European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - January 6, 1989, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Is Ken George . I . Troops training in West Germany russian officers posing in East Germany in front of one of the ss-12 launchers with mounted missile that were withdrawn to the soviet Union last year. Nato d Warsaw pact Greenland Denmark Iceland  North soviet Union sea Neth. Bel. E. Germany Poland  Ocean Mediterranean sea will . Match soviet peace moves with troop pullback by George c. Wilson Washington Post a Gen. Edward c. Meyer believes president elect George Bush will be forced to pull significant numbers of troops from Europe in his first term. Wide spectrum of retired four Star commanders with nato expertise agree that the incoming Bush administration will have to respond militarily to soviet president Mikhail Gorbachev s peace offensive. Their suggestions Range from pulling some . Troops out of Europe to merely reassessing current strategy for stopping a Warsaw pact invasion. Gen. Edward c. Meyer former army chief of staff and a frequent government adviser on nato issues represented the most advanced View of these military professionals. He said in an interview that a combination of events will Force president elect George Bush to withdraw significant numbers of troops in his first term and that it behoves the new administration to Start preparing now for that inevitability. Besides negotiating Mutual troop reductions with the soviet Union in Europe Meyer said the United states should Start organizing a new kind of army for the nato front in West Germany one armed with eavesdropping equipment and unmanned reconnaissance planes to keep track of Warsaw pact forces in Eastern Europe. If there is one thing we re Good at Meyer said of . Technology it s  he said deploying an elaborate verification network in Europe would give commanders on both sides of the nato front line assurances that neither had to worry about a Surprise invasion by the other. With the warning time of a Warsaw pact invasion stretched from several Days to several weeks Meyer contended under a .-soviet Force reduction pact the 212,000 army troops in Europe could safely be reduced because there would be time to bring reinforcements from the United states. With additional warning time and a shrunken Warsaw pact Force in Eastern Europe Meyer and his adherents argue the United states could save billions by deactivating thousands of its troops now based in Europe. The savings would be lost if the troops were just redeployed to bases in the United states. Some Pentagon budget executives predict army leaders will come around to settling for a smaller Active duty Force because they will not have enough Money under the Zero growth budgets of the future to finance today s standing army of 772,000 men and women and also buy the prize weapons on its shopping list. A smaller army would place More Reliance on National guard and army Reserve units which Only train part time. Brent scowcroft Bush s National Security adviser has called for More emphasis on Reserve forces As a Belt tightening measure. Just How much the United states spends on the 337,000 soldiers sailors airmen and marines in Western and Southern Europe is a matter of dispute. Rep. Patricia Schroeder d-colo., cites one Pentagon estimate that 60 percent of its budget goes for that overseas deployment or about $180 billion of the current $300 billion defense budget. A Pentagon spokesman said he could not cite an official Price tag for the total . Military contribution to nato. Whatever the actual Cost in a number of votes last year a growing number of lawmakers showed they want More of the nato costs to be shifted from the United states to Alliance partners. Given the very real pressures caused by the budget deficit and the current Trade imbalance with these same Allied nations it is not reasonable to expect . Taxpayers to continue to finance such a Large percentage of the Cost of the common defense said the Senate appropriations committee in a report on the defense department budget. Meyer argued that the first significant withdrawal of thousands of american troops from Europe since world War ii is inevitable for several reasons Gorbachev s Promise to reduce his armed forces by 500,000 troops and to withdraw 5,000 tanks from Eastern Europe the strained economies of the United states and the soviet Union Allied demands for Mutual troop reductions and the coming dip in the youth populations of nato and Warsaw pact countries. That s Why we should plan for it now Meyer said. Other military leaders with nato experience who Are now retired and thus free to speak their minds agreed in interviews that Gorbachev s unilateral troop reductions and the other dynamics Meyer cited have put the . Government on the defensive. Adm. Stansfield Turner who commanded Allied forces in Southern Europe from 1975 to 1977, endorsed Meyer s views but the majority of the other retired four Star officers were not willing to go that far. As part of a Broad Effort to end the cold War and Cut . Front line forces in Europe under Mutual Force reductions Turner recommended removing to the rear the . Heavy Armor in West Germany s Forward Wall. If East West tensions continue to ease Turner said . Tank forces should be removed from Europe altogether. Eventually Turner said the United states should replace its 60-ton m1 Abarr s tanks which Cost $2.6 million each with a lighter a id cheaper one that could be flown More easily to Distant trouble spots. To increase Confidence to at the Warsaw pact could not launch a Surprise invasion even after both East and West had reduced their Fordes in Europe Turner said rail and Road lines should a restricted at crucial Points to slow an invading army. If you still Only have a Slingshot up to fire at you you May not be any better off Turner said in stressing the need to Monitor and restrict sudden military movement. Gen. Andrew p. Goodpa Ter nato s supreme commander from 1969 to 1974, reflected the Middle ground of professional military reaction to Gorbachev when he said if a so called zone of Confidence does develop in Europe this will require us to go Back to the drawing Board and rethink what we re doing tactically operationally and strategies he said the United states  is faced with a dual problem As a result of Gorbachev s initiatives we have to prepare ourselves to respond and at the same time keep the Alliance  nato forces currently operate on what is called the Forward  tanks Are deployed along the nato front line in West Germany rather than further Back where military commanders would rather have them to plug holes an invading Force made in the front lines. We would have traded some space for Man Euver said retired air Force general Russell e. Dougherty a former nato planner and air Force chief of staff. But he said military preferences had to yield to West German geopolitical realities in planning the european defences. You can t Trade space for Man Euver if your sovereignty is right up against the  Gorbachev could break the 40-year Mold for nato forces Dougherty said if he agrees to troop reductions that result in what could be perceived  a safer balance Between North Atlantic Alliance and Warsaw pact forces. We have to stay relevant to his threat Dougherty said in cautioning against an unbending attitude by today s military leaders. If he can reduce we can reduce Dougherty said. And we can withdraw which would throw a bigger Load on our Mobile air sea forces. But whatever we do this time unlike other times we be got to let the europeans take the  air Force Gen. John w. Vogt who commanded nato air forces in Central Europe in 1974 and 1975 and advises Pentagon leaders on nato problems agreed that Gorbachev and . Money problems Are bringing pressure for change in american forces in Europe but warned that there is Little reason for Comfort because new soviet tanks continue to be produced at a prodigious rate. The zone of Confidence is a fraud Vogt contended because soviet forces after withdrawing eastward from the nato front could move Back quite easily covering 100 Miles a  Vogt scoffed at Turner s recommendation to move . Heavy tanks on West Germany s front line. In an emergency he contended the tanks in the rear could not reach the front before Many of them wore out their treads. The four Star general said the United states does not have tank carriers to transport its Armor to the front. Another part of current . Military strategy for defending Europe is called airland Battle. The idea is to break the momentum of an invading Force by disabling its second and third echelons with lightning fast strikes by helicopter borne troops and smart precision weapons. Airland Battle need not be changed if . Forces in Europe Are reduced said Vogt. The strategy simply says that if the air Force and army see an Opportunity for a breakthrough we re going to go for  army Gen. Donn a. Starry who helped develop airland Battle As commander of the army training come from 1977 to 1981 agreed. Starry said the strategy was insurance against the likelihood that reinforcements could not be flown from the United states to Europe in time to Stop an invading Force. It s a Dopey strategy said col. John b. Keeley a former brigade commander on Europe s Central front because it s not going to happen. National training Center exercises show the helicopter cannot survive against today s defences and the strategy assumes the commander has tens of thousands of smart weapons on Call that he won t  one four Star general noted for his hawkish views refused to be impressed by the Gorbachev initiatives warning that even if the soviet Leader cuts forces deeper than he has promised the Warsaw pact will continue to have overwhelming strength on the ground. The general who declined to be identified predicted that today s nato strategy of resorting to nuclear weapons once its forces become overwhelmed by the invaders will remain in Force for the foreseeable future. So what if he pulls his forces Back the general said. The europeans Don t want to make Europe Safe for world War Iii on their ground. All the pullback would mean is that we d go nuclear in three weeks instead of  is Dave Diehl e-2c Hawkeye lifts off from the Carrier Roosevelt during Maneu vers in the med. 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