A new mission is unfolding in Iraq as Operation Iraqi Freedom ends and Operation New Dawn begins.
Lieutenant General Bob Cone of Fort Hood, who is serving in Iraq, spoke with members of the media from Bagdad Tuesday morning. He went into detail about what the thousands of soldiers, many from Fort Hood, will do now that combat operations are officially coming to an end in the war-torn country.
The 50,000 troops will advise, train and assist Iraqi policemen and soldiers in keeping the country stabilized.
“We will train with the Iraqis. They will come onto the bases,” Lt. Cone said. “We want to make sure that in the next 15 to 16 months that they are fully ready when the United States withdraws from Iraq; its military component from Iraq.”
While combat operations are no longer on the front burner, Lt. Cone stresses his soldiers will not be sitting ducks, and says he is proud of how the men and women under his command have performed their duties in Iraq for the past seven years.
“They've performed magnificently, and you can certainly be very proud of the Central Texas soldiers, and really all our soldiers, sailors, airmen, and marines,” Cone said.
All U.S. soldiers are supposed to be out of Iraq by December 2011, but in the meantime, troops from Fort Hood will continued to be deployed to Iraq.
