Photo By Sgt. 1st Class Stephen Scott | Adm. Mike Mullen, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff gave a coin to every...... read more read more
BAGHDAD – As the U.S. military’s time in Iraq comes to an end, so does Adm. Mike Mullen’s tenure as the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Mullen visited Camp Liberty, Iraq to talk to service members with United States Division – Center, Aug. 2, during his last overseas tour of the area before his retirement.
The topic of Mullen’s speech was congruent with the current atmosphere. He discussed change, both for the country of Iraq and the U.S. military.
“When I talk to audiences, I always talk about change,” said Mullen. “And I don’t think there’s probably a place where I can reflect back over the past few years where things have changed more visibly […] than here in Iraq.”
Mullen credited the service members for the improvements he saw.
“You’ve made that happen and given an opportunity for the Iraqi people that they just flat out didn’t have before,” said Mullen.
He went on to discuss the changes the military would face as it moved forward in terms of the impending budget. Mullen said he was confident “the deal will be approved without issue across the table in terms of pay.”
“The specifics of what it means in terms of our budget for fiscal year [2012] are yet to be determined, except my expectation is the budget’s going to be low,” said Mullen. “All of us are going to have to tighten our belts.”
Mullen explained that the military had rightfully been the beneficiary of a lot of resources during the course of the Iraq and Afghanistan conflicts that were key in its ability to adjust to handle the mission.
“We went from a classic, conventional force to the best counterinsurgency force the world has ever seen,” said Mullen. “We did it on the fly. We did it in stride. We did it in the fight.”
Now that those resources are being scaled back in direct correlation with the military’s conflict engagement, Mullen asserted the military would need to rely on that same adaptability to continue to be effective.
“Not unlike the change we made from conventional force to counterinsurgency we’re going to have to continue to adjust in stride because the challenges of deployment, while they’ll slow down, they’re not going to go away,” he said.
With the current “budget pressure”, Mullen said there would be attempts to streamline the military workforce, and he encouraged the service members in attendance to seek knowledge and stay flexible as well.
“You need to strengthen your portfolio, advance your training, improve your education, and perform at a high level; and as we go through these kinds of challenging times, you will not be affected,” said Mullen.
While Mullen discussed how the military was transforming, he alluded to some aspects that always remain constant. He spoke of family, sacrifice, remembrance and service members taking care of each other.
“Take care of yourself, take care of your people, take of your battle buddies and lead exceptionally,” said Mullen.
After his speech, Mullen took questions from the group on topics that ranged from education to equipment turn-in, and then handed out coins to everyone in attendance.
It is often said that change is the only constant, but amidst the ongoing change the military remains “at the base or the foundation of who we are as a country.”
| Date Taken: | 08.02.2011 |
| Date Posted: | 08.03.2011 09:03 |
| Story ID: | 74752 |
| Location: | BAGHDAD, IQ |
| Web Views: | 208 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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