Saturday, April 16, 2016

Congressman Seth Moulton Returns from Iraq, Middle East

. signed the pledge to preserve benefits promised to veterans and their families



  • Proud to do it. We can't go back on our promises to men and women who put their lives on the line for all of us.

  • US House Rep Seth Moulton's office  Tweeted the above today and issued the following earlier this month:



    Congressman Seth Moulton Returns from Iraq, Middle East

    April 6th, 2016

    Moulton joins Congressional Delegation to Oversee U.S. Efforts to Disable ISIS and Meet with Top Leaders

    Salem, MA – Congressman Seth Moulton (D-MA) returned from a week-long congressional delegation trip to the Middle East. The delegation travelled to Israel, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Iraq, and Spain to oversee U.S. efforts to destroy ISIS, discuss regional security threats with top military leaders, and meet with U.S. service members overseas.

    “This congressional delegation trip throughout the Middle East was an important opportunity for me to review our national defense capabilities firsthand as we work to defeat ISIS and other threats,” said Moulton. “We met with U.S. and foreign leaders in each country we visited and in doing so, we worked to strengthen strategic relationships with our regional allies. These partnerships are critical to protecting our service members and promoting stability in the Middle East.”

    “Most importantly,” Moulton continued. “We met with the soldiers, sailors, airmen, and Marines who carry out our policy everyday on the frontlines. The visit reaffirmed my view that our military is doing an excellent job in the fight against ISIS, but we do not have a long-term political plan to ensure the peace – and ensure that our military’s heroic efforts won’t be in vain.”

    In Israel, Moulton met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and visited several military sites to get an update on the country’s missile defense systems and joint missile defense efforts with the U.S. Moulton and the group also met with U.S. Ambassador to Israel Daniel Shapiro and members of the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF).

    In the United Arab Emirates (U.A.E.), the delegation reviewed U.S. efforts to strengthen cooperation among Arab Gulf states on missile defense. Moulton met with U.S. military leaders as well as a member of the U.A.E. Ministry of Defense, and toured Emirati missile defense sites.

    In Bahrain, Moulton met with U.S. Navy leadership and service members, including Naval personnel from Massachusetts, to discuss regional threats in the Middle East. During the visit, Moulton met service members aboard the USS Harry S. Truman, an aircraft carrier deployed in the Persian Gulf.

    In Iraq, the delegation met with U.S. and Iraqi military commanders, U.S. Ambassador to Iraq Stuart Jones, and service members stationed in Baghdad and Anbar. Moulton visited several military sites across Iraq and reviewed U.S. training efforts of Iraqi security forces.

    On the final stop of the congressional delegation, Moulton and the delegation toured Naval Station Rota in Spain. The delegation went on a U.S. Navy Aegis-class destroyer to observe its missile defense capabilities.

    Moulton was joined by Senator Joe Donnelly (D-IN), Congressmen Steve Israel (D-NY), Steve Lynch (D-MA), Tim Ryan (D-OH), and C.A. Dutch Ruppersberger (D-MD).

    To learn more about Congressman Moulton, visit www.moulton.house.gov, or find the Congressman on FacebookTwitter, or Instagram.
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