Army leaders are unhappy with base-closure laws that require that 94 percent of its combat units be based in the United States by 2011. The upshot will be an Army that cannot quickly respond to contingencies, says Gen. David McKiernan, commander of Army forces in Europe. “If you want to have an Army that is expeditionary, that can work with other countries, has cultural appreciation of other countries, that can develop language skills, it’s very difficult to do when forces are in the United States,” he says. “If there are requirements to support operations in Africa, where do forces come from? If you are positioned in Europe, you’re better able to respond than if you were in Kansas.”
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