DefenseNews.com, May 25, 2010, “Gates Orders Services To Adopt McChrystal’s COIN Standards,” by John T. Bennett: “Defense Secretary Robert Gates has directed the U.S. military services to adopt a set of counterinsurgency tools modeled after ones instituted in Afghanistan by Army Gen. Stanley McChrystal, said a senior Pentagon official.”
Do you remember that the idea was to take the kinds of COIN training and “proficiency” standards that McChrystal implemented there with his “AfPak Hands” program.
A Joint Staff fact sheet calls it a language and cultural immersion effort under which U.S. forces gain skills to help them carry out COIN missions. Military officials have made gaining the trust and support of local populations in Afghanistan a cornerstone of the ongoing allied mission there – AfPak Hands is aimed at bolstering that effort.
It goes without saying that every service member needs some understanding of the local population, Islam, culture and language
Now if that was all it was, it would be a good program. However, the restricted rules of engagement for “judicious restraint,” no air strikes, and almost a rule of take a bullet before you return fire, has not been very popular with the troops in contact.
Note that this memo was sent May 25th, so we may excuse the fact that a lot has happened since then. Finally, after a year of drips and drabs most experts are saying that the COIN policies in Afghanistan are a failure.
I agree.
