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Old 10-16-2018, 10:07 AM
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Arrow Abrams says farewell to Forces Command to be top US military commander in S. Korea

Abrams says farewell to Forces Command to be top US military commander in S. Korea
By DREW BROOKS | The Fayetteville Observer | Published: October 16, 2018
Re: https://www.stripes.com/news/abrams-...korea-1.552056

Photo link: https://www.stripes.com/polopoly_fs/..._900/image.JPG

FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. (Tribune News Service) — Gen. Robert B. Abrams hasn’t changed his routine in the three years he has led U.S. Army Forces Command.

On most mornings, the general starts with a workout at 6. That won’t change Tuesday, when he begins his final day as commanding general of the Army’s largest command.

Abrams, who will relinquish command at a ceremony on Fort Bragg, will leave an organization that is much improved over what he inherited in 2015. Crippled by tight budgets, sequestration and the lingering effects of a government shutdown, the Army was facing a crisis.

But with renewed focus and budget stability, Abrams said, the force is now at a high-water mark for readiness.

That has been largely fueled by Forces Command, which is tasked with preparing approximately 800,000 active-duty, National Guard and Reserve soldiers for combatant commanders around the world.

“It’s a huge turnover,” the general told The Fayetteville Observer in an interview Monday. “We’ve been steadily digging out of that hole.”

Abrams was confirmed last week to serve as the next commander of U.S. Forces Korea. In that role, he will immediately benefit from the Army’s improved readiness posture.

The command includes 28,500 soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines — including many rotational forces that belong to Forces Command.

With his time in command at Fort Bragg running out, Abrams reflected on the past several years, the command’s successes and his relationship with the community.

The general took command in August 2015, just before the start of a new fiscal year.

“There was one (brigade combat team) in the Army that was at our highest level of readiness and maybe a couple of division headquarters,” Abrams recalled.

At the same time, the Army had begun a shift from training for counterinsurgency operations — like those that have dominated the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq — to preparing for large-scale contingency operations.

Funding was “less than adequate” and erratic, fueled by the inability of Congress to approve an appropriations bill on time.

Abrams likened it to trying to run a household when your paycheck arrives on different days and at different amounts each time.

“It’s a miracle that we made as much progress as we did,” he said.

Three years later, Abrams said there has been steady improvement across the force. More units are considered at the highest levels of readiness, he said. And training has become more complex for brigade combat teams and aviation brigades.

The force is healthier, too.

In 2015, more than 17 percent of Forces Command was unable to deploy due to medical issues. Today, that number is just over 8 percent and dropping.

“There’s been a dramatic improvement in our readiness,” Abrams said. “We’re more fit and more ready.”

For the first time in recent history, the government began the 2019 budget year with an appropriations bill.

Abrams said he can’t underscore the importance of consistent and predictable funding for the Department of Defense.

He also credited the command’s success with the efforts of the headquarters’ relatively small force of 800 personnel, mostly civilians.

“They are unsung heroes for what they do for the Army every single day,” he said.

Working at Forces Command isn’t a glamorous job, Abrams said. It requires hard work and a daily grind — the benefits of which are not always immediately obvious.

Abrams said the command’s work in recent years has been incredibly rewarding, especially as he has traveled to meet with soldiers and leaders from across the force.

It won’t be easy to say goodbye to the Forces Command staff and the leaders who will carry on after he relinquishes command, Lt. Gen. Laura Richardson and Command Sgt. Maj. Michael A. Grinston.

Richardson will serve as acting commander until Congress approves Abrams’ replacement.

The general said Richardson and Grinston — no one is more professional than Grinston, Abrams said — will continue to do great things with the command.

In the coming days, Abrams and his wife, Connie, will make the move across the Pacific.

The family has never been stationed in South Korea. But they are ready for the move, the general said.

“It’s going to be exciting,” he said. “The Korean people are wonderful. We have a great relationship with them. And it’s a very, very important mission.”

In South Korea, Abrams will be the top U.S. military commander.

For now, he said his priorities will mirror his predecessors’, which are:

• Sustain and strengthen the alliance;

• Maintain the armistice. Be ready to “fight tonight” and deter and defeat aggression;

• Transform the alliance;

• Sustain the force and enhance the team.

Abrams had never been assigned to Fort Bragg prior to taking command in 2015. Looking back, he said the post and surrounding community have lived up to high expectations.

“It’s a great place to serve,” he said, “and an unbelievably supportive community.”

North Carolinians have been gracious and welcoming, the general added — so much so that he and his wife have set out roots in the Tar Heel State.

“We really like North Carolina,” Abrams said. “Heck, I bought a house in North Carolina.”

“When it comes time to retire,” he added. “We’ll come back here at least initially.”
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O Almighty Lord God, who neither slumberest nor sleepest; Protect and assist, we beseech thee, all those who at home or abroad, by land, by sea, or in the air, are serving this country, that they, being armed with thy defence, may be preserved evermore in all perils; and being filled with wisdom and girded with strength, may do their duty to thy honour and glory; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

"IN GOD WE TRUST"
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