Pentagon Deploying More Ships, Forces to Latin America

[Judi Lynn]

Source: Voice of America News


By Carla Babb
March 11, 2020 07:59 PM

PENTAGON - U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) plans to increase U.S. military presence in the Western Hemisphere while taking on funding cuts to partner security programs that help Latin American partners counter drug cartels.

In written testimony Wednesday, SOUTHCOM commander Admiral Craig Faller said the U.S. “only enabled the successful interdiction of about 9% of known drug movement” recently in Latin America and the Caribbean.

Faller told the House Armed Services Committee that he'd need significant assets to drastically improve that number, including dozens of ships.

“Recognizing these complex challenges in our neighborhood, we will see an increase in U.S. military presence in the hemisphere,” Faller said, speaking to reporters at the Pentagon after the briefing.


Read more: https://www.voanews.com/usa/pentagon-deploying-more-ships-forces-latin-america

[progree]

1. Smart move -- they're getting the hell out of Dodge. n/t

[C_U_L8R]

2. Sniffles is out of marching powder.

[sandensea]

9. +1

And, as if on cue, Colombia's yayo production rose 9% last year - to a record of nearly 1,000 tons.

This is around 10 times what it was when Plan Colombia was launched.

[Demonaut]

3. moving them away from the US makes us more vulnerable to Russia

[ancianita]

4. We always make ourselves look more vulnerable than we really are. The Navy isn't like this CiC. It's

pretty sure we can spare these ships headed south.

Our utilities are the most fragile right now. Any utility failure could exponentially increase the pandemic death toll.

[Demonaut]

5. no, we can't spare them

[atreides1]

7. Uh huh

Isn't this the same Navy that's getting rid of some LCS ships, one that's only 6 years old, because the LCS program is a utter and complete failure???

The main reason why there's only a 9% interdiction success rate, isn't due to lack of assets...it's because the cartels are getting smarter, and very likely shipping their product through our major ports. Who knows, perhaps some shipping magnates have under the table deals, and are lending a hand!!!

Doesn't Elaine Chou, current Secretary of Transportation, have connections to her family shipping company...just wondering if there could be a connection?

[ancianita]

8. Yes.

There very well could be that very connection. Among others. I'm thinking the Deripaska connection in Moscow Mitchland. And so a Russian connection. Russian dicktated orders to the CiC.

That doesn't mean that the Pentagon can't outsmart its paymaster.

It also doesn't mean that since we get globalist shipping, ports are not first lines of defense against stealth global moves on us. Navy moves out to stop shipments where they could start. Port security and what's left of federal security can stop the unloading of what's already made landfall.

[hack89]

11. Russia does not pose a military threat to the US mainland

with the exception of their nuclear tipped ICBMs. They have no abilty to project significant miltary power over the Atlantic.

[olddad65]

6. Our troops and our tax dollars will be protecting Russia's interests in that region.

Trump is Putin’s obedient lap dog.

[soryang]

10. This policy is subject to some severe constraints presently

It’s really somewhat foolish to be planning for interdictions at sea or ports with people you don’t know given the current situation. Are you really going to board ships and detain people? Jeopardize your entire crew? Your home naval stations?