PORTLAND, Maine (NEWS CENTER) — A group of veterans who served in Iraq and Afghanistan are now touring the country hoping to spread the message that U.S. dependence on foreign oil is threat to national security.
The group, called “Operation Free,” is traveling in a biodiesel powered bus. Their goal is to visit 27 states.
On Monday, they stopped by USM and told students that some of the money that Americans pay for gasoline ends up in the hands of some of this country’s most dangerous enemies.
“Every time the price of oil goes up, Iran makes a lot of money. What they do with that money is they turn around and they finance their nuclear program. They buy sophisticated IED’s that they send to insurgents, militias and terrorists in Iraq that are used against our soldiers,” says former army captain, Mike Breen.
The veterans also say that climate change is a threat in that it causes famine and drought in nations like Somalia and Afghanistan that are already unstable.
“Climate change,” says veteran Karen Eckstein, “has been listed in the quadrennial defense review, which is the Pentagon’s strategic plan for the future. They’ve specifically listed climate change as an accelerant to instability.”
The group will travel to Augusta and Bangor this week and then head to Massachusetts.
