WASHINGTON, February 26, 1997 (GulfLINK) Bernard Rostker, new head of the Pentagon effort to tackle Gulf War illnesses, has met with representatives of the major veterans and military service organizations to outline his action program.

He met with the groups first in November, when he was named to take over the assignment. Then, he met with them in December to provide a display and explanation of the chemical detection equipment currently in service.

In a third meeting, held January 30, Rostker gave representatives of 10 groups a description of how he has structured the work of the new office he has organized. The representatives were also given a tour of the new offices, for which construction is nearly complete. The new offices are located in the Skyline Towers, a few miles from the Pentagon in northern Virginia.

The organizations attending the January briefing were: Enlisted Association of the National Guard; Disabled American Veterans; Veterans of Foreign Wars; Reserve Officers Association; National Military Families Association; Association of the U.S. Army; Non-Commissioned Officers Association; Naval Reserve Association; Vietnam Veterans of America and the National Gulf War Resource Center.