European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - April 25, 2007, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Wednesday april 25 2007 stars and stripes pages reassurances of Security give few details at us bases in Europe official answers to residents terrorism concerns Lack specifics by John Vandiver stars and stripes while us military officials said tues Day that they Are addressing some of the Security concerns raised by base residents in Europe they Are remaining tight lipped about specific information leading to heightened terrorism alerts Public declarations of specific threats could Compromise counter terrorism efforts and investigations they say however a senior is european command Leader said tuesday that the us military is working with German authorities to eliminate any potential threats to us interests we want to catch these Guys we want to make it As hard for them As we possibly can maj Gen William Catto chief of staff for the us european command said during an interview with stars and stripes editors Catto declined to answer several questions on the record including whether a specific threat to us military bases in Germany exists however Neucom announced saturday that bases throughout Europe would be holding Force Protection exercises to randomly test and evaluate Force Protection procedures but some residents Are asking for More action such As increasing Security at a Mil itary housing area in Wiesbaden where trucks cars and pedestrians can travel unencumbered by Gates or identification checkpoints some current and former residents of the Community describe Security there As a joke and the longstanding concern an Issue that s been raised before at town Hall meetings Only has intensified in Light of the recently elevated threat Condi Tion i lived there from 20052006 and  believe my eyes these so called leaders and Force Protection plans Are laughable left see who laughing when americans Are killed there said Stephanie a former resident now living in Naples who asked that her last name be withheld the army response were aware of concerns expressed about the wies Baden housing area there Are measures both ongoing As Well As planned to provide the necessary Security Bruce Anderson us army Europe spokesman said in a prepared state ment we wont discuss those measures because it would jeopardize their effective Ness and put our soldiers and their families at risk establishing checkpoint at the wies Baden housing Complex is what some Resi dents want the glitch however is that a Public German Road runs through the area when Gates to Block the Road were used in the past the City administration protested according to military officials during several meetings Between army and City authorities an agreement was reached to guarantee Access to the Public Road and use roadblocks Only in cases of emergencies a involved parties were convinced that Security requirements for the us population were met army officials said not everyone agrees though Check Points could prevent some emergency situations from happening some residents contend meanwhile questions about Security at a military housing area in Baum older soon will be resolved officials said currently the housing area and the facilities it is served by can be accessed by foot without passing through a checkpoint there always has been a plan for fences there said Kelsy Hustead a spokes woman for the base in Baum older the fences should be installed in a matter of weeks if not Days she said the temporary Security Hole is the re sult of traffic pattern changes that went into effect about a week ago to accommodate the turnover of a portion of the hous ing area to German citizens officials have said if s understandable people would feel frustrated Anderson said when people have concerns about Secu Rity or want cryptic warnings clarified the proper route for obtaining answers is through the Chain of command he said that would be the Way to go Ander son said and if families Arent satisfied with the first response go higher he said the warning last week from the us embassy in Germany gave no details of a specific threat because of a heightened threat Situa Tion diplomatic faculties would be in creasing their Security posture and Ameri cans in Germany were advised to take Steps to bolster their own personal Security the embassy announced Friday meanwhile German Media outlets have been reporting that the islamic jihad Union could be involved in a terror plot against us bases in Germany the islamic jihad Union has already committed numerous attacks in Pakistan according to Der Spiegel us officials would not comment on those reports email John Vandiver at end comes to famed cavalry unit army stay in Budinger Squadron cases its colors but Likely to unfurl them later at fort Bliss by Matt Millham stars and stripes Budinger Germany there Down but there not out the 1st Squadron 1st us Cav Alry regiment the oldest and most decorated cavalry Squadron in the us army cased its colors tuesday in a ceremony at Arm Strong Barracks a longtime Home for us cavalry units in Germany but sometime sure exactly when the unit should be reactivated at fort Bliss Texas this inactivation will be temporary because you cannot keep a Good unit Down like this col Darryl a Williams commander of 1st armoured divisions Divi Sion artillery said during the cer Emony the ceremony the second inactivation for the Squadron in its 174year history also signalled the end of the us army in this sleepy Valley town today is about history traditions and the future it col mat thew Mckenna the squadrons commander said in a speech Dur ing the ceremony we Are a part of history today the history of the unit a Story that took about five minutes of narration during the ceremony in 1833 and included involvement in every major us War since with the exception of world War i most recently the Squadron deployed to Iraq in 2003 and served a 16month tour during which it lost three soldiers including its top enlisted Soldier command sgt maj Eric f Cooke who died in combat on Christmas eve since returning from Iraq in july 2004 the unit has served As us army Europe immediate reaction Force deploying to South Korea Romania Bulgaria ii this inactivation will be temporary because you cannot keep a Good unit Down like this f f col Darryl a Williams commander of 1st armoured divisions division artillery at the casing of the colors and the United kingdom for train ing exercises when its members we rent abroad they were train ing Here in Germany the Job kept them Busy but it also kept them out of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan which Many troops were eager to experience a lot of the soldiers yeah they wanted a combat Patch said sol 1st class Tony Newburey they wanted a combat tour with this Squadron and a lot of that has to do with the unit s history the history of the us army in Budinger is another Story for the past 62 years soldiers have walked the streets Here As neigh Bors becoming Defato citizens sharing Christmas thanksgiving Fasching and other celebrations before Squadron members deployed to Iraq in 2003 they slogged through floods with the townsfolk sandbagging the historic parts of the town from rising water now if 11 be just us Here said Maurice Roberts a us army Veteran who settled in the town after serving Here with another cavalry unit in the 1960s Hes one of about a dozen former us soldiers including a couple Rean War vets and a world War n vet whole settled in the Valley Over the years Roberts stayed for a number of reasons the German girl he met is one Mckenna summed up the rest of it Best i have been stationed in Many places during the last 18 years and i can Tell you that no other City in the world cares More about their us army units than the City of Budinger As a last Hurrah the City is throwing a going away party for the Squadron a unit of about 600 soldiers the first weekend in May sixty two years is a Long time together and we will always re member the kindness of the City of Budinger Mckenna said email Matt Mil Ham at Matt and stripes it co Matthew Mckenna commander of the 1st Squadron 1st cavalry regiment walks across the Parade Field to participate in the Flag casing at his units inactivation ceremony tuesday at Armstrong Barracks in Budinger Germany