Center for Post-Conflict Peace and Stability Operations

USIP Contributes to New Army Stability Operations Doctrine

October 10, 2008

U.S. Ambassador to Afghanistan Robert Neumann, center, Nuristan's governor Tamim Nuristani, left, and NATO commander in Afghanistan British General David Richards joins their hands for cutting a ribbon during the opening of a Provincial Reconstruction Team. A Provincial Reconstruction Team (PRT) is an administrative unit of international aid to Afghanistan, consisting of a small operating base from which a group of sixty to more than one thousand civilians and military specialists work to perform small reconstruction projects or provide security for others involved in aid and reconstruction work. (AP Photo)

On October 6, the U.S. Army issued a new doctrine on stability operations that was significantly influenced by the Army’s collaboration with USIP. A variety of actors working in the field have been involved in the effort, including the military, U.S. government, non-profit, academic and private sector communities.

The key elements discussed in the Army’s new Field Manual 3–07, are:

• Coordinating U.S. government strategy and interagency efforts
• Linking stability operations to broader military initiatives
• Planning for essential military tasks in such operations
• Defining best practices in military command system support of stability operations
• Interacting with host nation forces in security sector reform

Several recent USIP products helped establish a baseline for the Army to begin outlining its doctrine. Some include:

• Guide for Participants in Peace, Stability, and Relief Operations
• Framework for Success: Fragile States and Societies Emerging from Conflict (PDF - 853 KB)
• Peacebuilding Toolkit on State-Building Competencies
  (PDF - 1 MB)

The Institute also catalyzed the effort through sponsoring the Working Group on Civil-Military Relations in Non-Permissive Environments, launched in March 2005 to improve communication among the NGO, U.S. government and defense communities on stability operations. The group, which meets bimonthly, comprises more than 60 participants, including representatives of non-profits, the defense community, the State Department, the U.S. Agency for International Development and international organizations.

On October 7, USIP, the Center for Strategic and International Studies and the U.S. Army combined Army Combined Arms Center co-sponsored a panel discussion on the doctrine’s release. USIP President Richard H. Solomon discussed the origins of the Institute’s efforts in the field. Solomon also mentioned how the Institute has exercised its convening power through the Working Group on Civil-Military Relations, the Institute’s work with to develop the civilian aspect of the doctrine, and how USIP anticipates professional training for future specialists in the field through its Education and Training Center at the forthcoming USIP permanent headquarters. “What we’re seeing today is really the result of these many communities in which we’ve played a modest but significant coordinating role,” he said.

The new doctrine fits in with the Institute’s broader initiatives in the Center for Post-Conflict Peace and Stability Operations, which designs and manages USIP’s efforts in areas emerging from conflict, and the Rule of Law Center of Innovation, which conducts research, identifies best practices, and develops new tools for policymakers and practitioners working to promote the rule of law.

The Army's new doctrine explains the role of the military and its relationship to civilian agencies in stabilization operations. USIP, in partnership with the Army's Peacekeeping and Stability Operations Institute, is creating companion "doctrine" for the lead U.S. civilian office for stabilization, the Office of the Coordinator for Reconstruction and Stabilization (SCRS), at the Department of State and other U.S. agencies. A draft of this document, whose principles are based on hundreds of official documents from across national, regional and international institutions, is now being vetted. It will be revised and published in 2009. It is the first "doctrine" to be produced for civilians in the world.

Watch the event (CSIS)
Listen to the event (CSIS)
Download the manual from Joint Electronic Library