CENTCOM Briefing 4 FEB 91

File: doc71_05.txt
Page: 05
Total Pages: 8

chemical, biological is our NBC equipinent. *The Common gas mask, our ci~emical SuitS prcivide
eflofiflOus PWLcCtion for the soldier and Marine In the field that is fighting (he Iraqis. So there is an
iflhC~nt Protection built In in the way we have (rained and the way We fight. Certainly0 there are
ways we have of responding to the effects of Chemical and biological weapon SyStems, and that's in
the medical chain I would prefer to go no farther than that, but we bave been protecting our
Soldier,, sallors, and Marines.

Q: This is not based on any ~ew information that (lie Biitish or...
A: No, there's nothing new thai I know of.

Q: Those chemical Suits have a ceflain life. Ar: you resupplying the ttoops now? A~ there
enough supplies to adequately...
A: Yes we have. 1 know there's been talk of chemical Suits good for 22days. but you have
to keep in mind that it doesn't so from 100 percent on day 22 down to day zero on day 23
there~s a residual capability of that chemical sui~ Pius, we issue ead~ One of our Servicemen and
women two suits --so right in there you've ~ot 44 days of perfect protection. We also have a
supply system that Continues to resupply those suits. So we have no problem with providing chemical
suits to our troops in the field.

Q: Within the constraints of the ground rules, can you outline a little bit for us how the
terrorist threat has changcd since Operation Desert Storm started. and what measures are being taken
to thwart any effons that might be taken by terroristis against ~,S. forces or C0alitiOfl forces here in
Saudi
A: If you go back to the start of Desert Shield, of course we're in Desert Storm right now,
I t}~ink we would all -- and I only observe this from reports throughout the world -- fl~at there is,
one would say, some increase in terrorist activity. But I have not seem very much in the theater, in
the OuIf of course the flddah one is one that If you call it a terrorist activity, that's one of few.
In terms of our procedures we arc, as you would expect, Just like you prepai~ militarily, we are
Preparing for the possibility of terrorist attack on our troops. I would prefer not to describe
exactly the procedwes, I can guarantee you, It is a high priority because we do present vuinerable
targets. We do everythin5 we can to redi)ce ?ulnerabiiity and make sure that the individual serviceman
is tuned to the fact that he is never totally safe. I thitik there's been good training. I think we know
how to respo~d to terrorist attacks. Without going into details and I guess jeopardizing our
procedures, we're comfortable that We're doing everything We possibly can to eliminate that as a
threat to onir forces in the theater.

Q: Oeneral, a non~~bat question here. Senator Nancy Kassebaum and otheri have gotten up
in the Conψcss and complained that the Servicemen here in Operation besert Storm aren't getting
their `nail -* they're setting Constituents at home saying we wrote to soldiers and they're not getting
their `nail. Is anything being done in theater to address that?
A: Then obviously Is, and you have to keep in rnlnd, we have, I think the statistics ar~
something like 300 tons of mail a day. if I Could do Some 8th grade Calculation I'd tell you bow
much mail it is per man. ~Ve have a very mobile battleflelci~ and as you would expect1 our trO()pS are
moving ~ound a lot, for good reason both tactical reasons, and to make sure they don't present
stationary targets, 1 wlll be quick to confess that the mail does not always go in a straight Une to
1'a'~ce Corporal Jones. So there am some dela~s that tend to have been0 pefl~aps, lengthened a liLtIe
bit by the dynamics of the battlefield, but there is nothing more sacred to the man in the field and the
wom~ Ln~t!~e field than mail -- I can guara,~;~ you from the top on down from General