Rear Adm. Harris held numerous leadership positions ashore and afloat. His most recent assignments include tours in the Washington, D.C., area at the Institute for National Strategic Studies in the National Defense University; the Navy staff in the Assessment Division (OPNAV N81) Campaign Analysis, Modeling and Simulation branch; and the Joint Chiefs of Staff (J-5) Strategic Plans and Policy Directorate as the Global Security Affairs Division chief for Security Assistance. He was a senior fellow in the Chief of Naval Operations Strategic Studies Group (SSG XXVI).
In May 2008, Harris returned to the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations as the deputy director, Expeditionary Warfare Division (OPNAV N85B). The admiral was the commander, Expeditionary Strike Group 5. Harris now serves on the Chief of Naval Operations staff as the director, Navy Irregular Warfare Office (NIWO). The admiral responded to CHIPS questions in writing in June.
CHIPS: As commander of ESG 5, you commanded U.S. Task Forces 51, 52, 55 and 59, overseeing a wide range of missions including maritime security operations and crisis response. When we talked at the Sea Air Space Exposition in April, you referenced the "whole of government" approach for responding to a variety of missions. Can you explain what you mean?
Harris: This is an evolving dialogue. Once we called it 'interagency' and lately, I have heard it referred to as a 'Comprehensive Government Approach.' There are even those that want to enlist private agencies, businesses and the NGO (nongovernmental organization) community by referring to a 'Whole of Nation or Society' approach. No matter what you call it, it is clear that many of the challenges the Navy confronts cannot be addressed by military means alone.
Increasingly, we are discovering that the most effective way to deal with our world's complex menu of security challenges, like piracy, or responding to a humanitarian disaster, requires the participation and expertise of multiple departments and agencies across the U.S. government — and international organizations like the United Nations. Terms like this address a growing recognition that the opportunities and challenges we face are so complex, and so interconnected, that no single agency possesses the depth of expertise, requisite authorities and specialized skill sets required to successfully execute these missions.
For example, in counterpiracy [operations] the Navy works with U.S. Coast Guard law enforcement teams, coalition partners, the Department of State, Justice, other intelligence agencies, and even private firms to detect, track and interdict the proliferation of piracy.
ESG-5's support to aid flood victims in Pakistan last year was also based on this concept. In addition to Navy-Marine Corps forces, Army and Air Force specialists were vital to our success. Mostly, the military worked in support of Department of State and in coordination with USAID (U.S. Agency for International Development) and [the] World Food Program to deliver food, water and other supplies. And, all this was in support of and in concert with the Government of Pakistan.
CHIPS: You said while you were leading the antipiracy task force, you were inspired by the participation of navies from a wide range of countries including China and Iran. Can you talk about how the coalition of navies work together?
Harris: I did not lead in the antipiracy effort, but was one of many commanders supporting that effort. The task forces confronting piracy off the Horn of Africa and Gulf of Aden are an excellent example of maritime cooperation in action. There are multiple task forces executing this mission — Combined Maritime Force, NATO, EU (European Union) and others. These groups work in coordination, and de-confliction of zones of responsibility and operation is a continuing issue.
Overall, the international effort is largely a story of successful partnering among a coalition of the willing. There are multiple efforts, albeit with differing rules of engagement and responsibilities, but all are focused on counterpiracy.
Combined Task Force 151 is the U.S. Navy component to this effort. There is a European Union Naval Force working this mission, along with CTF 152, which is an international force deployed to counter piracy. CTF-152 is also a success story — that command rotates among different nations, including Bahrain, India, Singapore and others.
Then there are those who we refer to as the ‘independent operators’ to include Russia, China, and even Iran, who have ships deployed in the region to protect their own cargo vessels.
While not formally part of any of the international counterpiracy efforts, U.S. Navy forces have in the past engaged with the naval forces of these nations. There are always communications taking place between ships to understand missions, intent, position and other information.
These so called ‘bridge-to-bridge’ contacts can often prove valuable and knock down barriers in terms of language and better understanding in how different navies operate.
CHIPS: State Department representatives say that solving the piracy situation off the coast of Somalia is difficult and complicated by many factors including Somalia’s weak government and dire poverty. In addition to patrolling the waters off Somalia, what can be done to discourage piracy and assist in the economic development of Somalia?
Harris: This is an issue that the Department of State is working with its Piracy Contact Group. They are much better suited to answer that question.
CHIPS: We also talked about the push to formalize a comprehensive approach to a variety of mission sets instead of the ad hoc methods commanders are forced to use as new requirements develop. Are you working to formalize U.S. government, public, private and international partnerships, as well as procedures for integration and interoperability with partners?
Harris: NIWO is working to formalize how we as a Navy work with others in this approach. We meet regularly with groups in and outside of DoD to see how to better integrate and operate.
CHIPS: The Navy’s vision for irregular warfare describes a number of objectives to overcome threats, such as promoting regional security by training nations in maritime security; enhanced regional awareness of activities and social dynamics for a deeper understanding of cultural, ethnic and socioeconomic norms; and promoting economic opportunities and regional stability to help vulnerable populations from turning to terrorist or criminal activity. These are ambitious and complicated objectives. How will your office further progress in these objectives?
Harris: All of these objectives and efforts take place within the overall context of the strategies and goals that the U.S. government, through the State Department and DoD regional combatant commanders, want to see implemented.
To better define and comprehensively explain what the naval force contribution to these mission sets is all about, the Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard are cooperatively developing a doctrine for maritime stability. This document should be completed later this year and will be integrated into the larger joint guidance for Security Force Assistance.
Second, the Navy continues to expand and make investments in growing its Language, Regional Expertise and Culture (LREC) elements across the service. An overall plan is now being implemented with the goal of teaching vital languages to our service members to prepare them to confront irregular challenges when needed.
A good operational example of how these objectives are put into practice can be seen in the Africa Partnership Station deployments. Originally only focused on the East Coast of Africa, APS had expanded to the west coast and the Gulf of Guinea region over the last year.
Through repeated deployments and working with local naval forces these APS deployments have boosted the overall naval proficiency and training of regional forces. The bottom line of APS is to help local navies better patrol, enforce and conduct missions across the irregular challenges seascape so that extremists, and other unlawful elements that undermine the role of good governance, cannot establish themselves.
CHIPS: The Chief of Naval Operations said, “Leveraging the maritime domain will dissuade, deter and defeat irregular actors who seek to undermine security, stability and property.” How will this be achieved?
Harris: Securing the maritime commons is absolutely vital to the continued prosperity the world’s nations enjoy from globalization and trade. A host of underlying trends, ranging from changing demographics to more severe humanitarian disasters, are expected to create more issues across the littorals and lead to the proliferation of irregular challenges in coming years.
That is what the Navy’s ‘Vision for Confronting Irregular Challenges’ is all about — to engage with local forces on a persistent basis to improve their ability to confront these challenges before they spiral out of control and result in the formation of new ungovernable places like Somalia.
Confronting irregular challenges across the maritime domain is a top priority. But deterring and defeating irregular actors is increasingly a concern to the world’s naval leaders as well. In October 2009, over 100 of the chiefs of navies from around the world gathered at the Naval War College to discuss such common issues as maritime domain awareness and improving cooperation and communication. It was a resounding success, and the next International Seapower Symposium will take place later this year.
U.S. Navy’s Vision for Confronting Irregular Challenges
STABILIZE … STRENGTHEN … SECURE
Vision Statement
The U.S. Navy will meet irregular challenges through a flexible, agile, and broad array of multi-mission capabilities. We will emphasize Cooperative Security as part of a comprehensive government approach to mitigate the causes of insecurity and instability. We will operate in and from the maritime domain with joint and international partners to enhance regional security and stability, and to dissuade, deter, and when necessary, defeat irregular threats. We will confront irregular challenges by focusing on the following outcomes.
• Increased effectiveness in stabilizing and strengthening regions, by securing and leveraging the maritime domain, with and in support of national and international partners.
• Enhanced regional awareness of activities and dynamics to include a deeper understanding of ethnic, cultural, and socioeconomic characteristics and norms.
• Increased regional partner capacity for maritime security and domain awareness.
• Expanded coordination and interoperability with joint, interagency, and international partners.
To read the U.S. Navy’s Vision for Confronting Irregular Challenges, go to the CNO’s homepage on Navy.mil: www.navy.mil/cno/index.asp.
For more information about the work of the U.S. Department of State Piracy Contact Group, go to www.state.gov/.
Editor’s Note: The Chief of Naval Operations and president of the U.S. Naval War College will co-host the 20th International Seapower Symposium at the U.S. Naval War College in Newport, R.I. Oct. 18-21, 2011. This event will allow the CNO to interact with his counterparts, chiefs of navies and coast guards from around the globe. For more information go to www.usnwc.edu/Events/International-Seapower-symposium/ISS.aspx. The 20th ISS theme is “Security and Prosperity through Maritime Partnerships.”