Word: 82nd
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: all
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
Just after dawn last Friday, 800 American soldiers, their faces stained brown and green with camouflage paint, parachuted onto a dry cow pasture in central Honduras. The 82nd Airborne Division paratroopers formed a defensive ^ perimeter, crouching in combat positions. But instead of an enemy force, they faced an army of photographers and cameramen -- a fitting confrontation for a troop deployment that was more media event than military action...
...Briggs relayed a letter from Azcona to the White House requesting assistance. The letter did not specifically mention troops, but Azcona later confirmed in a news conference that he had orally asked for this option. Reagan then gave the go-ahead to send four battalions -- two each from the 82nd Airborne, based at Fort Bragg, N.C., and the 7th Infantry Division, based at Fort Ord, Calif...
...recent decision to deploy 5000 paratroopers of the 82nd Airborne in Honduras in response to the Nicaraguan invasion highlights these problems. At hearings before the Senate last week, Secretary of State George Shultz said, "It's important that people know the United States will fight." The Administration properly used military force in Honduras to bolster Tegucigalpa's morale and to deter further Nicaraguan incursions across the border. In essence, we stuck out the American chin and dared the Sandinistas to hit us--and it worked, as they withdrew this week without destroying the main contra supply cache...
...Democrats' attack on the deployment put American servicemen in greater danger by calling into question the likelihood that military force would ever be used--even to defend themselves. Indeed, the administration itself had to equivocate on the 82nd Airborne's mission because of pressure from a Congress duped by Daniel Ortega's promise to adhere to the Arias peace plan. Capitol Hill statements reduced the deterrent effect of the troops and displayed a wide dissension in American policy for all to see--especially Managua, Havana, and Moscow...
Sending four battalions of the 82nd Airborne Division and 7th Light Infantry to Honduras brought the U.S. military presence in Honduras to more than 6000 men. They are engaged in joint exercises with the Hondurans but away from the border combat area...