Open Letter to the Senate re: Landmines

16 June 1998

Hon. Trent Lott
Majority Leader
United States Senate
Washington, D.C. 20510

Dear Senator Lott:

We understand that the Senate may shortly be asked to consider an amendment to the FY 1999 Defense Authorization bill that would have the effect of creating a statutory requirement for the U.S. military to cease all use of anti-personnel landmines (APLs) by 2006, if not before. In our professional opinion as former senior commanders of American ground forces, such a decision would likely translate into the needless and unjustifiable death of many of this country’s combat personnel — and possibly jeopardize our forces’ ability to prevail on the battlefield.

As you may know, we were among the twenty-four retired four-star general officers who expressed to President Clinton our concerns about such an initiative last summer. In an open letter to the President dated July 21, 1997, we wrote: "In our experience, [the] responsible use of APLs is not only consistent with the Nation’s humanitarian responsibilities; it is indispensable to the safety of our troops in many combat and peacekeeping situations." The open letter went on to note that:

"Studies suggest that U.S./allied casualties may be increased by as much as 35% if self-destructing mines are unavailable — particularly in the ‘halting phase’ of operations against aggressors. Such a cost is especially unsupportable since the type of mines utilized by U.S. forces and the manner in which they are employed by those forces do not contribute to the humanitarian problem that impels diplomatic and legislative initiatives to ban APLs.

 

"Unfortunately, a ban on future deployments of APLs will in no way diminish the danger posed by tens of millions of ‘dumb’ landmines that have been irresponsibly sown where they will inflict terror and devastation on civilian populations. Detecting and clearing such mines should continue to receive urgent attention from our government and others. The unverifiability and unenforceability of a ban on production of such devices, however, virtually ensures that this practice will continue in the future. Only the U.S. military — and those of other law-abiding nations — will be denied a means, through the use of marked and monitored minefields, of reducing the costs and increasing the probability of victory in future conflicts." (Emphasis added.)

We were deeply troubled to learn that President Clinton has recently agreed to impose constraints on and, within a few years, to ban outright the use of even self-destructing anti-personnel landmines. This is all the more remarkable given the opposition previously expressed by the Joint Chiefs of Staff and the Nation’s Combatant Commanders to such limitations and President Clinton’s own statement of September 17, 1997 when he announced his opposition to the Ottawa treaty banning APLs, declaring:

"As Commander-in-Chief, I will not send our soldiers to defend the freedom of our people and the freedom of others without doing everything we can to make them as secure as possible….There is a line that I simply cannot cross, and that line is the safety and security of our men and women in uniform."

 

We urge you and your colleagues to reject any legislative initiative that would have the effect of crossing the line — whether by endorsing new "operational concepts" (read, accepting more U.S. casualties) or other measures — that would jeopardize the safety and security of our men and women in uniform by impinging upon the U.S. military’s ability to make responsible use of self-destructing/self-deactivating anti-personnel landmines and long-duration APLs in Korea.

Sincerely,

Robert H. Barrow
General, U.S. Marine Corps (Ret.)
Former Commandant

Raymond G. Davis
General, U.S. Marine Corps (Ret.)
Former Assistant Commandant and Medal of Honor Recipient (Korea)

Michael S. Davison
General, United States Army (Ret.)
Former Commander-in-Chief, U.S. Army, Europe

John W. Foss
General, United States Army (Ret.)
Commanding General, U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command

Alexander M. Haig, Jr.
General, United States Army (Ret.)
Former Supreme Allied Commander, Europe
Former Secretary of State

P.X. Kelley
General, U.S. Marine Corps (Ret.)
Former Commandant

Frederick J. Kroesen
General, United States Army (Ret.)
Former Commander-in-Chief, U.S. Army, Europe

Carl E. Mundy
General, U.S. Marine Corps (Ret.)
Former Commandant

Robert W. RisCassi
General, United States Army (Ret.)
Former Vice Chief of Staff

Donn A. Starry
General, United States Army (Ret.)
Former Commanding General, U.S. Army Readiness Command

Gordon R. Sullivan
General, United States Army (Ret.)
Former Chief of Staff

Louis C. Wagner, Jr.
General, United States Army (Ret.)
Former Commanding General, Army Materiel Command

Joseph J. Went
General, U.S. Marine Corps (Ret.)
Former Assistant Commandant

Louis H. Wilson
General, U.S. Marine Corps (Ret.)
Former Commandant and Medal of Honor Recipient (World War II)