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WASHINGTON, D.C., 

Mar 8, 2012 — General Carter F. Ham, commander of U.S. Africa Command, talked about U.S. Africa Command's top priorities during an interview with Renee Montagne, for the "Morning Edition: of National Public Radio (NPR), March 8, 2012.

Ham described three major terrorist groups in Africa -- Al-Shabaab, Al-Qaeda in the Lands of the Islamic Maghreb, and Boko Haram -- as contributing to regional instability in Africa and becoming of increasing concern to the global community.

U.S. Africa Command's primary mission, according to Ham, is to strengthen the defense capabilities of African partners while advancing the national security interests of the United States.

"We think in the long run it's the Africans who are best able to address the security concerns," Ham said. "And sometimes a little bit of help from us will allow them to perform their security missions more capably. We think that's not only in their best interest but our best interest as well."

U.S. Africa Command approaches its mission with a light footprint maintaining only a small operating base in Djibouti, Camp Lemonnier, the operating location not only for Combined Joint Task Force - Horn of Africa, but also Central Command, U.S. Special Operations Command, and U.S. Transportation Command.

"In most of the rest of the continent of Africa, our military presence is very small and specifically tailored to the mission sets that our required," Ham said, describing as an example the deployment of special forces advisors to help the militaries of Uganda, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of Congo, and the Republic of South Sudan counter the Lord's Resistance Army.

Ham explained that the advisors are assisting African militaries in an advise-and-assist role only, with the role of helping provide intelligence, logistics support, communications, training, equipment. He described the LRA as a small but vicious organization that has a significant adverse affect on regional stability. He stated, "They have caused the displacement of many tens of thousands of people. They've disrupted economies, they've disrupted good governance, they undermine regional stability."

The full transcript of the interview is provided below:

RENEE MONTAGNE: (In progress) -- command, known as AFRICOM, based in Germany -- in Stuttgart, Germany. And General Carter Ham leads the U.S. Africa Command and joined us from the Pentagon. Good morning.

GENERAL CARTER HAM: Good morning, Renee. Thank you.

MS. MONTAGNE: You know, you testified just recently to the House Armed Services Committee, last week in fact. You said your top priority is security threats posed by al-Qaeda affiliates in Africa. Could you please give us a thumbnail of those groups -- and I mean, very short -- but could you give us a thumbnail of those groups and where they are in Africa?

GEN. HAM: Certainly. There are three major terrorist groups with which we are concerned. In East Africa, operating primarily out of Somalia, is a group known as al-Shabaab, who on the 9th of February publicly announced a formal affiliation with al-Qaeda senior leaders. And we have been watching them for some time.

In the north and western part of the continent, we see an organization known as al-Qaeda in the Lands of the Islamic Maghreb, again an al-Qaeda-affiliated organization that began with the intent of overthrowing the Algerian government, but has since morphed or changed into an al-Qaeda affiliate with broader regional aspirations. And then more recently, in Nigeria, an organization known as Boko Haram has emerged as an increasingly violent organization which is creating significant regional instability.

MS. MONTAGNE: I -- I’m going to just ask you before I go on to my next set of questions -- you know, there’s a -- could you back off the mic just a little? There’s a little bit of --

GEN. HAM: Yeah, sure.

MS. MONTAGNE: -- this kind of thing going on -- (blows on mic) -- ah, blowing. And just say a few words -- (inaudible) – backed off the mic.

GEN. HAM: OK. How’s that? All right, I back off a little bit. Is that a little bit better?

MS. MONTAGNE: Yeah.

GEN. HAM: OK.

MS. MONTAGNE: Yeah. That sounds great. That sounds great.

So, yes. Well, let me -- let me go on with that. So there are these three main groups, and they’re of great concern. But one of the biggest terrorist attacks in the ’90s was in Africa -- a very deadly coordinated assault on two American embassies. Is it still the threat -- are you still concerned with the threat to American interests on the continent, or do you see Africa as a potential staging ground for attacks against terrorism in the U.S.?

GEN. HAM: It is --

MS. MONTAGNE: Or a staging ground for -- do you see it, I’m sorry, as a staging ground for terrorist attacks in the U.S.?

GEN. HAM: Yeah. It is both, Renee. We’re charged with ensuring the security of Americans, America and American interests from threats that might emanate from the continent of Africa. We have seen certainly the two embassy attacks, but also kidnappings of American citizens, other indications that these organizations have the aspirations of attacking Americans or American interests in Africa, but also an increasing concern that they are expressing the intent to export their attacks throughout other parts of Africa, into Europe and certainly -- probably aspirational at this point -- but to attack the homeland as well.

MS. MONTAGNE: And to do that the U.S. has rather as small force in -- AFRICOM is a very small footprint in Africa.

GEN. HAM: We are. And we think that’s appropriate for the conditions. Our primary mission, while advancing the national security interests of our own country, is principally to strengthen the defense capabilities of our African partners. We think in the long run it’s the Africans who are best able to address the security concerns. And sometimes a little bit of help from us will allow them to perform their security missions more capably. And we think that’s not only in their best interest but in our best interest as well. So a light footprint is the right approach, I think, for Africa.

MS. MONTAGNE: Well, the U.S. does have a small base in Djibouti, which is in the Horn of Africa, which -- to get a little geographical placement -- the Horn of Africa which is East Africa, in the area that -- you know, around Somalia, Sudan, that whole region. Describe that base for us and how it fits into this defense strategy.

GEN. HAM: The base from which we operate in Djibouti is vitally important, not only for us at U.S. Africa Command but also for Central Command, for U.S. Special Operations Command and for Transportation Command. The geographic location of Djibouti places it right at the Horn of Africa, so at the intersection of the Gulf of Aden and the Red Sea, directly across the Gulf of Aden from Yemen, which is an important area for U.S. Central Command. It’s a major shipping line for commerce. And it also is a great platform from which we can extend our reach into other parts of East Africa, where we do lots of training activities, civil affairs missions and the like.

MS. MONTAGNE: Well, you know, if one were to look down on the continent, you’d see this base in Djibouti, you’d see it sort of across the water from Yemen, near Somalia and some hot spots that we’ve been knowing about for many years. But what else would you see? Where else on the continent would you see American forces, and how -- what would they be and what would they be doing?

GEN. HAM: In most of the rest of the continent of Africa, our presence -- our military presence is very small and specifically tailored to the mission sets that are required. For example, many listeners I think will recall a few months ago when President Obama announced the deployment of about a hundred special forces advisers to help the militaries of Uganda, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of Congo and the Republic of South Sudan to counter the threat posed by a violent organization known as the Lord’s Resistance Army. So we’ve got about a hundred folks in that part of Africa -- that four-country part of Africa working on that mission.

More on the -- in West Africa our presence is more likely to be maritime, where we may have a ship conducting visits. We recently concluded a maritime security exercise in the Gulf of Guinea with a U.S. Navy ship that partnered with many African navies and coast guards as well. We have a small presence in Liberia where about 60 American service members from all services are helping the new armed forces of Liberia prepare for their missions.

And at any one time, you’ll see across the continent small groups of American service members -- sometimes as few as two or three, sometimes a couple of hundred -- participating in specifically tailored exercises which we shape -- or hope to shape the defense capabilities of our partners.

MS. MONTAGNE: Well, that’s -- to talk about the fight in Uganda alongside soldiers there -- and I guess I should be careful of this -- let’s talk for a moment about the Lord’s Resistance Army and that particular mission. You’ve got those combat-ready forces aiding Uganda’s soldiers to track down the really notorious leader of this group that’s been terrorizing Central Africa for years. But what American interest is served by getting American forces involved in a fight that does seem be basically local or regional to Africa?

GEN. HAM: Well, first I -- just to be clear, our personnel are there in an advise-and-assist role, not in a specific role to conduct operations to counter the Lord’s Resistance Army. That’s the responsibility, and rightfully so, of the four African nations which are involved. They asked for a little bit of help from us, and we’re glad to provide it. So our role is principally in helping provide some intelligence, some logistics support, communications over the long distances that are involved here, a little bit of equipping and a little bit of training. So it’s a partnering effort that I think is important.

It’s a fair question to say why should the U.S. care about this. The Lord’s Resistance Army, though very small, is a very vicious organization. And as I tell people when I talk about the Lord’s Resistance Army, if you ever had any doubt that there’s really evil in this world, all you need to do is do some online research and read about the activities of this organization. It’s pretty horrific what they do.

But from a larger standpoint, they have caused the displacement of many tens of thousands of people. They’ve disrupted economies, they’ve disrupted good governance, they undermine regional stability. And that’s inherently -- aside from the humanitarian aspect, but from a security standpoint that’s why we’re concerned, is because this group does have a significant adverse effect on regional stability.

MS. MONTAGNE: And does it also further an American interest, which would be becoming partners of choice for some of these African nations?

GEN. HAM: Well, I’m obviously not an unbiased observer in this. But it’s clear to me that I would like for our African partners to view us as their security partner of choice. And we strive to do that by building relationships and investing in human capital.

MS. MONTAGNE: Which gets us to the Arab Spring. You have said -- and said-- I think I’m right on this, because I've read so much I might be mixing it up – but you have said that, by way of explaining what’s being done with AFRICOM, that Libya, for instance, did not have a military-to-military relationship with the U.S. before the Arab Spring, but it now does.

And you could call it the North African spring just as easily. And AFRICOM was the first to send missiles into Libya in that time before NATO got involved. How much effect has all that transition have had -- how much effect has that transition have -- I can’t say it -- how much effect has the Arab Spring have -- had on your mission?

GEN. HAM: It’s had a very significant effect. First of all, the conduct of military operations in Libya were, indeed, led by U.S. Africa Command in the first couple of weeks before the transition to NATO. That’s what geographic combatant commands are expected to do -- respond to directions by the president and the secretary of defense, and when necessary to conduct military operations. It’s obviously not the preferred course of action, but sometimes it’s -- that’s what’s necessary. And so we were -- we were prepared to do that, and I think successfully completed our mission and a transition to NATO.

It did afford now the opportunity to establish a military-to-military relationship with Libya which did not previous exist. And we found the Libyans, first of all, to be a very proud people, but they’re also -- they’re also very understanding of the need to establish security across the country and also to contribute to regional stability. They have asked us for some assistance, and we’re seeking to establish what I would call a normal military-to-military relationship with Libya.

This entails obviously the presence of a defense attaché who is in-country now; the establishment of what we call an office of security cooperation that facilitates the exchange of military officers for training and education, which could lead to military sales, training and the like -- so again, an establishment of a normal relationship.

We see much the same thing, though less violently, in Tunisia. In fact, Tunisia is probably a little ahead of Libya. Now they’ve had their election; they’ve seated their government and are moving on a very positive trend. And we’re in contact with the Tunisians -- and have a very good relationship with their minister of defense and with their chief of defense -- to find ways in which we can cooperate on mutual concerns in the security arena.

MS. MONTAGNE: You know, one thing, you know, which I might have asked you before but it actually -- it still fits here, is: How -- what is the role of special forces in AFRICOM?

GEN. HAM: There’s a great need for special operations forces of a wide variety of capabilities across the continent. Some, for example, special forces are operating to assist the African countries in countering the Lord’s Resistance Army. It’s a core competency of special forces to do training of indigenous forces. So it’s natural -- it’s a natural fit for them.

Special operations forces also come most often with an increased level of cultural awareness, language capability and regional understanding. They’re targeted, they’re focused on a specific part of the world. And that helps us as well.

We tend sometimes to think of special operations forces almost exclusively as a war fighting capability, but they also are very good in the civil affairs arena and in many other aspects of what Africa Command is charged with doing. It’s -- the challenge for us is to blend the right special operations capability with the great capabilities of our conventional forces to achieve the right mix, the right balance of capabilities in working with our African partners.

MS. MONTAGNE: Although we do hear about special forces when something -- we do hear about special forces when they do something, as they did recently, like rescue two international aid workers, one of whom was an American, from Somali pirates.

GEN. HAM: That was -- that was pretty amazing, to watch that. I don’t think there’s any force anywhere else on the world that could have done what that group did.

MS. MONTAGNE: And is -- are -- not necessarily special forces, but there’s an expression you use -- the military uses that applies particularly I think to Africon -- AFRICOM, sorry -- to the African Command, and that is lily pads?

GEN. HAM: Well, that -- I mean, it’s not a term that I use, but others have referred to small operating locations in a geographic area, in our case in Africa, from which we can operate should the need arise. So for example, tying two of these issues we’ve talked about together, the hostage rescue conducted in Somalia was very reliant upon the base in Djibouti. So from -- with --- having that base there allowed us the capability to assemble a force very quickly and conduct a -- what ended up being a highly successful operation.

MS. MONTAGNE: And that base, it has how many what you might call permanent troops stationed there? And then serves how many altogether?

GEN. HAM: Well, we’ve got about 2,500 U.S. personnel at the base in Djibouti right now. And it -- we’ve been around that number for the past couple of years. I suspect in the coming years we’ll probably -- that number will probably decline a little bit. But about 2,000 is, I think, the right number for us into the future, given the missions I expect will be required of us.

MS. MONTAGNE: Well just, General, one last question. AFRICOM is based now in Germany. And one might think, on the outside, that it would be much better off to have headquarters in Africa. Now African countries and the African Union have resisted that. But is it -- would it be better, and are there prospects for moving headquarters to Africa?

GEN. HAM: Well, to be correct, some African countries welcomed and invited the presence of U.S. Africa Command headquarters in their countries. Others very strongly resisted it when the command was formed several years ago. Then-Secretary Gates -- along with my predecessor General Ward, who was the great first commander of this command -- made a decision in those early days to delay any final decision as to the basing of the headquarters until this year, until 2012.

So at present there is a study ongoing, led by the Department of Defense staff and the joint staff here at the Pentagon, to weigh various alternatives as to where the headquarters should be. I would say that we are very well served by our headquarters in Germany. It allows us good access to the continent of Africa. We have great facilities, great host-nation support, and it’s a good base from which to operate.

There are challenges with operating in Africa, but there are certainly some opportunities as well. However, I’d say right now, in this era of fiscal constraint in which we find ourselves, establishing a brand-new base in Africa to house a major command such as Africa Command is a very expensive proposition. And I think probably, in this fiscal environment, that’s not the right way for us to proceed.

MS. MONTAGNE: Well, what countries have been open to having AFRICOM based there?

GEN. HAM: Well, I think it’s best for the African countries -- those who would like us and those who don’t like us -- it’s probably best for them to speak for themselves.

MS. MONTAGNE: (Chuckles.) OK, all right. Because you know, I interviewed General Ward, and actually we had this same conversation. And he did elaborate, so we’ll probably cut that part. But he did elaborate on the concerns that African countries had, and the pressures in the sense of being leery about an -- you know, for their own security and whatnot -- about having a base there. So it’s not like it’s sort of a shocking thing. It’s -- you know --

GEN. HAM: Right. No, it’s not. But I think, again, the cost involved in putting us on the continent -- and frankly the commercial air traffic, which is -- which most of the staff -- which is how we move most of the staff in Africa, is still somewhat problematic, bouncing around inside Africa. In some cases going from point to point to Africa necessitates a return to Europe anyway. So that’s a factor as well.

MS. MONTAGNE: Yeah, well I also thought, with North Africa suddenly -- I mean really, I thought with the Arab Spring, with things that are going on in East Africa, that maybe Germany made more sense if you really look at the air routes and whatnot.

GEN. HAM: It works well for us. We’re adjacent to a large international airport in Stuttgart that allows us ready access. So I -- again, we’re very well served by our present location.

MS. MONTAGNE: General, thanks very much for speaking with us.

GEN. HAM: OK, Renee, thank you very much.

MS. MONTAGNE: General Carter Ham is the head of the U.S. Africa Command, speaking to us from the Pentagon.

There you -- thank you.

GEN. HAM: OK.

MS. MONTAGNE: I really appreciate taking the time.

GEN. HAM: OK. Thanks.

MS. MONTAGNE: Bye-bye.

GEN. HAM: Bye.

MS. MONTAGNE: All right, bye-bye.


(END)