Is European Command still relevant?
I thought I'd throw this topic out for some conversation and I'd like to see what others think:
Is EUCOM relevant, especially with most of the current global conflict occurring in the CENTCOM AOR and with AFRICOM now responsible for some of EUCOM's traditionally hottest spots...
Here's my input: EUCOM is still extremely important.
At Special Operations Exercise Jackal Stone 09 last month, I worked with and learned from men and women from nine other European countries. Although I wasn't serving in a location where I was directly in harm's way, I directly witnessed how important developing international military partnerships with other nations' special operations forces contributes to the fight. For example, I watched as Croatian Special Forces gave a class on breaching techniques to special operations forces from Ukraine, Poland, Macedonia, Romania and Hungary. I observed command update briefs led by Romanian SOF to which U.S. Navy SEALs reported. Then I saw the SEALs give a fastroping class to their Croatian and Romanian counterparts; then they all climbed onto a U.S. MC-130 Combat Shadow and conducted a freefall airborne operation together. I came to truly believe that as these international forces become more interoperable and develop more trust in each other, the ties between them will grow stronger than ever before and they will then better contribute to both regional and worldwide security efforts. The relationships fostered during that exercise, just as with all of EUCOM's multi-national exercises, contributes to the indirect efforts that will ultimately bring security to strife-torn areas of the world.
I also see everyday how SOCEUR components - Naval Special Warfare Unit 2, 1-10 Special Forces Group (Airborne) and 352nd Special Operations Group - all continue to work with our international partners to develop interoperability and strengthen relationships. Just this past year, SOCEUR components completed bilateral training engagements with the Czech Republic, Poland, Hungary, Romania, Germany, Sweden and Norway just to name a few. Our Special Forces Soldiers, SEALs and Special Operations Airmen are constantly building skills and relationships that will contribute to global security. Oftentimes, they also deploy with those forces downrange. 1-10 SFG(A) regularly deploys as a member of ISAF and works with many of the same forces they train with in Germany and throughout Europe.
So, that's my rationale. What's yours?
Maj. Jim Gregory, SOCEUR PAO
Comments: 4
Jim - your post shows that at the tactical level, EUCOM is truly relevant. But what about at the operational and strategic levels? What is EUCOM doing to make sure that these nations' planning staffs are building contingency plans that support US and NATO contingency plans in the AOR? What are we doing to make sure that those battle staffs can talk *secure* to one another over a dispersed battlefield? I do tip my hat to the great training going on here, but if we don't resource the planning and the connectivity, it will be for naught. Good tactics cannot rescue poor C2 and strategy.
Ray - Great point! I can speak for SOCEUR and tell you that while at the Jackal Stone Exercise, we used a NATO system called BICES (Battlefield Information Collection and Exploitation System) to communicate securely as a battlestaff, and we had nine other nations operating and learning alongside us on the system. BICES is a fairly new networked secure system designed to exchange information between NATO nations and approved non-NATO member nations. We also reach out to other countries to assist with development of their special operations capabilities not only at the tactical level, but also the operational level. Jackal Stone was a primary example of that if you consider the huge staff interaction that occurred in the CJSOTF (Combined Joint Special Operations Task Force), but we also do it on a bilateral basis throughout the year. In fact, for the next couple of weeks, we will be exchanging ideas with members of the Hungarian Special Operations staff and we are constantly engaging with other partners on a regular basis.
Well said. Your examples show that we really are Stronger Together.
Europe is closer than AMerica to the hotspots!Therefore it's very relevant....K.I.S.S.