Retired U.S. Army Gen. Paul E. Vallely tells Newsmax that physical limitations prevent women from serving in special combat forces, including the Navy SEALs.
“There are two ways to look at it,” Vallely said. “Women are already in combat zones — flying in helicopters, providing military intelligence, and in support units in Afghanistan.
“But I don’t think they should be in Special Forces or infantry units or deployed, in a conventional way, as part of special operations forces like Navy SEALs.”
“The upper-body strength that it takes to carry the weapons and gear — and especially on long hikes they’d have” prevents them from serving these operations effectively, said Vallely, who retired from the Army in 1993 as Deputy Commanding General, Pacific. “It’s been proven that women just don’t develop that upper-body strength.
“That’s always been a limiting factor in what the forces have to do. Rucksacks are 75 pounds or 100 pounds alone. This is not my opinion. These are the facts.
“Women prove they can do big things in the military — but only a very small percentage of women have that upper-body strength,” Vallely said.
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