Ex-General Says Wargames Were Rigged

WASHINGTON –– A retired general who commanded "enemy" forces in a recently concluded $250 million U.S. war game says the exercise was rigged so that it appeared to validate new war-fighting concepts it was supposed to test.

Paul Van Riper, who headed the Marine Corps Combat Development Command when he retired in 1997 as a three-star general, said he became so frustrated with undue constraints on his command of "enemy" forces that he quit the role midway through Millennium Challenge 2002, which ended Aug. 15.

His complaints were reported Friday by the Army Times, a private newspaper that covers Army issues. The Times obtained a copy of an e-mail Van Riper sent to colleagues explaining why he had quit.

"It was in actuality an exercise that was almost entirely scripted to ensure a Blue (friendly forces) 'win,'" he wrote. Van Riper was in command of the Red force, meant to simulate the enemy.

Navy Capt. John Carman, chief spokesman at Joint Forces Command at Norfolk, Va., which sponsored the war game, said Friday that there is no record of Van Riper having quit his role as "enemy" commander. He said the retired general is "held in high regard" and entitled to his opinions.