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Special Report

Southwest Asia Visit / USO Tour
  DECEMBER 2009

Top Stories

Mullen Updates, Changes
Joint Guidance

WASHINGTON, Dec. 21, 2009 – The Afghanistan-Pakistan strategy takes primacy in the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff’s guidance for 2010. Navy Adm. Mike Mullen signed the guidance, which goes to members of the Joint Staff and informs the joint force, on his plane after finishing a trip to Afghanistan, Pakistan and Iraq. Story

Mullen Assesses Strategy During Trip to Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan

TALIL, Iraq, Dec. 18, 2009 – Navy Adm. Mike Mullen said his trip to Afghanistan, Pakistan and Iraq has given him an opportunity to assess changes in strategy and meet the men and women who will carry out that strategy. Story

Teamwork Key to Iraqi
Security, Mullen Says

TALIL, Iraq, Dec. 18, 2009 – The teamwork between Iraqi and American security forces is behind the vast improvements in Iraq, Navy Adm. Mike Mullen said here. Story

Hill, Odierno Discuss Iraq
Election, Relations With Iran

TALIL, Iraq, Dec. 18, 2009 – Iraq “is not going to be pushed around” by Iran, the U.S. Ambassador to Iraq Christopher Hill said here. Story

Mullen Points Out Progress in Iraq

TALIL, Iraq, Dec. 18, 2009 – Iraq has made remarkable progress in a short while, said the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff during a news conference in Talil, Iraq. Story

Mullen Discusses
Elections, Logistics in Iraq

BASRA, Iraq, Dec. 18, 2009 – Discussions about upcoming elections and the withdrawal of American troops are highlighting Navy Adm. Mike Mullen’s visit to Iraq. Story

Mullen: Results, Not Talk
Needed in Afghanistan

ABOARD AN AIR FORCE C-17, Dec. 18, 2009 – Results, not talk, are what’s important in Afghanistan now, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said while en route to Iraq after visiting Afghanistan. Story

Mullen Praises Stryker
Soldiers in Afghanistan

FORWARD OPERATING BASE FRONTENAC, Afghanistan, Dec. 18, 2009 – During a trip to Afghanistan, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff praised the soldiers of the 1st Battalion, 17th Infantry, for their service in Kandahar province, saying the unit has made a difference. Story

Mullen Praises Stryker
Soldiers in Afghanistan

FORWARD OPERATING BASE FRONTENAC, Afghanistan, Dec. 18, 2009 – During a trip to Afghanistan, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff praised the soldiers of the 1st Battalion, 17th Infantry, for their service in Kandahar province, saying the unit has made a difference. Story

Afghan Town’s Progress
Provides Encouragement

NAWA, Afghanistan, Dec. 18, 2009 – The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff toured Nawa, Afghanistan, witnessing a transformation in security and prosperity that did not exist when U.S. Marines first deployed there in July. Story

Mullen Tours Reclaimed
Pakistani Province

KANDAHAR, Afghanistan, Dec. 16, 2009 – The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff got a first-hand look at Taliban tactics during a tour of Pakistan’s Swat province. Story

Mullen Stresses Building
U.S.-Pakistan Trust

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan, Dec. 15, 2009 – The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff told the students of Pakistan’s National Defense University that he is not interested in revisiting the history between Pakistan and the United States. Story

Mullen Tours Bases,
Outposts in Afghanistan

BAGRAM AIRFIELD, Afghanistan, Dec. 15, 2009 – The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff met with U.S, NATO and Afghan forces based throughout Afghanistan’s Regional Command East. Story

Afghan Insurgency More
Pervasive, Mullen Says

KABUL, Dec. 14, 2009 – The insurgency in Afghanistan has become more pervasive, more sophisticated and more violent, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said in Kabul. Story

General Wants Troops Ready for ‘Complex Human Terrain’

KABUL, Dec. 14, 2009 - U.S. troops need to be prepared to operate in a “complex human terrain” when they arrive in Afghanistan, the commander of International Security Assistance Force Joint Command said in Kabul. Story

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