Chairman LEVIN. We are delighted to have Senator Thurmond with us, too. We join in your comments. It probably won't be the last time that you'll be testifying before Senator Thurmond retires, but, nonetheless, your sentiments are surely echoed by all of us. General Myers.

STATEMENT OF GEN. RICHARD B. MYERS, USAF, CHAIRMAN, JOINT CHIEFS OF STAFF

General MYERS. Chairman Levin, Senator Warner, distinguished members of the committee, thank you for the opportunity to appear before you today.

I would also like to take a minute to recognize Senator Thurmond for his 48 years of service to our Nation as a Member of Congress. He's been a champion for our Service men and women now for five decades. I think we also ought to recognize his service in the United States Army during World War II. That service is legendary, and he's an example for all the men and women in uniform today. Senator Thurmond, your departure will mark not just the retirement of a great Senator, but it will also mark the retirement of a prominent member of the greatest generation, and we wish you, Senator, and your family, all the best.

Mr. Chairman, I request that my prepared statement be submitted for the record.

Chairman LEVIN. It will be made part of the record.

General MYERS. I will make some short introductory remarks and then answer any questions you might have.

I don't think I can add anything to what Secretary Rumsfeld has said on the threat that Iraq represents to America, our interests, or our allies. So let me tell you that our Nation's military forces are ready and able to do whatever the President asks of them.

As a result of the support of Congress and the American public, your Armed Forces have made dramatic strides in the past decade, and I'll just cover three key areas. First, our intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance forces together with our enhanced command and control networks have given our joint war fighters a faster, more agile decision cycle than the one we had a decade ago. For our war fighters, this means that they have updated tactical information that is minutes to hours old, vice days old.

Second, we have a much better power-projection capability. The strong congressional support for programs such as the C-17 and the large medium-speed roll-on/roll-off ships has meant that we can deploy and sustain the force much better.

Finally, our Nation's combat power has increased dramatically over the past decade. For example, the Joint Direct Attack Munition provides all of our bomber aircraft and the majority of our fighter aircraft with a day-night all-weather precision-attack capability. Our ground forces have better and more accurate long-range weapons with the improved Army tactical missile system and a faster multiple-launch rocket system. Today we have sufficient forces to continue our ongoing operations, meet our international commitments, and continue to protect the American homeland.

At the same time, some key units are in high demand. The mobilization of the Guard and Reserve have helped reduce the stress on

is is a shortage of consequences for Saddam's ongoing defiance of those 16 U.N. resolutions. The President has made the case that it is dangerous for the United Nations to be made irrelevant by the Iraqi regime.

As the President put it in his address last week, "All the world now faces a test, and the United Nations a difficult and defining moment. Are Security Council resolutions to be honored and enforced, or cast aside without consequence? Will the United Nations serve the purpose of its founding, or will it be irrelevant?”

But the President has also been clear that all options are on the table. The only option President Bush has ruled out is to do nothing.

Mr. Chairman, as the President has made clear, this is a critical moment for our country and for the world. Our resolve is being put to the test. It is a test that, unfortunately, the world's free nations have failed before in recent history-with terrible consequences.

Long before the Second World War, Hitler wrote in Mein Kampf indicating what he intended to do. But the hope was that maybe he would not do what he said. Between 35 and 60 million people died because of a series of fatal miscalculations. He might have been stopped early-at a minimal cost of lives-had the vast majority of the world's leaders not decided at the time that the risks of acting were greater than the risks of not acting.

Today, we must decide whether the risks of acting are greater than the risks of not acting. Saddam Hussein has made his intentions clear. He has used weapons of mass destruction against his own people and his neighbors. He has demonstrated an intention to take the territory of his neighbors. He has launched ballistic missiles against U.S. allies and others in the region. He plays host to terrorist networks. He pays rewards to the families of suicide bombers in Israel-like those who killed five Americans at the Hebrew University earlier this year. He is hostile to the United States, because we have denied him the ability he has sought to impose his will on his neighbors. He has said, in no uncertain terms, that he would use weapons of mass destruction against the United States. He has, at this moment, stockpiles chemical and biological weapons, and is pursuing nuclear weapons. If he demonstrates the capability to deliver them to our shores, the world would be changed. Our people would be at great risk. Our willingness to be engaged in the world, our willingness to project power to stop aggression, our ability to forge coalitions for multilateral action, could all be under question. Many lives could be lost.

We need to decide as a people how we feel about that. Do the risks of taking action to stop that threat outweigh these risks of living in the world we see? Or is the risk of doing nothing greater than the risk of acting? That is the question President Bush has posed to Congress, to the American people, and to the world community.

The question comes down to this: how will the history of this era be recorded? When we look back on previous periods of our history, we see there have been many books written about threats and attacks that were not anticipated:

• At Dawn We Slept: The Untold Story of Pearl Harbor

• December 7, 1941: The Day the Admirals Slept Late

• Pearl Harbor: Final Judgment

• From Munich to Pearl Harbor

• While England Slept

• The Cost of Failure

The list of such books is endless. Unfortunately, in the past year, historians have added to that body of literature there are already books out on the September 11 attacks and why they were not prevented. As we meet today, congressional committees are trying to determine why that tragic event was not prevented.

Each is an attempt by the authors to "connect the dots"-to determine what happened, and why it was not possible to figure out that it was going to happen.

Our job today-the President's, Congress' and the U.N.'s-is to connect the dots before the fact, to anticipate vastly more lethal attacks before they happen, and to make the right decision as to whether we should take preventive action before it is too late.

We are on notice each of us. Each has a solemn responsibility to do everything in our power to ensure that, when the history of this period is written, the books won't ask why we slept-to ensure that history will instead record that on September 11, the American people were awakened to the impending dangers-and that those entrusted with the safety of the American people made the right decisions and saved our Nation, and the world, from 21st century threats.

President Bush is determined to do just that.

STATEMENT OF GEN. RICHARD B. MYERS, USAF, CHAIRMAN JOINT CHIEFS OF STAFF

General Mazos. Chairman Lerin Senator Warmen, detig members of the comminee, thank you for the opportunity to appear before you today.

I would also like to take a minute to reognize Senator Thun mond for his 48 years of service to our Nation as a Member of Congress. He's been a champion for our Service men and women W for five decades. I think we also ought to recognize his service in the United States Army during World War II. That service is leg endary, and he's an example for all the men and women in uniformn today. Senator Thurmond, your departure will mark not just the retirement of a great Senator, but it will also mark the retirement of a prominent member of the greatest generation, and we wish you. Senator, and your family, all the best.

Mr. Chairman. I request that my prepared statement be submitted for the record.

Chairman LEVIN. It will be made part of the record.

General MYERS. I will make some short introductory remarks and then answer any questions you might have.

I don't think I can add anything to what Secretary Rumsfeld has said on the threat that Iraq represents to America, our interests, or our allies. So let me tell you that our Nation's military forces are ready and able to do whatever the President asks of them.

As a result of the support of Congress and the American public, your Armed Forces have made dramatic strides in the past decade, and I'll just cover three key areas. First, our intelligence, surveil lance, and reconnaissance forces together with our enhanced command and control networks have given our joint war fighters a faster, more agile decision cycle than the one we had a decade ago, For our war fighters, this means that they have updated tactical information that is minutes to hours old, vice days old.

Second, we have a much better power-projection capability. The strong congressional support for programs such as the C-17 and the large medium-speed roll-on/roll-off ships has meant that we can deploy and sustain the force much better.

Finally, our Nation's combat power has increased dramatically over the past decade. For example, the Joint Direct Attack Munition provides all of our bomber aircraft and the majority of our fighter aircraft with a day-night all-weather precision-attack capability. Our ground forces have better and more accurate long-range weapons with the improved Army tactical missile system and a faster multiple-launch rocket system. Today we have sufficient forces to continue our ongoing operations, meet our international commitments, and continue to protect the American homeland.

At the same time, some key units are in high demand. The mobilization of the Guard and Reserve have helped reduce the stress on

some of these key units. Any major combat operation will, of course, require us to prioritize the task given to such units.

While our military capabilities have improved over the past decade, the foundation of our success remains our soldier, sailors, airmen, marines, and coast guardsmen-and when I say that, I also include our civilians and the Reserve component, obviously, are all wrapped up in there. It's their superior training, leadership, and discipline that are the core of our effectiveness. In my view, these qualities are the reason that our men and women in uniform enjoy respect and high regard of other professional militaries around the world. It's also for these reasons that our military forces are such effective partners in coalition operations.

Once again, Mr. Chairman, I welcome the opportunity to be here today to tell you that our Nation's joint forces can accomplish whatever mission the Nation needs them to do.

[The prepared statement of General Myers follows:]

PREPARED STATEMENT BY GEN. RICHARD B. MYERS, USAF

I welcome the opportunity to share with you the nature of the threat that the Iraqi regime presents to the United States, our forces and our allies. I also welcome this chance to share with you what you the improved capabilities our Armed Forces possess today.

IRAQ TODAY

As it has for the past decade, the Iraqi regime remains a significant threat to our interests and those of our allies. Despite the presence of U.Ñ. sanctions, Iraq has repaired and sustained key elements of its offensive, conventional forces. Iraqi armed forces maintain over 2,000 main battle tanks, more than 3,500 armored personnel carriers, and more than 2,000 pieces of artillery. Today, Iraqi ground forces have 23 divisions, to include 6 Republican Guard divisions. Its Air Force operates over 50 key air defense radars and has about 300 jet aircraft, to include a limited number of Mirage F-1s and MiG-29 Fulcrum aircraft.

Since 2000, Iraq's air defense forces have engaged coalition forces enforcing the U.N. mandated No-Fly Zones over Northern and Southern Iraq more than 2,300 times. Since August of 2001, Iraqi hostile actions have downed 3 Predator Unmanned Aerial Vehicles. In the last 2 weeks, over 25 coalition aircraft enforcing the No-Fly Zones have been engaged by Iraqi anti-aircraft and surface-to-air missiles. Despite these hostile actions, in the aggregate, the regime's military forces are down by roughly 50 to 60 percent, compared to 1990. Poor morale is reportedly widespread in many units and the quality of training is low. Iraqi forces employ aging weapon systems. Nonetheless, Iraq continues to invest heavily in rebuilding its military, including air defense systems and command and control networks. The Iraqi army also has preserved some limited country-wide mobility for its armored forces. The nature and type of these military forces are similar to the offensive capability Iraq used to invade Iran, to invade Kuwait, to attack the Kurds, and to crush popular uprisings against Saddam's regime.

At the same time, Iraq's weapons of mass destruction (WMD) program represents a greater threat to American lives, our interests and those of our allies and friends. When U.N. inspection teams were forced to leave Iraq in 1998, they documented that Iraq had failed to fulfill U.N. disarmament mandates and to accurately account for its most dangerous weapons. In response to ejecting those inspectors, the U.S. and our coalition partners conducted Operation Desert Fox in December 1998. In 70 hours, the coalition dealt a limited blow to Iraq's WMD and missile programs. At the time, we estimated that we set back its programs by 6 months to a year. In the 4 years since, Iraq has continued to develop chemical weapons, primarily mustard agent, the nerve agent Sarin, and VX-an extremely potent nerve agent. Prior to 1991, Iraq produced at least 28,000 filled chemical munitions and almost certainly many more.

Iraq has also invested heavily into developing biological agents. After years of denying it had any offensive biological weapons, in 1995, the Iraqi regime admitted to the U.N. that it had produced more than 30,000 liters of concentrated biological warfare agents. To put in comparison, a year ago, trace amounts of anthrax infected 22 persons in the U.S. and killed 5 Americans. UNSCOM estimated that Iraqi offi

cials were misleading and that Baghdad could have produced 2-4 times more agents. Moreover, the U.N. was unable to account for nearly 200 biological bombs and missile warheads Iraq claims it destroyed in 1991.

Iraq retains the ability to deliver these chemical and biological weapons with aircraft, artillery shells, or missiles. Two years ago, it displayed an array of new missiles and has begun fielding them with its military forces this year. These weapons, known as the Al Samoud and Ababil-100 missiles, violate U.N. resolutions because they are capable of reaching beyond the 150-kilometer range limit imposed on Iraqi missiles and rockets.

With regards to nuclear weapons, Iraq continues to vigorously pursue this capability. In 2000, the International Atomic Energy Agency estimated that Iraq could have a nuclear weapon within 2 years. We do not know definitively how long it will be until it creates an operational nuclear capability. With foreign assistance, Iraq could have such a weapon in a few years or much sooner if it is able to obtain sufficient fissile materials from a foreign source.

But, we know, without any doubt, that Iraq values these clandestine programs. Iraq has developed elaborate deception and dispersal efforts aimed at preventing us and the rest of the world from learning about its WMD capabilities. As a result, we do not know the exact location of many of Iraq's WMD resources.

We also know that Iraq has demonstrated a willingness to use such indiscriminate weapons. The regime has used WMD against the citizens of Iraq and Iran. It has used Scud missiles against cities in Israel, Saudi Arabia, Iran, and tried to hit Bahrain. In fact, Iraq has used weapons of mass destruction more against civilians than against military forces.

The Iraqi regime has also allowed its country to be a haven for terrorists. Since the 1970s, organizations such as the Abu Nidal Organization, Palestinian Liberation Front and Mujahadeen-e-Khalq have found sanctuary within Iraq's borders. Over the past few months, with the demise of their safe haven in Afghanistan, some al Qaida operatives have relocated to Iraq. Baghdad's support for international terrorist organizations ranges from explicit and overt support to implicit and passive acquiescence.

Iraq is governed by a terrorist regime. From a military perspective, Iraq's conventional forces and WMD programs represent a threat to the region, our allies and U.S. interests.

U.S. MILITARY CAPABILITIES TODAY

Our Nation's military forces enjoy the respect of the vast majority of countries and their armed forces. This respect stems from our forces' professional skills, superior intelligence assets, agile power projection capability, unique C2 networks and the lethal combat power that our Joint Team brings to the fight. As we have done in Operation Desert Storm, in Bosnia, in Kosovo and most recently in Afghanistan, our Armed Forces are always ready to integrate the military capabilities of our allies and partners into a decidedly superior, coalition force.

In a contest between Iraq's military forces and our Nation's Armed Forces, the outcome is clear. Our joint warfighting team, in concert with our partners, can and will decisively defeat Iraqi military forces.

Many will remember the results of the last encounter between our coalition forces and Iraq 11 years ago. Since then, U.S. combat power has improved. Today, our Nation's joint warfighting team enjoys improved intelligence, command and control, is more deployable and possesses greater combat power. Let me briefly address each of these areas.

In terms of intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance capability, our operations over Afghanistan demonstrated our improved ability to observe the enemy. Our network of sensors, combined with the improved flow of tactical information to commanders and warfighters at all levels, have allowed us to react faster to a fluid battlefield environment. In Operation Desert Storm, our only unmanned aerial vehicle, the Pioneer, was limited to a 5-hour sortie and restricted to line-of-sight from its command center. Today, Predator and Global Hawk provide our forces day and night surveillance capability for extended periods of time far over the horizon.

In a similar manner, our warfighters have more updated intelligence for their mission. In Operation Desert Storm, pilots used target photos that were often 23 days old. Determining accurate coordinates often required 24 hours and was done exclusively in the rear echelon in the United States. This process was good, but not as responsive as it needed to be. Today, our aircrews have photos that are often only hours old and can determine coordinates for precision engagement in just 20 minutes.