Important Texts 2005
Interview of General Richard B. Myers with Slovak Television
July 19, 2005
Bratislava, Slovakia
General Richard B. Myers
Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff
Slovak Television (Ivo Kunsch): I would like to start with a topic which has been very hot for a long period of time, which is Iraq. How would you evaluate the American mission in that country. Would you describe it as successful?
Gen. Myers: Oh, yes. If you think about it, if you think about where Iraq was under Saddam Hussein and you think about where it is today - they're about ready to adopt a new constitution, they're about ready to have elections under that new constitution by the end of the year. They've been on track, they've met every milestone they've established for themselves or the coalition has helped them establish. Clearly there are still some security issues, but Iraqi security forces are day by day becoming better able to handle the security situation. The economy is actually pretty good. Inflation is very low to nonexistent. Oil production is down a little bit but steady - down from what they hoped it would be, but steady. So I think that generally the situation is favorable for political progress, and I think that in the end it will be the political progress that undermines those who are supporting the insurgents and those who support violence.
STV: Well, you are satisfied with the building of democratic institutions, but on the other hand you have some 130,000 troops out there, and they keep dying. Enemies, and the destructive actions of those people who are against the government which has the backing from America and are against everything that looks like progress in that country, their actions keep increasing, so what went wrong? Have you underestimated something there?
Gen. Myers: I don't think so. I think what you see, what's happening in Iraq, is what's happening in the world, and that is that there are violent extremists who are bent on murdering men, women and children. They just did it in London, and they've done it in Riyadh, they've done it in Bali, they've done it in New York City and they've done it at the Pentagon. This is the same philosophy, if you will, a philosophy that is really against civilization or against humanity. It's the same thing that is happening now in Iraq and to some extent in Afghanistan. What you have to do is to make sure that you have political progress and that you involve Iraqi forces. This is their problem. This is not the problem of US forces or our coalition partners, the Slovak armed forces. This is a problem that Iraq must solve, and as I said before, political progress will take away some of the incentives of those who want to help insurgents, and help them come to the table and realize they are part of a political process and political progress, and we'll be successful. For those who say, you're never going to be successful there, then the other part of it is, we would cede success to these murderers, and the civilized world is not going to stand for it.
STV: So, speaking of those murderers, how long do you think the United States will have to stay there, judging from the fact that some countries are mulling their exit strategies.
Gen. Myers: Well, countries come and go. None of the major countries are going to leave. We've got a very strong coalition. We'll be there as long as we're needed, and that's the position of the US government. You may have heard a lot of statements from the Iraqi government, from Prime Minister Jaafari, he wants us there until they feel able to handle the situation on their own. I think, again, we'll see after elections in December or January, we'll see where Iraqi security forces are at that time, and their ability to handle the insurgency. We're spending a lot of effort, the United States and other members of the coalition, to build up Iraqi security force capability, and they're doing very, very well.
STV: But could you guess how long . . .
Gen. Myers: No, it will be . . .
STV: Two, three, five years?
Gen. Myers: It will be driven by events on the ground.
STV: Too soon to tell?
Gen. Myers: Sure. I mean, the relationship could change. The Iraqi government that is elected in December could decide they want everybody to leave the country. Or they could decide they want a strategic relationship that lasts a long time for lots of other reasons, for other security worries they have besides the internal security worries. So, you can't predict these sorts of things. They have to evolve as other relationships evolve.
STV: Slovakia is currently staging military exercises in Lest, and it has been described by Slovak media as something monumental, that American soldiers came to Slovakia to share with Slovak soldiers their experience. How would you describe the Slovak military prowess?
Gen. Myers: The reports from our commanders in Afghanistan and in Iraq give high marks to the Slovak armed forces. They've performed very professionally and are very courageous and do a terrific job. Every commander I've ever talked to has high praise for the armed forces of Slovakia. I think the exercise we see going on is an opportunity for some of our National Guard forces from the state of Indiana to participate with Slovak armed forces in an exercise, and I'm sure they'll learn from each other. I think there will be mutual learning going on.
STV: On the other hand, in NATO where America is the leading country militarily and politically, the newcomers have been described as countries whose capabilities are not quite meeting the standards to face the threats of the future like terrorism. How much does it apply to Slovakia?
Gen. Myers: I think people and countries have to realize, depending on their size, they can have a full military that can do lots of things, or do they have niche capabilities that will be very useful to the NATO alliance, and I think a lot of countries have niche capabilities. Slovakia has niche capabilities in chemical warfare defense, their engineers, explosive ordinance disposal, not to mention their fighting forces, their regular forces, and some air force capabilities. So they have niches they can fill, they have a broader capability they can fill, and I think NATO countries recognize that. Everybody will contribute as they can to this, and certainly Slovakia brings very professional armed forces to this alliance, and it's appreciated.
STV: The Slovak Defense Department is currently mulling a change in the status of the Slovak unit in Afghanistan, trying to pull it from under the command of the Enduring Freedom Operation. Isn't it kind of disappointing for Americans?
Gen. Myers: I talked about this with my counterpart, Gen. Bulik, and no, it's certainly up to Slovakia to decide at a political level how they want to deploy their forces. I think the important thing to realize is that probably, inside of 12 months, the mission in Afghanistan is likely to be a NATO mission. There won't be a separate US mission and NATO mission. There will be one mission. It'll be NATO. So the point is almost moot. It's going to shortly be one mission. It'll be NATO.
STV: Thank you, general, for your time with Slovak TV.
Gen. Myers: Thank you.