Military

DATE=03/20/2002

TYPE=EDITORIAL

NUMBER=0-09773

TITLE=EDITORIAL: COOPERATION WITH GEORGIA

INTERNET=Yes

CONTENT=THIS EDITORIAL IS BEING RELEASED FOR USE BY ALL SERVICES.

Anncr: Next, an editorial expressing the policies of the United States Government:

Voice: The United States is cooperating with Georgia to deal with the threat of international terrorism.

President George W. Bush said, "In the Republic of Georgia, terrorists working closely with al-Qaida operate in the Pankisi Gorge near the Russian border. At President [Eduard] Shevardnadze's request, the U.S. is planning to send. . .military trainers to prepare Georgian soldiers to reestablish control in this lawless region. This temporary assistance serves the interests of both countries."

About two-hundred U.S. military advisers will soon begin training a special rapid-deployment force of some one-thousand five-hundred Georgian officers and soldiers. The training will be conducted at Georgian military bases. The U.S. will equip the units that undergo training. These units will have the task of routing out and destroying terrorist groups operating from Georgian territory.

The U.S. mission in Georgia will improve security in the region. It is part of the ongoing war against international terrorism. President Bush said that the U.S. "has sent more than five-hundred troops to train Philippine forces. . . . In Yemen, we are working to avert the possibility of another Afghanistan. Many al-Qaida recruits come from near the Yemen-Saudi Arabia border, and al-Qaida may try to reconstitute itself in remote corners of that region." The U.S., said Mr. Bush, "will help Yemeni forces with both training and equipment to prevent that land from becoming a haven for terrorists."

As President Bush said, "In the current stage of the war, our coalition is opposing not a nation, but a network. Victory will come over time, as that network is patiently and steadily dismantled. This will require international cooperation on a number of fronts: diplomatic, financial, and military. We will not send American troops to every battle, but America will actively prepare other nations for the battle ahead. This mission will end when the work is finished -- when terror networks of global reach have been defeated."

Anncr: That was an editorial expressing the policies of the United States Government. If you have a comment, please write to Editorials, V-O-A, Washington, D-C, 20237, U-S-A. You may also comment at www-dot-ibb-dot-gov-slash-editorials, or fax us at (202) 619-1043.