Media Brief 4 FEB 91

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chemical, bioi4gicai is our NBC equipment. *fl~e common gas mask, our c1~emjcai suils pr6vlde
enormous protection for the soldier and Marine in the field that is fiνting the Iraqis, So there Is an
inhcrent protection built in in the way we have trained arid the way We fight. Certainly. there are
ways wo have of responding to tlie effects of chemical and biological Weapon Systems1 and that's In
the medical chain. I would prefer to go no farther than that, but we liave been protecting our
soldiem1 sailors, and Marines.

Q: This is not based on any new information that the Bfltish or...
A: No, there's nothing new that I know of.

Q: Those chemical suits have a cer~ life. A~ you resupplying the ttoops now? A~ there
enough supplies to adequately...
A: Ycs we have. I know there's beeti talk of chemical suits good for 22 days, but you have
to keep In mind that it doesn't So froni 100 percent on day 22 down to day zero on day 23
there~s a resIdual capability of tha~ chemical sui~ Pius, we issue ead) one of our Servicemen and
women two suits --so right in there you've Sot 44 days of perfect protection. We also have a
supply system that continues to resupply those suits. So we have no problem with IrrOviding chemical
suits to our troops in the field.

Q: Within the constraints of the ground rules, can you outline a little bit for us how the
terrorist threat has changed since Operation Desert~St1orm started, and what measures are being taken
to thwart any efforts that might be taken by terronsts against U.S. forces or coalition forces here in
Saudi Arabia?
A: If you go back to the start otDesert Shield, of course we're in Desert Storm right now,
I think we would all -- and I only observe this from reports throughout the world -- that there is,
one would say, some increase In terrorist activity. Dut I have not seem vety much in the theater, in
the Ouif. of course the flddab one is one that if you call it a terrorist activity, that's one of few4
In terms of our procedures we arc, as you would expect, Just like you prepare militarily1 we are
preparing for the possibility of terrorist attack on our troops. I woald prefcr not to describe
exactly the procedwes. I can guarantee you, it is a high priority because we do present vulnerable
targets, We do everything we can to reduce vulnerabUity and make sure that the individual serviceman
is tuned to the fact that he is never totally safe. I thiilk there's been good training. I think we know
how to respond to terrorist attacks. Without going into de(ails and I guess jcopardizing our
procedures. we're comfortable that we're doing everything we possibly can to eliminate that as a
threat to our forces In the theater.

Q: General, a non~rnbat question here. Senator Nancy Kassebaum and others have gotten up
in the Oongrcss and complained that the serviccmen here in Operation Desert Storm aren't getting
their `nail -- they're Setting constituents at home saying we wrote to soldiers and t~ey're not getting
their mail. Is anything being done in theater to address tl'at7
A: Then obviously is, and you have to keep in mind, we have, I thinic the statistics are
Something like 300 tons of mail a day. if I could do some 8th grade calculation I'd tell you how
much mail it is per man. ~Ve have a very mobile battlefield, and as you would expect. our, ~ro()ps are
moving around a lot, for good reason both tactical reasons, and to make sure they don t present
stationary targets, 1 will be quick to confess that tile mail does not always go in a straight Une to
La1~ce Corporal Jones. So there ait some dela~s that tend to have been, pefl)aps. lengthened a little
bit by the dynamics of the battlefield, but there is nothing more sacreti to the man in the field and the
woman in~t!'e fleld than mall -- I can gi'araniee you from the top on down from General