Gao: Deployments Taxing Military Force

A high rate of U.S. military deployments is taxing such in-demand units as special forces, electronic warfare and military police, congressional auditors said Wednesday.

The General Accounting Office predicted the trend would continue unless the Pentagon took steps to better manage a shrinking military force. Defense Department officials said they are doing just that, and described a number of steps designed to reduce the stress on heavily used military specialties. Some of those steps, such as scaling back military exercises, were in the report.

“At the request of the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the (field) commanders in chief are also examining exercise plans to prevent redundant training by consolidating, synchronizing, reducing participation in, or canceling exercises.”

Republicans on Capitol Hill have accused President Clinton of sending the military out on too many peace-keeping operations, diverting resources from the basic military mission of national defense.

The report underscored that complaint, noting that U.S. participation in peacekeeping missions has risen sharply in the past five years. But the report also focused on other possible explanations, such as peer pressure among officers, a “can-do” culture and a desire to avoid budget cuts.