Commandant wants Marines in the fight in Afghanistan

CBS:

The Commandant of the U.S. Marine Corps says it's "high time" his troops leave Iraq and take their battle skills to Afghanistan.

"We are a fighting machine," Gen. James Conway tells CBS News, and the fight is now in Afghanistan.

On a whirlwind holiday visit to remote bases in Iraq and Afghanistan, Gen. Conway assessed the situation on the ground. He has made no secret of the fact he believes U.S. Marines would be better suited to the challenges in Afghanistan.

Their role in Iraq, he says, has been reduced to "nation building." In Anbar province, once the most dangerous province in Iraq, the violence has fallen to such low levels, Marines are working with the government on civil services.

"That’s not what we do," Conway told Marines in Afghanistan. "Where there’s a fight, that’s where the Marine Corps is needed."

"If we track the number of foreign fighters into Iraq it’s not nearly what it used to be," he said. "Similarly, there’s a real up-tick of what we identify as foreign fighters in Pakistan moving over into Afghanistan. We’re going to be here for a while."

At each "town hall" meeting at camps and bases decorated for the holidays, Conway told the Marines he expects a substantial buildup in Afghanistan in the months ahead, but only if there is a drawdown in Iraq.

"We're not going to try to do both. Whatever we send to Afghanistan must come as a result of a reduction in Iraq," he said. "When we come out of Iraq, we want to slam the door shut."

---

Listen to Cami McCormick's report from Afghanistan on troop levels
Listen to Cami McCormick's extended interview with Gen. James Conway

---

There are currently more than 20,000 Marines in Iraq. And Conway would like to send as many as 10,000 to Afghanistan, where currently only a few thousand are on the ground.

Even if the deployment is approved in the coming weeks, a buildup of that magnitude would take months, and Conway is anxious to get started. His Marines are just as anxious. Many of them ask their commandant when they might be re-deployed.

...

Conway has been trying to get his Marines into Afghanistan for months and it looks like he is finally going to get his wishes. The Marines already there have put the Taliban on their heels in several operations. In one of the most recent a patrol of about 30 Marines took on a village full of Taliban killing around 40 and chasing the rest of them out of town. It turned out to be a high level Taliban meeting that may not have been discovered if the Marines had not come under fire. One Marine sharp shooter acount for about 20 of the Taliban KIAs.

By all means get the Marines in the fight and let them destroy Taliban operations in their area. Props to CBS for coverage of the Marines.