the risk of a Scud missile attack."
 
 But, Cohen said, protecting U.S. forces is a top military 
 priority. "We have taken every defensive measure that we 
 can. They are prepared. Our military is performing 
 extremely well, and every American should be proud of the 
 troops participating in Desert Fox."
 
 


Updated: 14 Jan 2003
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