45th Playing Vital Role in Afghanistan

Press Release

U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.), a senior member of the Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC), returned yesterday from a Congressional Delegation trip that included a stop to visit Oklahoma troops in Afghanistan. August was the deadliest month for US forces since the war in Afghanistan began in 2001, and since being deployed in late July, the 45th IBCT has lost 12 soldiers.

Inhofe visited Oklahoma 45th troops at Forward Operating Base (FOB) Gamberi and Bagram Air Base. Improvised Explosive Devises (IEDs) remain a critical threat to the 45th. Inhofe personally delivered the first FIDO NXT to Afghanistan. The FIDO NXT provides expanded detection capabilities to include homemade explosives, and is made in Stillwater, Okla by ICx Nomadics (now owned by FLIR). Also on the trip, which included stops in Liberia, Senegal, Ethiopia, and South Sudan, were U.S. Sen. John Boozman (R-Ark.) and U.S. Rep. Randy Neugebauer (R-TX-19).

"The 45th is playing a vital role in Afghanistan as they fight to defeat terrorist networks," Inhofe said. "The area where they are located in eastern Afghanistan has seen some of the heaviest fighting, because it is one of the last strongholds for the insurgency which includes members of the Taliban, the Haqanni network, and the HIG militant group. Some of the locations our Soldiers are operating in have not seen U.S. or Coalition forces in over eight years."

Inhofe continued, "Oklahomans can be proud of our men and women deployed to Afghanistan. Our Soldiers are in a tough fight but they are upbeat. They are fighting and defeating the enemy every day, and they are gradually eliminating the remaining areas of insurgent control in eastern Afghanistan. The losses they have experienced have been tragic and have been felt across the great State of Oklahoma, but they did not die in vain. Their efforts will lead to a stable Afghanistan and prevent insurgents from gaining a safe haven. As Ambassador Ryan Crocker told us, if we do not succeed in Afghanistan, it will become a base from which to launch another 9/11.

"It is clear that the deadlines set by the Obama Administration continue to negatively impact operations, and the decrease of troops during the peak of the fighting season has increased risk. Nevertheless, our troops are fighting hard and winning. We must continue to give them our full support -- those who are deployed, the families back home and the loved ones of those who have given the ultimate sacrifice."

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