General backs U.S. capability

The U.S. Army's top general expressed confidence in the Pentagon's war plan after meeting here with senior commanders and said he had "no question" about the combat capability of U.S. land forces if President Bush orders an invasion of Iraq.

But Gen. Eric Shinseki, the Army's chief of staff, cautioned that there would be unknowns in any military campaign, including Iraq's possible use of chemical weapons, and said he is focused on ensuring that logistics capabilities exist to sustain Army forces on the battlefield for as long as necessary.

"These are not overconfident commanders, but when you win the last outing in a very short, decisive outcome, you can euphorically celebrate and miss some subtle lessons," he said.

"The last Desert Storm (in 1991) really didn't go long enough to stretch our logistics. Those of us who have lived our lives in heavy forces understand that really it's logistics that give you that strike capability, and you have to pay attention to it."

Shinseki, a decorated Vietnam War combat veteran, said the Army has greatly improved its defences against chemical and biological attack and trained hard to guard against those threats.

"In an environment like that, we'll disperse, and once we get moving, we'll keep moving," he said. "It is a concern, but there are ways of mitigating the impacts. If you get hit, you have ways of protecting yourself, of decontaminating yourself."

Asked whether he thought Iraqi President Saddam Hussain would order a chemical attack, Shinseki said: "If he does, it will settle this issue about whether he has them or not."

Another unknown is whether a war with Iraq will ultimately involve bloody urban warfare in Baghdad. "An urban fight is always expensive, because it forces you into that short-distance fight," he said.

"The advantage of our technology is to see deep and strike deep. It's hard to know and see what you want to know and see. If he goes in there, we'll get after him and do some hard work. We'll get to him."

Maj. Gen. William Webster, who commanded a brigade for Shinseki in the 1st Cavalry - echoed Shinseki's concern about the unknown. "I think we're in pretty good shape to do whatever mission we're asked to do," Webster said.

"We think that Saddam is not going to give himself up, so it's probably going to be to take down the regime. The things we were talking about with the commanding general involved the unexpected. This is a very unpredictable guy."

Webster said he expected Saddam to use chemical or biological weapons against U.S. troops. "We think he's got the ability, he's got the weapons," he said.

"We're not sure if he can put the two together in a range that will allow him to hit us from a long distance. But I think he's also got the ability to get a whole bunch of terrorists stirred up in the region so that they can do something close in," such as suicide bombings or drive-by shootings.