THERE IS GENERAL AGREEMENT THAT WHILE THE INITIAL BLITZKRIEG WAS SATISFACTORY, in its post-hostilities phase Iraq was the worst-planned U.S. military operation in American history. Although we are now climbing back from disaster, for four years our nation and its forces have suffered from the grievous mistakes in post-hostilities planning that were made in 2002 and 2003.

http://www.armedforcesjournal.com/2008/02/3364223

LTG Cushman's comments are insightful and stimulating, and in fact I have spoken with him and met with him several times over the last year or so. I will pass, for the moment, responding directly to him in the interest of encouraging AFJ readers to look for a book on this very subject that is due out in a few months. The U.S. Army Combat Studies Institute at Fort Leavenworth, KS will publish a history of Operation IRAQI FREEDOM covering the 18 months following the invasion of Iraq. The book is titled, "ON POINT II: Transition to a New Campaign, The U.S. Army in Operation IRAQI FREEDOM, May 2003 to January 2005." ON POINT II will follow where the previous book, ON POINT, left off at the end of April 2003.

The book is a comprehensive and honest account of the Army's operations in Iraq during this period. It is not a primarily book about national strategy, for our charter is to publish tactical and operational histories, but we cover many of the issues raised by LTG Cushman since they bear so directly on this period of the war. I would say that readers of AFJ will find the authors of ON POINT II to be in agreement with LTG Cushman on some issues, while we may disagree with him on some others. We are in the final editing and approval stages right now, and barring any unexpected delays, the book should be out in June 2008.

ON POINT II will be the first of a multi-volume series of contemporary histories of the US Army in the GWOT. We are well aware that these "first cut" histories will not be the final word and that they will be supplanted in future years - for example, by the Center of Military History when it writes the official Army history. But we believe it is important to draw insights now for the Army's internal use, and to tell the Army story to the American people in a way that has not yet been done in the popular media. We have written the first draft of the first volume of the Operation ENDURING FREEDOM series; it should be released in early 2009. We are currently researching and writing ON POINT III, which will cover Operation IRAQI FREEDOM from Feb 2005 up to the start of "the surge" in early 2007.

We hope that this series of books, originated by the TRADOC Commander, will be another means for the Army to learn from its past to be prepared for its future.

Colonel Timothy Reese, Director,
Combat Studies Institute
U.S. Army Combined Arms Center
Fort Leavenworth, KS