European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - October 13, 1994, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Thursday october 13, 1994 persian Gulf the stars and stripes Page 5concerns Rise of stretched out military by Susanne m. Schafer a military writer jvash1ngtonamerican troops Are standing guard in Europe Haiti South Korea and the Balkans troops have left Rwanda and Somalia but thousands1 More Are in route to the Middle East. Is americans military being stretched too thin has iraqi president Saddam Hussein deliberately made trouble while the United states is preoccupied in Haiti some military experts worry that this is the Case. But the Pentagon Stop commanders contend that despite recent troop and budget cuts americans military can handle two major regional conflicts a such As Korea and Iraq a at nearly the same time. A i believe we have the capability to do so a . Army Gen. John met Shalikashvil chairman of the joint chiefs of staff told reporters at a Pentagon briefing. Quot i would not want North Korea for a moment to think otherwise or for that matter anyone  under the National Security strategy devised under former defense Secretary Les Aspin the Clinton administration said the Pentagon should maintain enough military Force to fight a and win a a two nearly simultaneous regional  that Means while vanquishing one foe the forces must be ready to shift to face and defeat another. But the administrations budget also Calls for cutting the army a divisions from 14 to 10, air Force wings from 28 to 20 and a iter aft carriers from 13 to 12 by 1999. Rep. Ike Skelton d-mo., said he backs the plan but sea lift ships pose Hazard report finds by the Washington Post Washington a some commercial ships that haul Pentagon Materiel to hot spots such As the persian Gulf Are poorly maintained have frequent on Board fires and breakdowns and endanger their Crews and the environment a congressional investigation has found. A study by the general accounting office congress1 investigative Arm criticizes the military sea lift come the 9,000-employee naw office that oversees 160 privately owned ships that transport equipment to trouble zones As Well As to permanent military facilities. The Gao report which was obtained by the Washington Post in Advance of wednesdays release focuses on nine tankers operated by a private company to haul Jet fuel. A the Gao and congressional staff members said the sea lift command failed to insist that the tankers be maintained and spent $23 million on late repairs that would not Haye been needed if the ships had been cared for properly. Moreover the firm that is currently operating the ships new York based International Marine carriers inc., is suing the government for $18 million because of the ships poor condition. The Gao report was to be released at a hearing of the Senate governmental affairs oversight subcommittee a along with memos by coast guard officials describing poor Tanker conditions and the inexperience of some Crew members. Navy vice adm. Philip m. Quast head of the sea lift command for the last two months said he visited two tankers last weekend and spotted problems. A a in a not Happy with what i saw a he said. A we  accept this level of maintenance.�?�. Quast said maintenance declined starting in 1985, when the command began writing contracts with operating firms on a fixed Price basis. The result of this system he said was that the firms began skimping on Upkeep so As to make More profits. Robert Wellner International Marine carriers chief executive said the tankers his firm took Over in 1990 were a in catastrophic conditions and  leave port under their own Power. He said that his firm has spent millions of dollars to repair the ships and that they Are Safe. And what if North Korea rattles the Saber what if the serbs decide to assist the bosnian serbs Well find ourselves stretched thinner than paper. Rep. To Skelton do. The strategy Quot Isnit even funded corned about  in a really con. A and what if North Korea rattles the Saber what if the serbs decide to assist the bosnian serbs Well find ourselves stretched thinner than paper a said Skelton the influential chairman of the House armed services personnel subcommittee. Retired army col. Roy Alcala a former assistant to retired army chief of staff Gen Carl e. Vuono argued that a things Are stretched now. In cases like Korea or the Middle East allies May be Able to help out Alcala said. But he argued that it would not be possible for the United states to manage two major conflicts alone a without a preplanned and Large Call up of the civilians who Are members of its Reserve forces. A. A a a a / -. A a a a a a a a. Only three weeks after 20,000 troops were dispatched to Haiti the military is shifting thousands More into the persian Gulf Region. A a we be been Able to do very very Well those difficult tasks we be been asked to do. But we also have to watch very carefully to make sure that we done to get stretched out a Shalikashvil said. The air forces outgoing chief of staff Gen. Merrill a. Mcpeak told reporters at a separate session that the air Force was a in pretty Good shape and has enough fighter air wings to handle any contingency including warfare in two far Flung spots such As Korea and Iraq. But he said the service suffers a spot shortages in its airborne warning and control radar planes and among its aging Fleet off la 1 jets. And another a big problem has been the stress placed on the services Airlift system of transport and cargo planes. Defense Secretary William Perry was asked monday night on abcs Nightwine whether he believed America could handle mischief makers from around the Globe who might pounce on . Forces simultaneously. Quot you can postulate five or six or seven crises at a time and you begin to reach a stage where the resources Are really badly strained a Perry said. The Bottom line though is that a we have sufficient quantities of Force to Deal with two major regional conflicts in the world at once Quot Perry said. A we worry about that. We do not expect that to happen. We fervently Pray it will not  keeping High Eye on iraqis the defense department on tuesday released satellite photos thursday shows tanks of a Republican guard division being of the iraqi buildup in Southern Iraq. This photo taken last moved on heavy lift transports. Marine presumed drowned after fall from ship Wynne Ark. Apr a 20-Ycar-old Marine was lost and presumed drowned after falling overboard from the amphibious assault ship Tripoli in the persian Gulf his father said tuesday. Cpl. Steven Mosier was working on the rear of a ch-53 sea stallion helicopter on Friday said Steve Lawson a spokesman for the . Naval forces Central come in Bahrain. Witnesses said he fell hit his head on the deck and went into the water. Lawson said that a Rescue attempt was launched and that the Dock Landing ship Rushmore stayed in the area for 24 hours while divers searched for the Marine. A we Haven to heard anything further from the marines a a his father Ray Mosier said tuesday a they Haven to recovered the  Steven Mosier enlisted in the Marine corps in May 1992 and was assigned As a technician to the medium helicopter so 166, based at Camp Pendleton Calif. The Squadron has been on Board the Tripoli since june. The ship had been flying food and medical supplies to people in Rwanda and was on its Way to Kuwait Mosiers father said