TIKRIT, Iraq, Dec. 26 -- Gen. Peter J. Schoomaker, the Army's chief of staff, made a surprise visit to a small group of soldiers here at Forward Operating Base Danger and said in an interview that the war in Iraq was "going pretty well."
"Everybody I talk to has a balanced view and understands a challenge is ahead of us," Schoomaker said. "It's an important time. It's tough, it's a battle of wills, and we're going to stick with it."
In an unannounced visit, Schoomaker came to this city in northern Iraq late on Sunday and shared dinner with about two dozen soldiers who recently decided to reenlist. Schoomaker arrived at the base's mess hall after 7 p.m. to a band softly playing Christmas songs and soldiers eagerly awaiting to talk to him.
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Schoomaker, wearing the Army's newly designed all-purpose camouflage uniform, presented each of the soldiers he met with a commemorative command coin in the shape of a dog tag.
He said the dog tag symbolized "what armies are for. Armies are there to fight."
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