Army Announces Force Structure Actions for Fort Polk, La.

By Mr. Paul Boyce (FORSCOM)September 25, 2008

The Department of the Army announced today, Sept. 25, the planned activations at Fort Polk, La., of the Headquarters, 162nd Infantry Brigade; 1st Battalion, 353d Regiment; 2nd Battalion, 353d Regiment; 3d Battalion, 353d Regiment; 4th Battalion, 353d Regiment; 5th Battalion, 353d Regiment; and, the 6th Battalion, 353d Regiment.

This stationing action establishes the units responsible for Foreign Security Forces Transition Team Training and realigns the security forces training mission from the First Infantry Division, the First Brigade Combat Team from Fort Riley, Kansas, to the 162nd Infantry Brigade.

The realignment of Foreign Security Forces Transition Team training to Fort Polk is operationally imperative to meet enduring mission requirements and to relieve the stress on operational units at Fort Riley. This force structure action establishes a relationship between the Transition Team Training Brigade and the Joint Readiness Training Center in an effort to train U.S. Forces to prepare foreign civilian and military security forces within Afghanistan and Iraq for the transfer of security responsibilities back to the host nations. The Foreign Security Force Transition Team Training Brigade provides rotational units with the capability to provide training, coaching, and mentoring to the Afghanistan National Army and other Afghan Security forces in Afghanistan; and, the Multinational Security Transition Command-Iraq and Iraqi Assistance Group in Iraq.

This stationing action represents an increase of 825 military authorizations and no change in civilian authorizations at Fort Polk. The effective date of this action is March 1, 2009.

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For more information, contact Lt. Col. Lee M. Packnett, (703) 614-2487 at the Office of the Chief of Public Affairs.