African Union Troops Blow The Whistle On Sudan's Brazen Continuation Of Genocide

[CSM]

i respectfully disagree

as i 've noted in the past, the obvious model for an intervention in darfur is operation provide comfort, where we saved the kurds from starvation and disease while protecting them from saddam's vengeful wrath.

in northern iraq, we had US, british and french troops, with NATO airpower providing the neccessary no-fly zone.

in darfur, we would have African Union troops with a 1,000 NATO force augment, Americans, Brits, Aussies, Italians and Czechs. The air power would come from one of three Naval and Air Force bases in Europe, (our base (ROTA) in spain and any one of our several bases in italy and sicily.)

the french have even given their permission to the african union or intervening power to use their premium airfield in chad.

this isn't impossible, and it wouldn't stretch our forces further. Remember, the Army is the only overstretched chapter of the military. The Marines, Air Force and Navy have problems, but they remain as ready for deployments as they've ever been.

We can and must intervene in Darfur.

All true Nato, but it still costs money and you still need boots on the ground. Also, we are saying much the same thing. My point was the US could not do it alone. As you point out, we would have to have the help of the Brits, et al.

As for the Air Force and Navy, yes they are certainly deployable. There is no doubt in my mind that the US Air Force can handle anything flying and I suspect the US Navy could hold their own against the Janjaweed Navy (sorry, couldn't resist the jab!). However, neither can intervene on the ground where the atocities are taking place. That is unless you propose taking sailors and airmen and making them infantry.

 

[NATO AIR]

That's the job of the Marines. :2guns: They punch bad guy's entry cards to hell so fast the Devil can't keep up.

You'd also have financial support from Japan and South Korea.

Powell can make it happen, and our allies will stand by us, more so than ever.

 

[CSM]

(From my other post on this)

The troops are right there. You augment that with logistics, air support and an augment force of about 1,000 folks, and you've got yourself a no-fly zone and a safe area for the genocide survivors, carved right out of a piece of Darfur.

You also call the Sudanese bluff. Do they really think America would tolerate a Sudanese attack on American/Allied forces? This is where George Bush's reputation wins the day. Nobody in Sudan's leadership is gonna be that stupid to play chicken with Bush.

There is still the issue of UN approval, if that is to be a consideration. After Annan's comments about the legality of US actions in Iraq, I wonder how many countries will be willing to go it alone in something like this, even if they do have tacit approval from other nations outside the UNSC.

By the way, I totally agree that something needs to be done adn I do think that the US has the capabiltiy to effectively intervene; I just wonder if we, the citizens, have the stomach for it.

 

[CSM]

That's the job of the Marines. :2guns: They punch bad guy's entry cards to hell so fast the Devil can't keep up.

You'd also have financial support from Japan and South Korea.

Powell can make it happen, and our allies will stand by us, more so than ever.

The Marines op tempo is pretty high too. I do think the Army could scrape up a few thousand troops, but that would mean a few of them fat assed clerks would have to get off their butts and go do something. Of course, then some officers somewhere would have to get their own basketballs when they went to the gym. (the latter was a cheap shot at Merlin, just for the heck of it).

 

[NATO AIR]

I think the ball is in the US court. They've got a declaration of genocide, which brings a moral weight to bear on the UN that its never felt before.

China and Russia can cry all they want, they will lose in international opinion because they will be seen as aiding and abetting genocide, the most powerful word in the world when properly used.

We will stand by the African Union, and many of our allies will stand by us. We will rescue the three tribes of Darfur from the extinction of their culture and lineage and we will stop the genocide.

 

[NATO AIR]

The Marines op tempo is pretty high too. I do think the Army could scrape up a few thousand troops, but that would mean a few of them fat assed clerks would have to get off their butts and go do something. Of course, then some officers somewhere would have to get their own basketballs when they went to the gym. (the latter was a cheap shot at Merlin, just for the heck of it).

True, but we deployed Marines (and they've all returned intact and with good training) to Liberia and Haiti the past year with little incident or problem. The Army is the problem, but the African Union will be the army of the force. The Marines and British Gurrkhas/British Marines would be the mean muscle.

 

[NATO AIR]

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/ArticleNews/TPStory/LAC/20040923/SUDAN23/International/Idx

A Canadian minister warns Sudan they better accept an African Union force or else.... and of course the Canadians have given 20 million to help fund the African Union operation

 

[NATO AIR]

i'd also think appointing wesley clark or anthony zinni as the civilian head of this operation (or even possibly activiating them for duty again) would be a good idea.... both men have incredible experience and success with this sort of operation and would put aside any concerns with pres. bush or the pentagon leadership to help their country take a serious stand against genocide and terrorist supporting regimes.