WASHINGTON – In yet another sign of the strains on the U.S. military in the wake of the Sept. 11 attacks and the Iraq war, the Pentagon for the first time is considering extending the mobilization of National Guard soldiers who will soon hit the federal limit of 24 months of active service, defense officials said Tuesday.
Initially, the decision would affect approximately 450 soldiers of the Arkansas National Guard who are in Iraq with the 39th Brigade Combat Team.
Ultimately, however, waiving the limit in that case might lead to extended deployments for thousands of other reservists and National Guard members in Iraq and Afghanistan, and provide ammunition to critics in Congress who are pushing the Bush administration to increase the size of the military.
“Every day it seems to be another improvisational attempt to stretch forces that are already stretched very thin,” said Sen. Jack Reed, D-R.I., a former paratrooper with the Army’s 82nd Airborne Division and an advocate of bolstering the Army’s ranks.
But the status of the soldiers, being considered by David Chu, undersecretary of Defense for personnel and readiness, has not yet been decided, Pentagon officials said.
“This is the first time this has happened; we’re breaking new ground here,” said Lt. Col. Ellen Krenke, a Defense Department spokeswoman.
The Pentagon established the 24-month limit days after the terrorist attacks in the United States.
Doing away with the 24-month limit would be certain to upset many long-serving soldiers and their families, who say they are increasingly bearing the weight of a military stretched beyond its capacity. During the last year, the conflict in Iraq has forced the Pentagon to keep more than 100,000 soldiers and Marines in the country for months after the Bush administration had expected to draw down the troop’s presence.
Last month, the Army was forced to dip into its pool of Individual Ready Reserve soldiers – troops who are not members of a specific reserve unit but have unexpired obligations to complete their military service – looking for roughly 5,600 to deploy to Iraq and Afghanistan.
If the Defense Department retains the 24-month limit, those Arkansas National Guardsmen whose active duty commitments are set to expire would be free to return to the United States. They also would have the option of volunteering to remain in Iraq on active duty, military officials said.
There are now more than 131,000 Army National Guardsmen and reservists on active duty, in most cases for 15- to 18-month stints.
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