US Naval Historian Highlights Significance of Battle of Midway

Living History:

WASHINGTON, June 9, 2009 -- The U.S. Navy learned significant lessons during a pivotal World War II engagement, an award-winning historian told online journalists and bloggers last week during a conference call commemorating the battle’s 67th anniversary.

"Operationally, … the lesson was we needed more carriers,” Robert J. Cressman said. “We were literally fighting a catch-up war, because the Japanese had more carriers than we did.”

Also among the lessons learned, Cressman said, was the need to provide more protection for strike groups.

"Tactically, I think one of the things we learned at Midway was the whole business of defending our various strike groups,” he said, “because we had just too few fighters. And so not only did we need more aircraft carriers, but we needed more fighters on those decks to [protect] our attack groups."

Regarded as the turning point in the Pacific during World War II, the Battle of Midway took place June 4-7, 1942. An important marker in the nation’s naval heritage, the battle changed the course of the war in the Pacific within just a few days. It came a month after the Battle of Coral Sea, the war’s first engagement between carrier forces.

“In terms of employing carrier air groups, the U.S. Navy was much more flexible than the Japanese,” Cressman said. “Had the Japanese had that flexibility after Coral Sea, they might have taken the air group off of the Shokaku and parked it on the Zuikaku for the operations, giving them one more carrier.”

However, he added, the Japanese didn’t practice that tactic. “Whereas the Americans were able to put together an air group, literally at the last minute, to put on board Yorktown, that enabled her to participate in the Battle of Midway.”

Though the U.S. Navy was able to put together an air group, coordination and communication were the two biggest lessons learned from the battle, Cressman said. The U.S. aircraft carriers Hornet, Enterprise and Yorktown all were supposed to have coordinated cover, he explained, but only Yorktown’s group had fighter cover that worked by trying to keep the Japanese fighters off the torpedo planes.

“The way things worked out, the Hornet fighters ended up getting lost and flying to nowhere,” he said. “The Enterprise fighters ended up following the Hornet torpedo planes. There was a great need shown at Midway for much better communication in terms of letting people know where they were and what they needed to do. That was one of the big lessons.”

Cressman said fate played a hand for Navy Lt. Cmdr. C. Wade McClusky to spot the Imperial Japanese Navy destroyer Arashi. At that time, he said, a U.S. submarine, the Nautilus -- the slowest, least maneuverable, noisiest boat in the Pacific Fleet -- had intercepted the Japanese fleet.

“They … popped up right in the middle of it,” he said. “And they caused all kinds of consternation because, you know, a submarine periscope in the middle of a force of carriers is not something you want to see. And so the Japanese were really busy trying to drive off this sub.”

At the time of the interception, Arashi was detached from the Japanese fleet to either sink or drive off Nautilus.

“And once they figured they'd done the job -- which of course, they hadn't, because Nautilus was still very much alive -- they set course to return to the Kido Butai, the carrier task force, at top speed,” Cressman said. “And of course, when a ship is moving across the ocean at top speed, it tends to leave a pretty good wake behind her. And that was what McClusky spotted, was the wake from the Arashi.”

Cressman added that the training, the courage and the dedication to duty of the men who fought on both sides in the Battle of Midway made it a battle worth commemorating.

“I think it's a triumph of training, of courage on our side, and you know, there was certainly an equal amount of courage and bravery on the other side as well,” he said. “I mean, when you're flying a torpedo plane, you have to fly basically low and on a steady course so you don't deviate to miss your target. And both the Japanese and the American torpedo pilots were extremely brave and courageous in carrying out their jobs.”

(Report by Navy Lt. Jennifer Cragg, Defense Media Activity’s emerging media directorate.)

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US Navy Task Force, Partner Nations Reduce Pirate Attacks

GULF OF ADEN (Jan. 23, 2009) Members of a visit, board, search and seizure team assigned to the guided-missile destroyer USS Mahan (DDG 72) ride through a wave while conducting a training exercise with the British Royal Navy frigate HMS Portland (F 79). Mahan is part of Combined Task Force (CTF) 151, a multinational task force conducting counter-piracy operations in and around the Gulf of Aden, Arabian Sea, Indian Ocean and the Red Seat. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class John K. Hamilton.)

GULF OF ADEN (Jan. 23, 2009) The visit board search and seizure team assigned to the guided-missile destroyer USS Mahan (DDG) 72 conducts a training exercise with the Royal Navy frigate HMS Portland (F79). Mahan is assigned to Combined Task Forcer (CTF) 151, a multinational task force that conducts counter-piracy operations in and around the Gulf of Aden, Arabian Sea, Indian Ocean and the Red Sea, established to create a lawful maritime order and develop security in the maritime environment. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class John K. Hamilton.)

AT SEA (Jan. 23, 2009) Aviation Boatswain's Mate (Handling) 1st Class Jaime Valencia directs the landing of an HH-60H Sea Hawk helicopter from the "Tridents" of Helicopter Anti-Submarine Squadron (HS) 3 aboard the amphibious transport dock ship USS San Antonio (LPD) 17. San Antonio is supporting maritime security operations in the U.S. 5th Fleet area of responsibility. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Joan E. Kretschmer.)

GULF OF ADEN (Jan. 15, 2009) Rear Adm. Terry McKnight conducts an Admiral's call with Marines assigned to the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit (26th MEU) aboard the amphibious transport dock ship USS San Antonio (LPD 17). San Antonio is the command ship for Combined Task Force (CTF) 151, a multinational task force conducting counter-piracy operations in an effort to detect and deter piracy operations in and around the Gulf of Aden, Arabian Gulf, Indian Ocean and Red Sea. It was established to create a lawful maritime order and develop security in the maritime environment. (U.S. Navy photo by Damon J. Moritz.)

Bloggers' Roundtable:

WASHINGTON, Feb. 1, 2009 -- The presence of partner nations and the newly formed task force to reduce the number of pirate attacks in the Gulf of Aden seem to be working, according to the commander of Combined Task Force 151.

"I think the combination of the coalition working together [with] the maritime community has decreased the pirate activity over the last couple of months," Navy Rear Adm. Terry McKnight, also the commander of Expeditionary Strike Group 2, told bloggers and online journalists during a Defense Department bloggers' roundtable Jan. 29.

The task force was formed earlier this month and comprises three ships -- USS San Antonio (LPD 17), USS Mahan (DDG 72) and HMS Portland (F 79) -- that are collaborating with other nations to deter future pirate attacks.

While a number of factors -- even the weather -- can impact the number of attacks, McKnight gave credit to the European Union and the nations involved in anti-piracy operations, as well as the task force, with helping to decrease attacks since early December.

"Some things have changed that have helped us in this case to combat piracy," McKnight said. "The United Nations has come out with several resolutions ... that give us more authority to combat piracy."

U.N. Resolution 1846, approved by the United Nations Security Council on Dec. 2, authorizes states and regional organizations cooperating with the Somali transitional government to enter Somalia's territorial waters and use "all necessary means" to combat piracy. Two weeks later, U.N. Resolution 1851 was approved, and calls for those states and organizations to "actively participate in defeating piracy and armed robbery off Somalia's coast by deploying naval vessels and military aircraft, and through seizure and disposition of boats and arms used in the commission of those crimes."

The other recent change that has assisted in combating piracy is the maritime community itself, McKnight said.

"We have tried very hard to say to the maritime community, there are just not enough Navy ships out there to cover 1.1 million square miles," he said.

McKnight added that creating a safe corridor allows the nations involved in combating piracy to offer protection to the maritime vessels transiting through the Gulf of Aden.

In standing up Combined Task Force 151, McKnight said, he hopes to "make it unpleasant to be in the pirate business."

"Right now, we have about 14 nations out here with about 20 ships," he said. "We've had some encouraging signs from other ships and other nations to join the task force. I expect that by the spring we will have quite a few ships joining."

McKnight said these and other nations involved and those interested in participating in the future all share the same goal of "free commerce."

"We have to make sure that we have free commerce throughout the open seas and throughout the world," said McKnight.

(Report by Lt. Jennifer Cragg.)

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US Coast Guard Budget Grows for Fiscal 2009

Bloggers' Roundtable:

WASHINGTON, Oct. 28, 2008 -- The Coast Guard received a large budget increase for fiscal 2009 as part of the Consolidated Security Disaster Assistance and Continuing Appropriations Act, a senior Coast Guard officer said last week.

“In our operating expenses account and appropriation, we were appropriated $43.6 million to enhance maritime safety, security, and stewardship,” Coast Guard Rear Adm. Keith Taylor, assistant commandant for resources and chief financial officer, said to online journalists during a teleconference Oct. 24.

Taylor said the money will allow the Coast Guard to hire about 500 new maritime inspectors, maritime investigators, and boat crew and boarding team members. The funding also will enhance the Coast Guard’s ability to manage rule-making projects and provide for training and support, he said.

“There has been a dramatic increase in the amount of maritime trade over the last 10 years, as well as the use of our maritime transportation system,” Taylor said. “This growth in this area will allow us to add capacity, to meet the requirements that we have, and begin to address the shortfalls that we have in this area.”

In addition to maritime support, he said, the budget addresses Coast Guard requirements in other areas including inspection, command and control, and intelligence.

To fulfill inspection requirements for the U.S. towing-vessel fleet, Taylor said, the Coast Guard has increased its capacity to provide armed-boat escorts and to carry out security boardings. The service also is enhancing its ability to test contingency plans that address environmental hazards in the port and coastal regions, he added.

“It’s allowing us to … continue to beat all the mission demands we have across all threats and all hazards,” the admiral said. “It’s allowing us to keep critical acquisition projects on track, and being able to continue to deliver new assets to the men and women of the Coast Guard, so they can meet mission demands.”

The Coast Guard received $38.1 million to help the Coast Guard establish comprehensive intelligence and awareness regimens. The funds will provide 100 more positions and enhance cryptologic service groups, which provide intelligence and maritime domain awareness efforts, he said.

The Coast Guard also plans to add more than 200 “watch standers” at command centers nationwide, Taylor said, to improve situational awareness and monitor the new rescue circuits.

Taylor said the increased budget will allow the Coast Guard to keep critical projects on schedule and meet mission demands.

(Report by Navy Seaman William Selby, New Media directorate of the Defense Media Activity.)

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Pentagon: US Defense Department at Forefront of Energy Conservation

Bloggers' Roundtable:

WASHINGTON, Oct. 21, 2008 -- The Defense Department is constantly looking for ways to proactively conserve and reuse energy, a department official said.

“We’re really leading the nation in looking at energy and considering energy,” Mindy Montgomery, deputy director for investment, Office of the Director for Defense Research and Engineering, said during a teleconference with bloggers yesterday.

Montgomery said that every $10 increase in the price of a barrel of oil raises the DoD’s fuel spending by $1.3 billion per year. The department has spent $3 billion to $5 billion extra each year due to the price increase over the last couple years, she said.

But energy conservation does more than help to compensate for rising prices, Montgomery said. It makes operational sense, too, she noted.

“Seventy percent of the convoys in Iraq and Afghanistan are for fuel and water,” she said. “So if we can reduce those, we can reduce all the security assets that go along with all … these convoys.”

While DoD has made progress in energy conservation, Montgomery said, it still has a long way to go.

“Since 2005 we’ve reduced our total energy consumption by 6 percent,” Montgomery said. “On the installation side, since 2003, we’ve reduced our demand by 10 percent.”

Unfortunately, reduced energy consumption doesn’t automatically translate to money saved, Montgomery said. DoD has spent $13 billion in total energy costs since 2005 due to rising fuel costs, she said.

“I’d like to say we’ve saved, but unfortunately, energy costs have gone way up,” Montgomery said. “Even though we’ve reduced consumption, it still costs us more in the long run.”

Montgomery said that some electricity costs have stabilized, which should lead to savings in the near future. Installation-specific improvements also should lead to savings, she said.

To reduce energy consumption at installations, the department created the Power Surety Task Force to focus on combatant commanders’ energy needs, Montgomery said. For instance, in Iraq and Afghanistan, soldiers were using tents that were worn out and were not energy efficient, Montgomery said. The task force recently found a substance called installation foam to spray on the tents, which is reducing energy consumption by about 30 percent.

“Now, we’re keeping the air inside,” Montgomery said. “By the way, the tents are actually about 20 percent cooler than they ever got with the air conditioning,” she added.

Montgomery estimated that the DoD will save about $400,000 a day and take about 13 fuel trucks off the roads a day as a result of using the insulation foam.

The Department also is looking at more efficient turbine engines for aircraft, more fuel-efficient engines for the next generation Humvee, and other alternatives that may decrease energy and fuel costs, Montgomery added.

“That program is run by the Army tank and automotive command,” she said. “They’re looking at different drivetrains, different kinds of engines, [and] different power systems on the vehicle.”

Montgomery said the task force also has been focusing on modifying technologies and looking for new methods of power generation.

“We actually just opened a solar farm [that produces] over 14 megawatts in Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada,” she said. “We’ve also, for the last 20 years, had a geothermal plant at China Lake [Naval Air Weapons Station, Calif.],” she added. “I want to say it produces somewhere between 180 and 200 megawatts.”

Officials also are looking at expanding its use of geothermal power generation, which uses heat from the Earth.

(Report by Navy Seaman William Selby, New Media directorate of the Defense Media Activity.)

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Enemy Battles Decrease for US Marines in Afghanistan

Bloggers' Roundtable:

WASHINGTON, Oct. 18, 2008 -- As the 2nd Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment continues to enhance security in Afghanistan, Marines there are experiencing decreased enemy engagements, the battalion’s commander said Thursday.

“We’ve killed or captured a lot of the [Taliban’s] leadership,” U.S. Marine Lt. Col. Richard Hall, commander of Task Force 2D Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, told bloggers during a teleconference.

Other possible reasons Hall cited for fewer engagements include the recent Muslim holiday of Ramadan, the beginning of winter in Afghanistan and the enhanced efforts of the Afghan National Police.

“We’ve now trained over 800 Afghan National Police and have placed them in various districts,” he said.

Most people think that training and mentoring are not critical parts of counterinsurgency operations, when in fact, they are a subset, Hall said.

“The first thing is the force comes in here and establishes themselves and initiates the security piece, then what we had to do is we had to concurrently do the training and mentoring” of the police, he said.

In addition to training, the Marines have initiated several other long- and short-term projects under strategies they call “focused district development” and “in-district reform.”

The Marines have enhanced the Afghan economy, opened mosques, built schools, and are hoping to build a road, although that may not happen soon, Hall said.

“We’re hoping to build a road here, probably not on our watch, but certainly on our replacements’ watch,” Hall said. The 2nd Battalion, 7th Marines will be replaced by the 3rd Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment in the near future.

Hall said that while he is constantly seeing improvement in his districts, there are still several challenges, specifically in recruiting for the Afghan police.

“We really need to recruit from districts in which we are going to replace those [police],” Hall added. “They get a good education, they come back, and there’s an immediate change in the district when they go out there. All our guys that mentor them when they’re back out in their districts have noted the significant improvements that are made.”

As the Marine units prepare to rotate, a top priority is ensuring that the Afghan recruitment is done right.

“I think we got it right now,” said Hall. “The next evolutions [in reform and development of districts] are going to be much more successful, and so it will be the way of the future in emplacing these [police] in the districts, which becomes a foundation for governance at the district level.”

To set the stage for the incoming Marine unit, Hall said his Marines would prepare training on lessons learned.

“We want to give them the proper introduction to the history, teach them the techniques and procedures that will keep them alive,” Hall said. “And we owe that to our brothers.”

In order to be successful, the 3rd Battalion, 8th Marines have to continue to do what the 2nd Battalion, 7th Marines have done - focus on the Afghan people, Hall said.

“We have focused on the enduring effort, those things that will last, those operations which create a foundation for the future, like building schools, educating people, building roads, providing jobs, and aiding commerce,” he said.

(Report by Navy Seaman William Selby, New Media branch of the Defense Media Activity)

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General Says US Presence Still Needed for Stability in Anbar

Bloggers' Roundtable:

WASHINGTON, Oct. 12, 2008 -- Despite transitioning Anbar province to Iraqi control last month, it’s still too soon for U.S. troops to withdraw from the region, the commander of Multinational Force West said.

“We certainly do provide a sense of security for the locals here in Anbar, as they work things out amongst themselves in the province,” U.S. Marine Maj. Gen. John Kelly said in an Oct. 10 teleconference with bloggers and online journalists.

More than 25,000 U.S. Marines remain in the province, Kelly said, with additional support from the other services bringing the total up to 27,000 U.S. troops in Anbar. They are providing overwatch to the Iraqi security forces, he said, who assumed prime responsibility for the security of the province in last month’s turnover.

“We support [the Iraqis] when they need help,” Kelly said, “but they’ve pretty much got it and are running with the ball.”

The reason U.S. troops cannot withdraw outright, Kelly said, is a lingering threat from al-Qaeda. “Anbar province…used to be the most dangerous province in the country, primarily because of al-Qaeda.”

The terrorist organization still exists in the province as “very loosely organized” individual cells, he said, but they’re no longer considered an insurgency because they’ve lost the support of the local people.

“So the insurgency is dead,” Kelly said, “but al-Qaeda still has – like a snake when you cut its head off – has got a little bit of bite and a little bit of venom.”

Another concern, he pointed out, is al-Qaeda is still an insurgency in other parts of the country including Mosul and Baghdad.

“So, it’s not quite time to withdraw,” he said, “particularly since…Anbar province is part of a country that…has still got quite an insurgency on its hands being pushed back every day.”

U.S. forces need to continue providing a stability presence in the province, Kelly said, to support the security forces until the underlying threats diminish and to help the civil authorities who are still learning their jobs.

“If we were to pull those props out too early,” Kelly said, “that would, I think, be problematic.”

(Story by Kristen Noel, New Media branch of the Defense Media Activity.)

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New Pentagon Web Site Details Past Chemical-Biological Warfare Tests

Bloggers' Roundtable:

WASHINGTON, Oct. 6, 2008 -- The Defense Department has launched a new Web site to educate the public about chemical and biological testing conducted from the early 1940s through the mid-1970s.

“This is a new Web site that we have created to put together for all those who may have interest in everything that we have been able to uncover and understand about the chemical and biological testing of warfare agents done from probably the early 1940s up through 1975,” said Dr. Michael Kilpatrick, strategic communications director for the Military Health System. He explained the recently launched Chemical-Biological Warfare Exposures Web site during a “DotMilDocs” radio program on BlogTalkRadio.com Oct. 2.

Officials launched the site to educate people on what was done and to also let them know what DoD knows about it, Kilpatrick said.

“The CB exposures Web site explains why the testing was done, where it was done, what was used in the testing, and really what DoD learned from the testing,” he said.

Kilpatrick added that the Web site presents sections on chemical and biological testing that was conducted during World War II, during Project 112/SHAD -- shipboard hazard and defense -- and the Cold War. He explained why some of the testing, in particular during World War II, was conducted.

“Chemical agents were used against our troops in World War I,” Kilpatrick said. “As we went into World War II, we didn’t know how to best protect our people, and during the Cold War we continued testing to understand how chemical and biological warfare agents behaved in different climates and terrains.”

Officials have been working for a couple years trying to understand the chemical and biological exposure research that happened during the Cold War, Kilpatrick said. “As we got information,” he said, “we passed names of individuals and medically related information to the Department of Veterans Affairs.”

Project 112/SHAD was a series of tests conducted from 1962 to 1973 on Navy ships at sea in various climates and in land-based tests in various terrains using chemical and biological agents, as well as simulated agents. Servicemembers were not test subjects.

“The Project 112/SHAD records were more difficult, because these were, essentially, classified tests looking at the behavior of chemical-biological-warfare agents,” Kilpatrick said. “Since the sailors on the ships… were not human volunteers, it was more difficult to find out who they were. That process involved going through the ships’ logs to determine who was assigned to those ships.”

As officials conclude their search through archived files, they are relying on veterans who were involved in the testing to provide additional information, Kilpatrick said.

“Veterans can really help point us in other directions or give us other clues,” he said. “As we are trying to recreate what happened 30 to 60 years ago, it is oftentimes very difficult. They may have papers, which would not have been archived, that may help fill in blanks about what we understand happened.”

DoD and VA officials are working together to identify and notify servicemembers who were exposed in chemical-biological testing from the 1940s through the mid-1970s. Once DoD finds who was exposed to what agents at what time and where, that information is passed to the VA to then try to locate the individual and notify him.

“Once we have searched all locations for archived information on these exposures, the active part will be over,” Kilpatrick said. “DoD plans to complete this search in 2011. However, the process is open-ended. It will never be closed. That’s why we ask any veteran with any information to contact us. Our goal is to account for everyone who has been exposed.”

Kilpatrick added that any veterans who think that they could have been exposed or who have any information on the tests can submit an e-mail to CBWebmaster@tma.osd.mil, or call DoD’s contact managers toll-free at 800-497-6261.

(Story by Navy Lt. Jennifer Cragg, New Media directorate of the Defense Media Activity.)

Related:
DoD Chemical-Biological Warfare Exposures Web Site
DoD Force Health Protection and Readiness
Military Health System
DotMilDocs

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US Marines Focus on Transforming Afghan Police

Bloggers' Roundtable:

WASHINGTON, Aug. 29, 2008 -- U.S. Marines in Afghanistan face daunting challenges in legitimizing the Afghan police and turning them into an effective counter-terrorist force, but perseverance and focus have served them well, a Marine officer said Aug. 27.

“Probably the biggest challenge has been the size of our area of operations,” Marine Corps Lt. Col. Richard D. Hall, commander of 2nd Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment, said during a call with online journalists and military bloggers. “And to answer how we’ve overcome that challenge, I summed it up in one word: Marines.”

Hall’s unit has responsibility for recruiting, training and mentoring the Afghan National Police and turning them into a credible force that the Afghan populace views as honest and capable.

“We want them to become a more proficient, respectable and legitimate force, which is really an extension of the government on the district level,” Hall said. Significant progress has been made on the training mission, but full recognition by Afghan citizens will take time, he added.

On a more specific level, Hall said, the Marines face difficulties recruiting the right blend of people to keep the force geographically balanced.

“We can’t always have the right amount of recruits out of each district, so we have to recruit from other districts,” Hall said. “When they go through the training and come back, those ANP have an expectation that they are going to go back to the district they came from, and sometimes we cannot do that.”

Fielding an appropriate number of coalition and Afghan forces to counter terrorists across a massive territory remains another challenge, Hall explained.

He added that more forces will be coming to extend security zones, as well as to assume control of other districts, which will restrict the enemy’s movement.

Still, he noted, “The solution isn’t going to be so much the numbers of people that you bring in here. … It is the effect on the people that we have in the context of doing our mission, which is, I call it, turning four into 40.

“The bottom line is, we want to give these people liberty,” he continued. “To create conditions where they can take responsibility of their own affairs and provide for their own future.”

(Story by Navy Seaman William Selby, New Media directorate of the Defense Media Activity.)

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Irregular Warfare Capabilities Remain Priority for Pentagon

Bloggers' Roundtable:

WASHINGTON, Aug. 18, 2008 -- Diminishing the threat from violent extremism is the U.S. military’s top priority, but not its only priority, a top Defense Department policy official said Aug. 15.

The 2008 National Defense Strategy outlines a balanced set of policy objectives for the military, but does place a clear emphasis on keeping up the fight against extremism, Dr. Thomas Mahnken, deputy assistant secretary of defense for policy planning, said during a call with military bloggers.

The strategy document, released publicly by the Department of Defense on July 31, outlines how DoD supports the president’s National Security Strategy and informs the National Military Strategy and other subordinate strategy documents. It builds on lessons learned and insights from previous operations and strategic reviews. This is the first update since March 2005.

“Secretary Gates has said on any number of occasions that [the war against extremism] is the war that we are fighting now, and that whatever else we plan for and whatever else we do, we need to succeed in the war that we're fighting now,” Mahnken said.

Supporting that fight requires developing irregular-warfare capabilities, overseeing a cultural change within the military, expanding use of joint operations, and partnering more successfully with other U.S. government agencies, Mahnken explained.

“We are still in the process of building up that capacity, that institutional capacity within the department. It's a process that began with the 2006 [Quadrennial Defense Review]. We've clearly made progress, but we're not there,” Mahnken said.

“One of the things that the strategy talks about is the need for an expanded conception of what ‘jointness’ is all about,” Mahnken said. “What we need to face many of the challenges that we see now and are likely to see in the future is a jointness that encompasses not only the armed services, but civilian capabilities within the Defense Department, other departments and agencies, and our friends and allies.”

Success in that regard, Mahnken said, is defined as “integration of all the elements of national power and being able to bring them to bear on the security challenges we face.”

Mahnken pointed to Iraq and Afghanistan as obvious examples of the need for “whole-of-government approaches for counterinsurgency,” but he called the challenge equally applicable to future conflicts.

“It's one of the reasons why Secretary Gates has been such a vocal proponent of greater funding for, you know, the non-military instruments of national security, if you will, particularly the State Department, [U.S. Agency for International Development], and others,” Mahnken said.

Developing the necessary skills and maturing the appropriate relationships for success in the irregular warfare field will take years, Mahnken said. The “long war” itself will unfold over decades, he noted.

Meanwhile, Mahnken explained, the military will continue to build its traditional warfare capabilities.

“What Secretary Gates said in releasing the strategy is really important, which is, it's all about balance,” Mahnken said. “If you look at what the services fund in terms of programs, in terms of training and education, and when it comes to traditional warfare, it's substantial.”

(Story by Tim Kilbride, New Media branch, Defense Media Activity.)

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Saddam Left Iraq 25 Years Behind World in Technology

Bloggers' Roundtable:

WASHINGTON, Aug. 14, 2008 -- Iraq was left behind in the information-technology revolution for 25 years under Saddam Hussein’s regime while the rest of the world moved on, a military official said this week.

“You’re looking at a nation that has … suffered from 25 years of tyranny under Saddam Hussein and has not had the things that you and I take for granted,” Air Force Col. Karlton Johnson, communications director for Multinational Security Transition Command Iraq, told online journalists and bloggers in an Aug. 12 teleconference.

Johnson said the coalition has a 500-day plan to provide the Iraqis modern information-technology capabilities and, more importantly, to train them to use the technology in their business operations.

“What we intend to do over the next 500 days [is] to take the Iraqis from where they are to the next level,” he said.

The plan, he said, initially centers on equipping Iraq’s Defense and Interior ministries with command, control, communications and computer systems -- known in military circles as C4 -- to support their security functions.

“When you look at the security environment,” he said, “C4 systems -- communications as a whole -- [are] important and vital toward not only doing battlefield operations, but also improving ministerial capacity and capability.”

However, it’s more complicated than simply bringing in U.S. solutions, Johnson said, because the Iraqis are so far behind. For example, he said, he has seen an Iraqi office where the method of networking was transferring a USB drive from computer to computer.

“You cannot just come in and overlay a futuristic template against an archaic system,” he said. “We have to understand what types of things they’re capable of doing, and what types of things they’re not.”

For that reason, Johnson explained, coalition technology experts are heavily focused on mentoring and building relationships with their Iraqi counterparts. The Iraqis’ needs and methods are different from those of the United States and Europe, he said, so they need to be involved in the decision-making process for new capabilities.

This approach, he noted, is grooming the first generation of Iraqi information technology leaders.

“We’ve improved ministerial capacity and capability, so they can do this on their own [and] we can move on,” Johnson said. “If you want a process by which the Iraqis are going to be eventually able to self-sustain themselves, you can’t just come in and give them a network.”

While the coalition’s efforts are focused at the ministerial level, Johnson said, he hopes the effects will trickle down to the everyday citizen.

He recalled wanting to loan a CD to an Iraqi friend, only to find out his friend didn’t own a CD player.

“So, when I look at what we’re providing in terms of education, mentorship, [and] training to senior Iraqi leadership,” he explained, “I always have in the back of my mind: ‘This is something that’s got to permeate down to those people who, like this one individual, don’t have things like computers, don’t have things like the Internet.’”

Johnson said it will take years to bring Iraq into the 21st century. But, he added, “I think they’re moving right along at the pace that is comparable with a nation that has been 25 years behind the times.”

(Story by Kristen Noel, New Media branch of the Defense Media Activity.)

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US Colonel: Afghan Forces Improving

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WASHINGTON, Aug. 5, 2008 -- The Afghan National Army is increasingly able to seek out and defeat enemies autonomously in southern Afghanistan, a U.S. military official there said.

“The [Afghan] army now interacts with the Taliban and other enemies of Afghanistan, and they’re doing extremely well against them,” Army Col. Thomas McGrath, commander of Afghanistan Regional Security Transition Command South, told online journalists and bloggers in a teleconference Aug. 1.

McGrath, who has led force development in southern Afghanistan for 14 months, cited steady improvement in the Afghan army’s capability and professionalism. “Every day,” he said, “we’re seeing and experiencing more situations whereby the Afghans have taken the lead.”

Over the past few weeks, the Afghan National Army’s 205th Hero Corps out of Kandahar Airfield has led a large vehicle convoy through enemy territory, conducted its first air-casualty evacuation, and stopped an infiltrating Taliban force. U.S. and coalition forces provided only assistance and combat-force enablers the Afghans don’t possess, McGrath said.

“We’re looking over their shoulders, so to speak,” he said. “They’re not completely independent, but we’re getting closer every day.”

In the Taliban incident, McGrath said, the Afghans killed 30 to 40 insurgents “to include several from foreign nations.”

“We went over to them [and] asked them about what was going on,” he recalled. “They said they had it under complete control.”

The Afghan forces’ growing capability reflects on the many brave U.S. men and women assigned to the security mission in Afghanistan’s austere southern region, McGrath said.

Together with coalition nations, McGrath’s command has conducted programs to recruit, train and equip Afghan army and police forces over the past year. A significant accomplishment, he pointed out, is that more than 500 soldiers from the Afghan 205th Corps completed noncommissioned officer courses and qualified for promotion in the last six months.

“We all know [NCOs] are the backbone of any army,” he said. “As we increase their capabilities, you have to have the right noncommissioned officers leading those squads and platoons.”

However, McGrath said, it hasn’t been without consequence.

“We’ve worked very hard in our mission to bring up the capacity and the capability of the Afghan army and the police,” he said, “and we’ve done it with a lot of American blood.” McGrath said the command has lost 23 servicemembers in the last year, and more than 100 have been wounded.

“It’s absolutely, absolutely a difficult fight. There’s no doubt about it,” he said. “Nothing that we do over here is easy, but we do have momentum, and I feel very optimistic about things in the future.”

Better equipment also will improve the Afghan National Army’s ability to fight insurgents in the future and move them closer to autonomy, McGrath said.

The coalition is preparing plans to provide modern equipment to the Afghan 205th Corps later this year, he said, including 250 up-armored Humvees per brigade and M-16 rifles assigned to each soldier.

“[The equipment] will give the ANA another significant improvement in their tactical capability and their ability to take the fight to the insurgency,” he said. It will give the Afghan army “a much greater survivability” against ambushes, roadside bombs and mines, he added.

McGrath said he won’t be around to see the new equipment fielded because he is preparing to return home to the United States in about a week. But, he said, he believes the command has laid the groundwork for progress to continue with the Afghan forces.

“Through the efforts of very many brave men and women, tough men and women -- soldiers, sailors, airmen, and Marines -- we’re completing the mission,” McGrath said. “And we’re setting the stages for the future operations and for the future of the Afghan army and the police in bringing stability to this country.”

(Story by Kristen Noel, New Media branch of the Defense Media Agency.)

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Forces in Iraq Keep al-Qaida Off-Balance

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WASHINGTON, Aug. 1, 2008 -- An operation near Iraq’s Diyala River Valley -- planned and led by Iraqi forces with coalition support -- is going very well, a senior coalition spokesman said yesterday.

“The main objective there is the pursuit of al-Qaida … to remove them from their hideouts there, and continue to keep them off-balance,” Navy Rear Adm. Patrick Driscoll, deputy chief of the strategic communication division for Multinational Force Iraq, said to online journalists and bloggers in a teleconference.

About 30,000 troops are involved in this major operation, which has resulted in the detention of at least 30 to 35 suspected al-Qaida members and uncovered weapons caches, Driscoll said.

While operations in Diyala continue, Iraqi security forces also are engaged in Baghdad’s Sadr City district and in the cities of Basra, Amarah, and Mosul, Driscoll added.

“Mosul is a piece of valuable real estate for al-Qaida,” the admiral said. “They want to hold on to Mosul, because it’s their entryway to Syria, and it facilitates a lot of the flow of foreign fighters and money to finance al-Qaida.”

Another piece of real estate al-Qaida covets is Iraq’s Anbar province. The al-Qaida threat continues there, but the Iraqi army and border patrol police, along with U.S. Marines, are securing the province’s borders. “In Anbar, there’s still a viable, lethal al-Qaida threat,” Driscoll said, “and that is really the focus of the security forces out there.”

While operations continue, the Iraqi security forces are in the process of expanding. About 580,000 people now serve in the country’s scurity forces; the Iraqi police have about 380,000, and the Iraqi army has about 200,000. By next year, the stated goal for the Iraqi security forces 660,000 members, Driscoll said.

A couple of good indicators suggest things are moving in the right direction in Iraq, the admiral said.

“One is the continued successful pursuit of al-Qaida,” he explained. “That’s a key security issue that we can’t take our eye off and [that we have] got to continue to focus on. Another one would be the structured continued process of turning over security for provinces to the Iraqi government. That would be a good thing to watch, and we’re making good progress on that.”

Driscoll noted that violent incidents in Iraq have reached the lowest level since 2004, facilitating progress toward elections later this year.

“That’s very encouraging, the progress we’re seeing right now,” he said. “Five hundred and sixty-five voter registration centers are open; people are registering to vote.”

While the provincial elections currently scheduled for Oct. 1, Parliament Speaker Mahmoud Mashadani has scheduled a special meeting of lawmakers Aug. 3 to resolve an election legislation impasse.

“I am very encouraged by the fact that Speaker Mashadani has called them in,” Driscoll said. “They’re going to wrestle with it on Sunday. All parties, really, I think, have an interest in solving this now, because as they move forward with the elections and as they move forward with solving the Kirkuk issue, … it’s going to be very beneficial to the country in terms of moving forward economic development.”

Driscoll added that officials are taking a wait-and-see approach on possible disruptions in the elections.

“The people are, by and large, rejecting the violence, whether it’s al-Qaida or [Iranian-backed] special groups -- this indiscriminate violence that’s killing innocent Iraqis,” he said. “The Iraqis have really out of hand rejected that, and are not supporting any elements that really participated in that.”

He acknowledged that while security is improving and progress definitely is being made in Iraq, threats still exist, but he repeated that trends are moving in the right direction.

“It’s very encouraging time, now that we’re kind of shifting into the political [and] economical development phase of the counterinsurgency,” he said.

(Story by Navy Lt. Jennifer Cragg, New Media Directorate of the Defense Media Activity.)

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Iraqis Expand Counterterrorism Capabilities

Bloggers' Roundtable:

WASHINGTON, July 25, 2008 -- An Iraqi organization tasked with consolidating and coordinating that country’s counterterrorism effort is now capable of conducting unilateral missions, a U.S. military official said yesterday.

“[The Iraqi National Counterterrorism Force’s] primary mission is to synchronize and focus all elements of Iraqi national power to defeat terrorism here in Iraq,” U.S. Army Brig. Gen. Simeon Trombitas, director of the Iraqi National Counterterrorism Force Transition Team, told online journalist and bloggers.

The Iraqi unit was formed in 2003 and has since been trained by U.S. Special Forces soldiers, Trombitas said.

While U.S. forces still train with the specialized Iraqi force and conduct missions with the Iraqis, they’re now capable of running their own missions with limited U.S. help, he said.

“They’re comfortable, at this point in time, doing unilateral operations, even without some of our enablers,” Trombitas explained. “I think that they’re well on the road to conducting the majority of their operations.”

Trombitas attributed the Iraqis’ capability to the high level of training they receive from U.S. Special Forces soldiers.

“They are trained to a high level,” Trombitas said. “Our Special Forces have a high level of confidence in them. They never hesitate to run a mission with each other, and I think that speaks highly of their capability and our guys’ trust in them.”

The Iraqi counterterrorism force’s demanding selection process is similar to that of U.S. Army Special Forces, he said.

“Those things that we expect of our Rangers and Special Forces are the type of things we train [the Iraqis] in,” Trombitas said.

The Iraqi National Counterterrorism Force headquarters is located in Baghdad, but the organization’s leaders are planning to expand capabilities by moving to four other locations throughout the country. The cities include Mosul, Basra, Asad, and Diyala.

“These capabilities will allow us to plan, execute, synchronize air assault operations on multiple objectives, and give us the ability to infiltrate, ex-filtrate, and have casualty evacuation,” Trombitas said.

Right now, there are four operational battalions, a training battalion, and a support battalion.
Trombitas stressed that, while there are no plans for any more battalions, there is a possibility that leaders will split the headquarters due to the size of the battalions.

As a result of the long presence U.S. forces have had in Iraq, Trombitas said he can envision working with Iraqi National Counterterrorism Force troops in the future on other operations.

“Right now there is a battalion of Salvadorians in combat here in Iraq, … and they’re here due to our long presence in working with them,” he said. “I foresee that in the future of Iraq.”

He also lauded the U.S. forces who had a hand in training the Iraqi units. “Our Special Forces are the best in the world, and I think they’ve exemplified that,” Trombitas said. “I’m just awful proud of our effort and theirs in conducting counterterrorism operations.”

(Story by U.S. Navy Seaman William Selby, New Media directorate of the Defense Media Activity.)

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Rebuilt Iraqi Navy to Help Secure Oil Exports

FILE PHOTO - Iraqi Coastal Defense Force (ICDF) Patrol Crafts. (U.S. Navy photo.)

Bloggers' Roundtable:

WASHINGTON, July 23, 2008 -- Iraq’s fledgling navy is gaining prominence within its country’s security forces due to its role in protecting the nation’s oil infrastructure, a coalition advisor said July 22.

British Royal Navy Capt. Paul Abraham, director of the Maritime Strategic Transition Team and senior advisor to the Iraqi navy, explained during a conference call with military bloggers that in addition to quickly expanding their naval force, Iraqi marines and sailors also are fast moving into a lead role in defending Iraq’s major ports and oil terminals from insurgent attack.

“The Iraqi navy's aim is to be able to guard their oil infrastructure, their means of making money,” Abraham said. “The 15 patrol boats, four patrol ships, and the two offshore support vessels, which are the major elements of the navy, are all about protecting the oil platforms and making sure they're secure from a non-state aggressor.”

Those 21 vessels, all more than 34 meters in length, will be delivered in 2009 and 2010, along with 26 smaller craft. The new vessels will add to the navy’s existing fleet of five Chinese “Predator” patrol boats and 10 riverine craft.

The Iraqi navy and its associated marine force moved into a major security role following Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki’s decision in the spring to confront militias operating in Basra, southern Iraq’s largest city. Since then, nearly two battalions of marines were created and trained and ordered to seize the southern Iraqi ports of Umm Qasr and Azerbia, Abraham said.

“Those are the two key ports in Iraq. And Umm Qasr has 90 percent of the imports and exports of the entire country, and was under militia control,” Abraham said. “They very successfully conducted that action, and now the navy holds those ports.”

Abraham said the navy now conducts 42 patrols per week -- a 300 percent increase in activity over the past year -- and contributes to point and perimeter defense of offshore oil platforms, including search-and-seizure operations.

Abraham gave a target of late 2010 or early 2011 for the Iraqis to conduct their counterinsurgency mission independently of coalition assistance. Building the strength and capabilities to face a state aggressor could take until 2018 or later, he said. Until that time, coalition naval forces will maintain an overwatch role, Abraham said.

Bringing the Iraqi navy to its present state was a challenge, Abraham admitted. Contracting setbacks and previously insufficient funding and attention from Iraqi authorities kept it from growing at pace, he said.

“Sometimes it's difficult to persuade the Iraqi Ministry of Defense how important it is to build up their navy with all the other challenges that they've got,” Abraham said. “They are very much land focused, because that's where most of the fight has been.”

The new navy was started in November 2004 with a decision to transition from a coast guard force, Abraham explained.

“Real work didn't start until 2005, so we're three years into this process of rebuilding from ground zero the Iraqi navy,” Abraham added. “But we are [building] successfully, and they are spending their money on developing a navy,” he said.

A separate coast guard force exists to patrol Iraq’s internal waters and the Shatt al-Arab waterway between Iraq and Iran, Abraham noted.

(Sory by Tim Kilbride, New Media Directorate of the Defense Media Activity.)

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