Defense strategy and US military as it concerns to Latin America
The much anticipated “Priorities for 21st Century Defense” makes a single reference to the region, in the same context as Africa. The focus, it says, will be making the U.S. “a security partner of choice” with those nations that share a “common vision of freedom, stability, and prosperity.”
Defense Secretary Leon Panetta cautioned against visions of expansion.
“In Latin America, Africa, elsewhere in the world, we will use innovative methods to sustain U.S. presence, maintaining key military-to-military relations and pursuing new security partnerships as needed,” he said.
“Wherever possible, we will develop low-cost and small-footprint approaches to achieving our security objectives, emphasizing rotational deployments, emphasizing exercises, military exercises with these nations and doing other innovative approaches to maintain a presence throughout the rest of the world.”
In comments to reporters, the Pentagon’s undersecretary of defense, Michele Flourney, said the United States military is “not going to abandon” small-scale relationships in regions like Latin America.
But she acknowledged, “the truth is in the last 10 years we have been so focused in Iraq and Afghanistan there hasn’t been a lot of forces available in some of these other areas to be available for engagement.”
At Southcom, the public affairs officer, Army Col. Scott Malcom said no final budget decisions had been made, and put in a pitch for the regional headquarters to keep doing what it’s been doing.
Sources:
MiamiHerald
The much anticipated “Priorities for 21st Century Defense” makes a single reference to the region, in the same context as Africa. The focus, it says, will be making the U.S. “a security partner of choice” with those nations that share a “common vision of freedom, stability, and prosperity.”
Defense Secretary Leon Panetta cautioned against visions of expansion.
“In Latin America, Africa, elsewhere in the world, we will use innovative methods to sustain U.S. presence, maintaining key military-to-military relations and pursuing new security partnerships as needed,” he said.
“Wherever possible, we will develop low-cost and small-footprint approaches to achieving our security objectives, emphasizing rotational deployments, emphasizing exercises, military exercises with these nations and doing other innovative approaches to maintain a presence throughout the rest of the world.”
In comments to reporters, the Pentagon’s undersecretary of defense, Michele Flourney, said the United States military is “not going to abandon” small-scale relationships in regions like Latin America.
But she acknowledged, “the truth is in the last 10 years we have been so focused in Iraq and Afghanistan there hasn’t been a lot of forces available in some of these other areas to be available for engagement.”
At Southcom, the public affairs officer, Army Col. Scott Malcom said no final budget decisions had been made, and put in a pitch for the regional headquarters to keep doing what it’s been doing.
Sources:
MiamiHerald
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