US military would have to rely on "brute force" in a second war: general
WASHINGTON (AFP) - The US military would have to rely more on "brute force" if faced with another major war because precision weapons and the systems to support them are tied down in Iraq, the top US general said.
General Peter Pace, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said the United States has enormous untapped air and naval power available, as well as ground forces already in theater, if war were to break out on the Korean peninsula.
"Now, it would be more brute force, wherever we might have to go next, than it would be if we weren't already involved in the war we have going on in Iraq and
Afghanistan," he said.
"Why? Because you need precision intelligence to drop precision munitions. And a lot of our precision intelligence assets are currently being used in the Gulf region," he said.
Precision weapons also are being used in Iraq and Afghanistan, which means that commanders in a second theater might have to rely more on unguided "dumb bombs," he said.
"So you end up with more collateral damage. You end up more like a World War II, Korean War campaign," he said.
"That's not predictive," he added. "I'm just saying that, on a scale, you're going to have to use more brute force to get the job done."
Tensions with
North Korea have sharpened since it tested a nuclear weapon for the first time October 7. It also tested a long-range ballistic missile capable of hitting the United States on July 4-5, but the test failed.
The United States has relied on diplomacy in dealing with North Korea, marshalling international support for sanctions to pressure Pyongyang into giving up its nuclear ambitions.
Pace said the North Koreans "have not raised or lowered any particular parts of their (military) readiness to cause any kind of alarm."
"What is not knowable is the intent of the leadership in North Korea to use or not use that power at any given time," he said. "And applying western logic to the leadership in Korea is not something that I would personally want to bet my future on."
General Peter Pace, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said the United States has enormous untapped air and naval power available, as well as ground forces already in theater, if war were to break out on the Korean peninsula.
"Now, it would be more brute force, wherever we might have to go next, than it would be if we weren't already involved in the war we have going on in Iraq and
Afghanistan," he said.
"Why? Because you need precision intelligence to drop precision munitions. And a lot of our precision intelligence assets are currently being used in the Gulf region," he said.
Precision weapons also are being used in Iraq and Afghanistan, which means that commanders in a second theater might have to rely more on unguided "dumb bombs," he said.
"So you end up with more collateral damage. You end up more like a World War II, Korean War campaign," he said.
"That's not predictive," he added. "I'm just saying that, on a scale, you're going to have to use more brute force to get the job done."
Tensions with
North Korea have sharpened since it tested a nuclear weapon for the first time October 7. It also tested a long-range ballistic missile capable of hitting the United States on July 4-5, but the test failed.
The United States has relied on diplomacy in dealing with North Korea, marshalling international support for sanctions to pressure Pyongyang into giving up its nuclear ambitions.
Pace said the North Koreans "have not raised or lowered any particular parts of their (military) readiness to cause any kind of alarm."
"What is not knowable is the intent of the leadership in North Korea to use or not use that power at any given time," he said. "And applying western logic to the leadership in Korea is not something that I would personally want to bet my future on."
posted by Marko at 10/25/2006 09:21:00 AM
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