November 25-26 Washington DC to Islamabad, Pakistan

Senator Jack Reed of Rhode Island and I left Washington, DC, from Andrews Air Force Base on Tuesday, November 25. We carried very special cargo - over 3,500 letters to our troops serving in Afghanistan and Iraq from New York schoolchildren. During the previous week, my office had contacted schools all over the state to collect letters. The response from children around the state was amazing. We received boxes upon boxes of messages for our soldiers.

We were eager to talk to the troops and express our support, and got our first chance to do that early in the trip. At a late-night refueling stop at Shannon International Airport in Ireland, Senator Reed and I met a group of soldiers who were returning from leave and on their way back to Kuwait and Iraq. That meeting gave us the first of many chances to thank our troops for their service.

From Shannon, we flew directly to Islamabad, Pakistan, arriving more than 18 hours after our departure from Washington. We were briefed by our host, U.S. Ambassador to Pakistan, Nancy Powell, and the embassy staff, and looked forward to the next day.

November 27 - Thanksgiving in Afghanistan

Senator Reed and I left early in the morning from the Islamabad airport aboard a C-130 cargo plane. An hour and half later, we were at the U.S. Embassy in Kabul. It was a big day for the embassy, as it was also the day Zalmay Khalilzad, the new U.S. Ambassador to Afghanistan, assumed his post. As we awaited Ambassador Khalilzad's arrival, we toured the Embassy in Kabul and saw, among other things, the trailers that house the Embassy personnel. During the tour, I met several Marines protecting the embassy, including Corporal Adam Roche of Poughkeepsie, New York.

Following the tour, we were briefed by Ambassador Khalilzad and his team. We then met with a group of five Afghan women leaders to learn about the challenges that they face. Since my days as First Lady, the plight of Afghan women has been one of my top priorities. These courageous women leaders told me about their fears for their own security and the importance of ensuring the political participation of women in the Afghan political process.

As we departed, Senator Reed and I posed for a photo with embassy Marines and then proceeded to the Presidential palace in Kabul for a meeting with President Karzai. President Karzai has been an impressive leader for Afghanistan and, in our meeting, we pledged to do everything possible to support him.

Returning to the Kabul airport, we met Brigadier General (Promotable) Lloyd Austin, the commanding general of the 10th Mountain Division out of Fort Drum, New York. General Austin serves as the commander of the Combined Joint Task Force -180 in Afghanistan. Senator Reed and I then flew with General Austin in a Blackhawk helicopter from Kabul to Bagram Air Base - the General's headquarters in Afghanistan.

At Bagram Air Base, we were briefed on the current situation in Afghanistan from General Austin and his team. We heard first hand about some of the remarkable accomplishments of our troops in Afghanistan. And we relayed our support and our thanks.

We then proceeded to the Viper Dining Hall for the first of the day's two Thanksgiving dinners with troops. Seated at my table were troops from the 10th Mountain Division as well as troops who grew up in New York from other units. It was truly an honor and a privilege to celebrate Thanksgiving dinner with these brave men and women. We also delivered our first package of letters from New York schoolchildren to the soldiers.

After dinner, we took a picture with all the New York troops, and even saw Geraldo Rivera, who was also spending Thanksgiving in Bagram.

Mechanical difficulties delayed our departure for Kandahar. Once the C-130 aircraft was ready to go, General Austin, Senator Reed and I flew to the U.S. military base in Kandahar, Afghanistan, the home of the 2nd Brigade, 22nd Infantry of the 10th Mountain Division. There I joined 10th Mountain division soldiers and other soldiers from New York for my second Thanksgiving dinner of the day. Many of these troops had recently been in combat operations. Senator Reed and I expressed our deep appreciation for all that they are doing.

I was honored at the end of the evening when General Austin and a soldier from the 10th Mountain presented me with several gifts, including a history of Afghanistan and a commemorative coin. We delivered our second package of letters from New York schoolchildren to the Kandahar troops.

Our flight from Kandahar brought us to Islamabad in time for a midnight meeting with President Musharaff of Pakistan. After that meeting, our delegation flew for five hours to Kuwait City and arrived in time for a couple hours of sleep before departing to Baghdad.

November 28 - Visit to Baghdad

We woke up early to catch our C-130 flight into Baghdad International Airport. Much has been written about the "corkscrew" landings that planes are required to make in order to land in Baghdad. But our crew handled the landing with great skill. After landing, we were driven in a motorcade to Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) Headquarters, located in one of Saddam's former palaces. We were briefed by Ambassador L. Paul Bremer, the head of the CPA, and Lt. General Ricardo Sanchez, the commander of U.S. forces in Iraq.

After the briefing, I joined civilians and troops from New York for lunch in the CPA dining facility. We discussed the challenges that they face in Iraq. Their dedication and professionalism were quite evident.

Next we visited the 2d Brigade of the 82d Airborne Division, including the 325th Infantry Regiment, Senator Reed's old unit. We received a briefing from the Brigade commander, Colonel Fuller and then toured some of the troops' barracks. I also sat down with 82nd Airborne troops from New York, including Patrick Vedder, a fellow resident of Chappaqua. I heard first hand these troops' impressions of the situation in Iraq. I was struck by their commitment and dedication to serving our nation. We delivered our third package of New York schoolchildren's letters in Baghdad.

After our visit with the 82nd Airborne, Senator Reed and I traveled by motorcade to the convention center for additional meetings. We first met with representatives of international non-governmental organizations (NGOs), who are providing assistance to the Iraqi people, to hear about the challenges that they face. I then visited with several Iraqi women leaders to discuss greater protections for women's rights in Iraq.

Our motorcade then took Senator Reed and I back to the airport where we had dinner at the Bob Hope dining facility. I joined troops from New York and once again was privileged to share another meal with our troops in Iraq.

We departed Baghdad after dark. For security reasons our C-130 transport plane had to take off without lights, with the crew wearing night vision goggles. I was honored that the crew, commanded by Major Frank Amodeo, was part of the 914th Airlift Wing out of the Niagara Falls Air Reserve Station. They did an outstanding job flying us out under very difficult conditions.

November 29 - Visit to Kirkuk

The next morning, Senator Reed and I had breakfast with troops at Camp Wolverine, located near the Kuwait airport. Once again, I sat with soldiers from New York, including Lt. Michael Tiso of Mt. Tremper, NY, who is the cousin of my State Director.

After breakfast, Senator Reed and I met with General John Abizaid, the commander of Central Command, to discuss both Afghanistan and Iraq. We then boarded a C-130 for our flight to Kirkuk in Northern Iraq. We were briefed by Major General Raymond Odierno of the 4th Infantry Division and then went to downtown Kirkuk where we met with a group of local Iraqi leaders including the provisional Governor.

Next, we traveled to the local 4th Infantry Division dining facility where Senator Reed and I had our final meal with troops. It gave me one more chance to speak with troops from the 10th Mountain Division. Senator Reed and I heard directly from them about their experiences in Kirkuk, and we again expressed our full support.

We presented the last of the schoolchildren's letters to the Kirkuk troops and boarded a C-130 back to Kuwait. After a brief visit with Kuwaiti women leaders at the airport, including the Emir's sister, we began our return flight back to Andrews Air Force Base.

Concluding thoughts

My visit to Afghanistan and Iraq over the Thanksgiving weekend was a tremendous experience which reinforced my pride and respect for our men and women in uniform who are serving in dangerous conditions in both Afghanistan and Iraq. I was honored to have the opportunity to visit with so many of our troops, especially servicemen and women from Fort Drum and the Niagara Falls Air Reserve Station, as well as troops from other units. I hope that our visit and the 3500 letters from New York schoolchildren showed our troops how much we support them back home in the United States. As a member of the Armed Services Committee, I'm committed to everything that I can to support them.

Please don't hesitate to submit your comments on my website.