> Also the issue of physical strength does come into it in close quarter combat.

Which, despite the judo videos of ISIS/ISIL/Daesh, almost *never* happens on the modern battlefield. Automatic rifles and grenades make movie-style hand-to-hand combat extremely rare, mainly in house-to-house fighting - and rare even then.

In such cases, women who can carry 70 pounds of equipment with no greater discomfort than men should do OK. If they meet the standard, they can do the job.

Anyway, as has been stated, infantry is hardly the only combat arm in today's world. American women have flown hi-tech combat aircraft for 25 years - that includes B-52s. They serve on warships. They can fire howitzers. Theoretically, women careerists who need "combat experience" have as many opportunities as men - at least until prejudice gets into it.