Sec. 1256. Sense of Congress on the stationing of United States forces in Europe
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Congress finds the following: During the past several years, over 700 kinetic terror incidents have occurred in the U.S. European Command (EUCOM) area of operations. Rising tensions in the region due to unemployment, fiscal insolvency, ethnic strife, hegemonic desires, and terrorism, pose risks to the security and stability of Europe. Arab Spring uprisings in Middle Eastern and North African countries, including the Republic of Mali, the Arab Republic of Egypt, Libya, and the Syrian Arab Republic (Syria), have presented emerging strategic challenges that present significant implications for regional stability, the security of the State of Israel (Israel), and the national security interests of the United States and many European allies.
U.S. Africa Command does not have formally assigned Army or Marine Corps units assigned to it and it continues to share Air Force and Navy component commands with EUCOM. Consequently, United States forces stationed in Europe have been deployed to support contingencies associated with the Arab Spring in North Africa. The Commander of U.S. European Command is responsible for developing operational plans for the defense of Israel. Moreover, forces stationed in Europe would be deployed to defend Israel in the event of such a contingency.
Regimes, including the Islamic Republic of Iran and Syria, continue efforts to procure, develop, and proliferate advanced ballistic missile technologies that pose a serious threat to United States forces and installations in the theater, as well as to the territory, populations, and forces of Israel and European allies. United States missile defense capabilities in Europe seek to mitigate these threats. Violent extremist organizations, including Kongra-Gel, al Qaida, Lebanese Hizballah, and Iranian Qods Force, may utilize Europe as an important venue for recruitment, logistical support, financing, and the targeting of the United States and Western interests.
Congress has lacked sufficient data to compare the strategic benefits and the costs associated with permanently stationing forces in Europe. The Government Accountability Office
(GAO)has found that the combatant commands do not completely and consistently report cost data in their theater posture plans. In particular, GAO reported in February 2011 that EUCOM lacks comprehensive cost data in its theater posture plans and therefore decision makers lack critical information that could be used to make fully informed posture decisions. Additionally, in June 2012, GAO found that the Department of Defense has taken steps to align posture initiatives with strategy and cost, but continues to lack comprehensive and consistent cost estimates of initiatives. The Department of Defense has reported that the cost of permanently stationing forces in the United States rather than overseas is often offset by such factors as increased rotational costs. It is the sense of Congress that— an enduring United States presence and engagement across Europe and Eurasia provides the critical access and infrastructure necessary to accomplish United States strategic priorities, expand United States global reach to Europe, Eurasia, the Middle East, Africa, as well as the Mediterranean and Atlantic Oceans, and facilitates a rapid United States response for complex contingencies; the United States continues to have an interest in supporting the stability and security of Europe, especially in a dynamic and challenging global security environment; forward-stationed active duty service members, forward-deployed rotational units, and reserve forces assigned to U.S. European Command remain essential for United States planning, logistics, and operations in support of U.S. Central Command, U.S. Africa Command, U.S. Transportation Command, U.S. Special Operations Command, and U.S. Strategic Command, as well as fulfilling commitments under Article V of the North Atlantic Charter; in light of the benefits associated with defense of the homeland forward and strategic access, as well as the potential for rotational deployments to increase cost to the Department of Defense, the Department of Defense should implement the recommendations of the Government Accountability Office with regard to improved cost estimation to enable informed force posture decisions prior to making any further significant changes to the United States force posture in Europe that could increase risk for the United States; and the Secretary of Defense should keep Congress fully and currently informed regarding the requirements of the United States force posture in Europe and the costs associated with maintaining such force.