The authors thank the CCoE, the 21st Theater Sustainment Command and the Civil Affairs Association for the opportunity to publish this paper. August 27, 2020 SOF News Civil Affairs 0. The T&E branch conducted remote indirect support without overseeing the process. This continued execution and refinement of the course could institutionalize it as a standardized and accredited NCFC. Possibly one of the most pervasive yet irritating missteps that the media and public in general makes about the military is the use of the terms 'Special Operations Forces' (SOF) and 'Special Forces' (SF) interchangeably. This is the right moment to pursue interoperability, to exploit synergies and to make these two vital transatlantic civil-military and information-related capabilities more relevant, visible and impactful. The section will maintain specialized equipment that would be cost-prohibitive and unnecessary to purchase for six individual CATs. McMurdo Station, run by the National Science Foundation, serves as the primary hub for the three thousand Americans conducting research operations across Antarctica every summer. A core CA mission is civil reconnaissance, which is the targeted, planned observation of civil factors of the operational environment, providing commanders with crucial information pertaining to the human, physical, and informational domains. Persuasive and diplomatic negotiators, they work on the ground to ensure the U.S. interests are on the table and have a strong position when bargaining with foreign governments. The result is a force lacking legitimacy and facing an existential crisis. Thus, the movies of soldiers in white snowsuits attacking and shooting for what objectives remain elusive. 0000009963 00000 n The essential and enduring role of Civil Affairs. At the same time, the civil defense capabilities of European NATO nations significantly deteriorated, military forces were restructured, funding was reallocated, defense plans lost validity and larger field exercises stopped taking place. The Marine Corps has three civil affairs units. Under this paradigm, the military can assist only in support of specifically military exercises. Civil affairs forces have an enduring and natural role in cooperation. Without the NATO/SHAPE ACOS J9which is the requirement authority in the field of NATO CIMICand the CA proponent and T&E elements at USAJFKSWCS and Special Operations Center of Excellence, this project cannot gain needed traction. <>/Metadata 1239 0 R/ViewerPreferences 1240 0 R>> "I knew that there's Special Forces and these other kinds of branches in the special operations community, but I wasn't aware of Civil Affairs," he says. Would hoverboards and jetpacks be a better form of soldier transportation? The 92nd Civil Affairs Battalion (US Special Operations Commands Europe-aligned CA unit) is uniquely suited to fulfill the mission set illuminated by Stringers essay. Creating mountain warfare CATs and demonstrating a shared skill set builds rapport across SOF by removing infiltration as a barrier to entry for operations. TIAS. Arctic-capable units must train deliberately for such environments. The CIC staff member was involved as an enhancement coach and observer, and moreover was the first international instructor to ever assist within the CA Qualification Course. To specialize in winter warfare will not come with a diminished ability to map networks or identify and employ civil networks. The cross-pollination of institutional and operational capacities in both directions would be significantly mutually beneficial. Wording may differ between the doctrines, but many concepts are similar enough to require only a translation to enable greater interoperability. All Active Component Army Civil Affairs personnel are Special Operations Forces-qualified and as such undergo rigorous assessment and selection, followed by extensive training in foreign languages, advanced survivability skills, and negotiations techniques in order to operate autonomously as a small team, in any kind. TIAS. Entitlement pay. 0000001873 00000 n They also work to protect civilians and reduce the root causes of instability around the world. %PDF-1.7 The U.S. Army Special Operations Command is the largest of the service components that make up U.S. Special Operations Command and provides about 70% of the special operations . They're conveniently located at most active-duty Army posts. Such austere settlements range from mining outposts, not unlike those found in Svalbard, to potential logistical hubs supporting nascent northern sea lanes. Today, however, the military is contending with a shift in policy priorities to focus on strategic competitors like China and Russia. Furthermore, two iterations of the enhanced NCFC are planned for execution in the United States in 2021. The Army's Special Forces are capable . endstream endobj 831 0 obj <>/Filter/FlateDecode/Index[66 727]/Length 47/Size 793/Type/XRef/W[1 1 1]>>stream Skis and snowshoes replace foot movement. Simply assigning two units to work together does not automatically bestow compatibility or comparable capability between them. Introduction United States Army civil affairs (CA) and NATO civil-military cooperation (CIMIC) forces are key to countering or minimizing threats that hybrid warfare imposes, especially within the battle of influence to control the narrative. Such training offers high north CATs a US-based opportunity to increase understanding of tribal governance within an advanced governmental structure. ; Special Operations are defined as operations conducted by specially trained, equipped and organized Department of Defense forces against strategic or tactical targets in pursuit of . By more conscientiously leveraging and synergizing their respective comparative advantages, they will produce more operationally and strategically impactful outcomes. Your email address will not be published. Recently, Project 6633 asked authors to answer the question, How can American special operations forces compete with near-peer adversaries in the polar regions? The winning essay, Competing in the Arctic through Indigenous Group Engagement and Special Reconnaissance Activities, penned by Colonel Kevin D. Stringer, proposes US Army Special Forces should be the primary special operations effort in the high north due to their heritage and experience conducting engagement with the indigenous population. Canadas Arctic defense forces are primarily the Canadian Rangers, an overwhelmingly local and indigenous reserve organization. Meanwhile, it is nested in a wide-ranging comprehensive network that helps it to further develop and improve overall NATO CIMIC capability. Having official champions of a synchronization project on a strategic level is imperative. Competition below the level of armed conflict, Competition below the level of armed conflict is effectively the same as strategic competition. It is a protracted effort to counter a nation in competition with the United States. 1st Special Forces Commands A Vision for 2021 and Beyond expressly highlights the need for integrated, cross-functional SOF at the micro level. Curriculum sharing needs to be discussed, determined and programmed, as does the sharing of best practices such as analysis and assessment procedures, TTPs, engagement with civilian actors, etc. The PLA also does not have units equivalent to U.S. Civil Affairs units. Qualification. In the end, these synchronized assets should be able to provide an established, credible, standardized civil-military capability, instilling confidence and stability among friends with increased coherence and effectivenessnot only during NATO exercises, but during operational deployments as well. However, these partner countries are not failed or fragile states. Insurance in Japan, Manes, Alfred, January 1945. Based on lessons learned and recommended adjustments, a standardized and NATO-accredited NCFC or NATO CIMIC awareness course should be built into the curriculum. In this regard consider, for example, the following: " Asymmetrical actions have come into widespread use, enabling the nullification of an enemys advantages in armed conflict. Combines Basic Training and Advanced Individual Training and focuses on combat tactics and reconnaissance, Learn to safely jump from an aircraft and how to conduct airborne military operations, Complete intense mental and physical conditioning to prepare for the Civil Affairs selection process, Find out if youre selected to join Civil Affairs based on your character, courage, commitment, and intellect, Learn the basic skills needed to lead small teams of Soldiers and the skills needed to advance to the rank of Sergeant, Study Army doctrine and conflict operations, field training exercises, organized problem-solving, and a foreign language, Get assigned as an enlisted Soldier to the 95th Civil Affairs Brigade at Fort Bragg; get assigned as an Officer to either the 95th Civil Affairs Brigade or the 83rd Civil Affairs Battalion at Fort Bragg, To become a Civil Affairs Medical Sergeant, youll attend 44 weeks of additional Special Operations Medic training, with an emphasis on trauma medicine field care. Starting in 2014, NATO has had to redirect focus on countering hybrid warfare in its own AoR rather than out-of-area. Hybrid warfare, although not new, works below the threshold of conventional war.4 It is complex, and adaptive to culture, historical legacies, geography and available political, economic, informational and military means.5 There is increasing evidence that hybrid warriors are waging war via the internet against civil society in the Western world, sowing societal divisions and promoting hyper-polarized politics.6 The major lesson of warfare from the past two decades is that hybrid warfare focuses on population centers.7 Its center of gravity are target civil societies. Sure, there are SATCOM, radars, military bases, and cities in the Arctic that have strategic value, but I would think that any Arctic War would be mechanized and the SOFs aren't mechanized. There is NO obligation when you talk to a recruiter. Our adversaries are not waiting. November 16, 2022. What is the goalto guard the snow, ice, trees, and wildlife? What are some unique fields/jobs in the Army, aside from RASP, Psyops, Civil Affairs, ? Furthermore, what military presence does exist is often minimal and sometimes explicitly absent. Used during peacetime, contingencies and declared war . New comments cannot be posted and votes cannot be cast. A Civil Affairs team is a team unlike any other. Development of targeted civil-military projects in Baghlan was at first not at all coordinated, and only PRT-embedded CAT activities were eventually coordinated with PRT main LOEs, while those of other U.S. CA forces usually were not until after project implementation. The commonality of CA and PSYOP includes areas such as cultural expertise, language capability, cross cultural comumunication and skill in working face to face with civilian populations. The Special Forces, Psychological Operations and Civil Affairs community named 20 new soldiers, civilians and veterans as distinguished and honorary members during induction ceremonies this . The views expressed are those of the author and do not reflect the official position of the United States Military Academy, Department of the Army, or Department of Defense. For 2021, the NATO CIMIC Key Leader Conference (NCKLC) and Community of Interest Workshop (COIWS), planned to be held in Budapest, are the main venues for enhanced cooperation. Compared with the rest of the PRT, this resource asymmetry proved problematic. Many attendees at the 2020 Civil Affairs Roundtable thought that U.S. Army Europe (USAREUR) should reconsider its recent decision to disband the 361st CA Brigadean Army Reserve CA command with longstanding experience and solid working relations with NATO CIMIC forces that also forms a sizeable portion of NATOs ready civil-military capability in-theater.3. 0000010768 00000 n He said: We know that there are more and more people in the world who support our position on defending traditional values that have made up the spiritual and moral foundation of civilization in every nation for thousands of years: the values of traditional families, real human life, including religious life, not just material existence but also spirituality, the values of humanism and global diversity. He proclaimed that Russia would defend and advance these traditional values in order to prevent movement backward and downward, into chaotic darkness and a return to a primitive state., In Putins view, the fight over values is not far removed from geopolitical competition. In the past, the lack of official institutional champions has impeded such a synchronization project at the strategic level on both sides of the Atlantic (specifically, at NATO/SHAPE J9 and the Civil Affairs Proponent at the U.S. Army John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School, or USAJFKSWCS). National leaders require the full range of special operations force (SOF) options in the polar north. As illustrated below, Russia is targeting the more-conservative population groups of the world (to include such conservative groups in the states having claims to and/or ambitions re: the polar regions?). Christopher B. Dennis. 10 Civil-Military Cooperation Center of Excellence, CIMIC Handbook, April 2019, 2021Association of the United States Army, https://www.civilaffairsassoc.org/ca-issue-papers-reports, Underfunding the Army Has Risky Implications, The 1973 Arab-Israeli War: Insights for Multi-Domain Operations, People Who Know, Know MDO: Understanding Army Multi-Domain Operations as a Way to Make It Better, Profile of the United States Army: Direct Reporting Units, Profile of the United States Army: Army Service Component Commands. Today's civil affairs forces belong to the U.S. Army and U.S. Marine Corps, numbering about 15,000 personnel, along with a contingent of over 1,200 soldiers under U.S. Special Operations Command. Civil Affairs Team 644, or CAT 644, from the TCMSE worked to partner CA forces with host nation militaries in the Levant region during its rotation from July 2011 to March 2012. As to this such question, let us at least initially NOT consider it from a "polar regions" perspective alone, but, rather, more from the perspective of the larger ambitions of a near-peer adversary, for example, those of Russia. The Joint Special Operations University has released a new report that explores the use of special operations forces Civil Affairs as a key element for competing below the level of armed conflict. I'm aware you need to be a captain at least. Policy. Qatar (22-919) - Protocol Amending the Temporary Relocation Transit Agreement of November 12, 2021. In the council, eight Arctic states share membership status with six Indigenous Permanent Participant organizations, who in many cases enjoy de jure administration of their ancestral lands. As a history and philosophy double major, his interests also meshed well with elements of the Civil Affairs mission. 0000061047 00000 n How should I decide between Psyops or Civil Affairs? 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