European Coalition Task Force
EUCOM is building the European Coalition Task Force (ECTF) to further our partnership efforts. The ECTF's immediate goal will be to generate, train and deploy Operational Mentor and Liaison Teams (OMLT) to Afghanistan.
Latvian and Michigan OMLT Team Members in Afghanistan
OMLTs are small teams of officers and NCOs whose primary task is to coach, teach and mentor Afghan National Army (ANA) units, provide the conduit for liaison and Command and Control and, when required, support the operational planning and employment of the ANA. These teams can be from one country or co-deployments from multiple countries, such as the one currently in Afghanistan composed of Michigan and Latvian soldiers.
As the ANA grows to meet operational requirements in Afghanistan, the need for OMLTs could expand dramatically. The ECTF's charter is to help meet this expanding need with trained OMLTs.
EUCOM will host a conference here at Stuttgart August 17-19 to answer some of the key questions we need answered to define the ECTF's mission and determine its organization. The conference will include representatives from the Department of Defense, the State Department, the National Guard Bureau, the states in EUCOM's State Partnership Program and our component commands. At the conclusion of the conference, we should have all the information we need to develop the ECTF concept of operations.
We're looking forward to hosting the multi-agency team and will report back next week on how the conference went.
Give way together!
BG Jeffrey Marshall
Director, EUCOM Directorate of Mobilization and Reserve Affairs
Comments: 2
Hello Sir, It is very refreshing to see the immense progress of the SPP program. I had the honor of being the first NCOIC of the group standing up the Mobilization and Reserve Affairs Directorate. We were given the empty rooms on the second floor of the former G3 building. There is many an anecdote as to how we furnished those voids and how we "populated" the original directorate. MG Walters from the PAANG was our first boss. HE and I went every morning at 0630 to the G3 brief. Each time I would call the room "At ease" upon his entrance, and we would sit in the last row. One morning , as the deputy/G3, a Marine BG entered, an air force female 03 called the room to attention after our MG and myself were already introduced and seated,to which I intoned a loader "As you were". She gave me the evil eye. The BG respectfully came over and shook MG Walter's hand and proceeded with the rest in attendance to be briefed. At the end of the briefing, I was approached by an irate captain who attempted to berate me for countermanding her announcement as to the entrance of the Deputy G-3, to which I replied: M'am, I belive that even in our Air Force 2 is more than 1. To which she huffed within earshot of MG Walters, well yes, but he is a reservist! To which I replied: How long have you been a captain, lieutenant ? MG Walters and I smiled knowingly all the way back to the office musing as to all the cultural barriers that remained to be overturned. Our biggest daily support came from the EUCOM COS, LTG Richard Kelleher. He was not only an erudite, but military and community wizard. He gave me carte blanche to raid warehouses for our immediate office needs. I made due dilligence of his gracious offer. At the time we had MG Walters, Col. Ron Smith, LTC Zamoijda, a civilian secretary and myself. So we had to get some project officers and staffers on orders ASAP. I'll leave the narration there and you'll let me know Sir, if you're interested in reading more about the modest beginni
We're still on the second floor of the same building, but you wouldn't recognize it. It's been completely remodeled and we now have the entire 2nd floor and half of the first floor. We've come a long way since your initial days. We'd love an account to keep in the records. Thanks for the note!