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Pentagon to call up even more reservists©Associated Press
© St. Petersburg Times, WASHINGTON -- The Pentagon expects to call up more reservists than the 50,000 originally thought needed for the war on terrorism, officials said Wednesday. Most will be reporting for homefront duty. The increase reflects heightened concern about potential terrorist attacks on federal installations as well as an expanding war in Afghanistan. Rear Adm. John Stufflebeem, reviewing progress in the bombing campaign, said at a Pentagon news conference that attacks have so severely damaged the Taliban's military communications system that commanders in the field are having trouble summoning new supplies and troop reinforcements. "We believe that puts a terrific amount of stress on their military capability," he said. Victoria Clarke, spokeswoman for Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, said he had notified the White House that the reserve call-up would exceed 50,000, but she offered no new projected total. "We're not benchmarking it," she said. Under the authorization signed by President Bush three days after the Sept. 11 attacks, the Pentagon could activate as many as 1-million reservists. Clarke said she did not expect the total would approach that figure. During the 1991 Gulf War more than 260,000 reservists were called up. Clarke said Rumsfeld would fly to Central Asia to consult with governments supporting the U.S. effort in Afghanistan. She would not identify his destinations except to say he also would visit Moscow for talks with Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov on arms control and antiterror matters. In explaining why more U.S. reservists are expected to be called to active duty, Pentagon officials said they continue to receive new requests for security forces at federal installations. Four states already have put Army National Guard units on security duty at nuclear plants: New Jersey, New York, Massachusetts and Connecticut. The Air Force has called up more reservists than the other services: 19,643 members of the Air National Guard and Air Force Reserve. They include 5,900 Air National Guard members called up on Tuesday. On Wednesday, another 515 Army Reserve and National Guard members were called up, in addition to 208 members of the Naval Reserve. For all the services, just over 42,000 reservists had been called.
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From the Times wire desk
From the AP |
