George Casey
George Casey
happens progress steps taking yield
We say we make progress relentlessly in little steps a day at a time. And we just keep taking little steps. And every once in a while, you get to see what happens when all those little steps yield something.
amount coalition dependency exposes feeds forces increased iraqi notion presence security time
Increased coalition presence feeds the notion of occupation. It contributes to the dependency of Iraqi security forces on the coalition, ... It extends the amount of time that it will take for Iraqi security forces to become self-reliant. And it exposes more coalition forces to attacks.
battalions level year
In a year from now, if there's not more battalions at Level One, I'll be concerned. Right now, I'm not,
change involved variables
Things change in a battalion. We're making assessments on leadership, on training. There are a lot of variables that are involved here, senator,
concerned readiness small unit
No, it's not a setback. I mean, unit readiness is going to fluctuate. And it is such a small number. And at this stage, I'm not concerned about small numbers,
certainly expect forces military police render
We certainly do expect that there is some infiltration of the police and ... the military forces, ... But we don't see it in the way that would render these forces incapable.
expect insurgency lots tough work
There is still lots of tough work to do and we should expect the insurgency not to just go away because there were elections.
certainly course next
And we certainly do look to do that over the course of next year.
armed base capability forces fully iraqi recognize support
We fully recognize that Iraqi armed forces will not have an independent capability for some time, because they don't have the institutional base to support them,
expect gradually insurgency
We should expect the insurgency not to just go away, but to gradually reduce.
concern force protection readiness share
I share your concern about our Army's operational readiness and force protection posture,
cycle heard involved planning positive
They were involved in about a monthlong planning cycle with us. And they were well-integrated with us. ... I've heard nothing but positive things about how they performed,
battalions concerned good level progress year
A year from now, if there are not more battalions at level one I will be concerned. Right now, I am not. I am concerned about level two and we are making very good progress there,
caused change division situation
And there's division there ... and that caused the situation to change a little bit,