In the aftermath of the Khobar Towers bombing, Zinni said, Central Command spent hundreds of millions of dollars improving security. But, he noted, resources are limited. It's a zero-sum game. We have to be careful where we place these resources, what we're doing to our other missions. Accomplishing the mission is the overarching goal, Zinni said.
Force protection is but a part of that mission.
Whether they're enforcing sanctions on Iraq or protecting U.S. allies and the flow of oil in the Persian Gulf, military missions involve risk, he said. We are in a risky business. It's risky in training. It's risky when we're preparing to deploy. In my position, virtually every day, we measure risk.