The european army that ?? ?? ??has never been in a fight ever has a reputation for being slow. But as time marches on it becomes clear to say the least, that is not true.
A few weeks after the war began, in 1943, there were about 300,000 troops in Europe. In comparison, the US Army today has over 700,000 soldiers in service – many of them still deployed in Afghanistan.
As of 2006, there were about 515,000 active and reserve US military troops, or around 10% of the entire US population of 8.7 mm???illion. In the words of retired colonel David Korten, there are more than 40 times as many active US troops in Iraq as there were in Italy before the war, before World War II.
At this current rate, by 2025 there will be approximately 1.3% of the US military in a “war zone” – a situation in which any US military intervention is likely to increase – roughly comparable to today.
The US military is growing in size, but it is not shrinking.
The US has had a large presence in the region since the 1960s, and is now capable of conducting large-scale joint missions.
On a personal level, it is easy to get lost in all the history that comes with occupying someone else’s territory. If we had been there a few decades ago, or even five to ten years ago, there would not have been the debate about ?? ???what role the US should play in the world.
On many levels, the EU’s current membership offers the US and other major nations an opportunity to re-set the balance of power on the world stage.