Our Army continues to uphold the proud legacy of defending our Nation and its interests just as it has for the last 240 years. Today the Army has Soldiers deployed or forward stationed in 150 countries building capacity and conducting partnership activities while simultaneously protecting the homeland in support of civil authorities. We have begun the arduous task of transforming the Army from a force optimized for counterinsurgency to one capable of expeditionary maneuver and joint combined arms operations across the full range of military operations. In the midst of fiscal uncertainty, the steady global demand for Army forces, along with the requirement to maintain relevant, trained, ready and dominant forces, presents us with many challenges. Our aim in the HQDA G-3/5/7 is to meet all of these challenges so that our Army supports National defense strategies, protects our Nation's interests and remains the premiere land force in the world.
MEETING THE DEMANDS OF A COMPLEX WORLD
More than 143,000 Active, National Guard and Army Reserve Soldiers are currently deployed or forward stationed in 150 countries in support of six theater security cooperation plans, seven named operations and other activities. Across the Active Component today, two Corps, ten Divisions and nearly half of all Brigade Combat Teams are committed or preparing to deploy in support of Combatant Command requirements. Similarly, numerous Army National Guard and U.S. Army Reserve units are committed to existing or emerging requirements. Army units are sourcing over half of all Combatant Command validated demand with trained, tailored and culturally attuned forces for missions across the range of military operations -- from projecting power, shaping the security environment and setting the theater to conducting combined arms maneuver, wide area security, cyber activities and special operations.
The Army is adjusting its global force posture to ensure that it is best positioned to respond effectively to existing and/or emerging Combatant Command Joint Force requirements. In accordance with Global Force Management priorities, the Army will increase assignment of Corps and Division Headquarters to selected Combatant Commands to provide Army Service Component Commands the capabilities necessary to exercise mission command in theater, including as a Joint Task Force. Further, the Army will increase assignment of key enablers to select Combatant Commands to ensure that Army Service Component Commands have the capability necessary to shape the security environment and set the theater. In instances where force inventory is not sufficient to allow the Army to assign forces, we will source validated Combatant Command requirements through rotational allocation of designated units.
European Command (EUCOM) in response to Russian aggression in Ukraine is a recent example where rotational forces were allocated to augment assigned forces for contingency response. The Army remains committed to the collective security of our North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) allies and to peace and stability across the EUCOM area of responsibility (AOR). Our commitment is demonstrated by a unique combination of assigned and rotational forces to the NATO Response Force, U.S. Army Europe's regional engagement initiative "Strong Europe" and Operations ATLANTIC RESOLVE and JOINT GUARDIAN.
Rotational forces play a major role in the Central Command AOR. In this region the Army is committed to four named operations: Operations FREEDOM SENTINEL and RESOLUTE SUPPORT in Afghanistan, Operation INHERENT RESOLVE in Iraq and Operation SPARTAN SHIELD in Kuwait. Our forces in Afghanistan and Iraq are working with our partners in the Afghan National Security Forces and the Iraqi Army to build partner capacity through train, advise and assist missions, while Army forces in Kuwait constitute the theater reserve and perform security cooperation activities throughout the region.
Approximately 20% of all Active Component forces are assigned to the Pacific Command AOR. These forces are supplemented with rotational forces as required to meet Combatant Command capability gaps. This is demonstrated by the first deployment of a rotational Armored Brigade Combat Team to South Korea as well as an enduring requirement to provide a Theater High Altitude Area Defense battery to the AOR. Through U.S. Army Pacific's "Pacific Pathways" regional engagement initiative, Brigade Combat Teams are partnering with nations across the AOR -- from Mongolia to Japan and Indonesia - in order to build partner capacity and develop multinational interoperability.
U.S. Army Africa's, implementation of the "African Horizons" regional engagement initiative and participation in two named operations, it is clear that the Army's commitment to Africa has increased exponentially over the past several years. Under "African Horizons," the Army has participated in over 60 security cooperation activities this year alone, to include the multinational exercise Eastern Accord. Through Operation UNITED ASSISTANCE, the Army provided mission command, logistics, training and engineering support to the U.S. Agency for International Development's efforts to contain the Ebola Virus. Through Operation ONWARD LIBERTY, the Army continues to provide security force assistance to the Liberian Armed Forces.
In addition to its theater setting and counter-narcotics operations, the Army recently increased its commitment to Southern Command through the successive rotational allocation of three ARNG Infantry Brigade Combat Teams in support of the Combatant Command's theater security cooperation plan. Through this program, U.S. Army South has partnered with Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador to enhance partner capacity and develop multinational interoperability.
In conjunction with its Joint and interagency partners, U.S. Army North continues its role in Operation NOBLE EAGLE in defense of the Homeland. The Army's multi-component Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear and Explosive Enterprise is trained, validated and ready to respond to an incident without notice. Elements of this organization participated in two national level exercises, Vibrant Response and its first ever Combat Training Center rotation in 2015. Similarly, the lifesaving efforts of our Soldiers during the late spring flooding across Texas, Oklahoma and Louisiana; snow removal in Boston; and our response to civic unrest in Baltimore this past April serve as a visible reminder that the Army remains ready to assist our Nation and our fellow citizens here at home.
Conventional -- Special Operations Forces integration and interoperability is critical to our success in every region. Comprising over half of all personnel assigned to Special Operations Command, Army Special Operations Forces (SOF) from both the Active and Reserve Component provide the Joint Force with unique capabilities such as direct action, counter-terrorism, special reconnaissance, foreign internal defense, unconventional warfare, aviation, civil affairs and psychological operations. Closer integration of Army SOF with our Joint counterparts and Army Conventional Forces enable Combatant Commands to respond immediately and effectively to existing and emerging requirements.
ADAPTING THE ARMY TO A LEANER, FULLY CAPABLE FORCE
In line with the Quadrennial Defense Review and Defense Planning Guidance, the Army has made difficult force structure changes. This year, the Army announced the drawdown of two more Brigade Combat Teams (BCT), from 32 to 30, while redesigning our BCTs to provide the most capable formations. This includes the ongoing addition of the third maneuver battalion to most Infantry BCTs, a battery of M-777 howitzers for long range precision fires and the conversion of the Brigade Special Troops Battalion to a Brigade Engineer Battalion.
The Army's Aviation Restructuring Initiative divests our least capable aircraft while retaining and repurposing some of our most modern and capable systems. The Kiowa Warrior is retiring and AH-64 Apaches, teamed with Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS), will assume the role of the Army's aerial scout. This reorganization requires the transfer of 159 UH-60s to the Reserve Component in exchange for the transfer of 240 AH-64s to the Regular Army. A key component of this restructuring is the fielding of RQ-7B Shadow platoons to team with AH-64E Apache helicopters to build the new Armed Reconnaissance Battalions. The Army is also increasing production and fielding of its MQ-1C Gray Eagle, the Army's newest and most capable UAS, to enhance our ISR capabilities.
READY TO MEET THE NEEDS OF THE NATION
Readiness remains the most critical focus of our Army. The current environment prompted the Army to review how readiness is currently generated and sustained. This has led to a move away from the Army Force Generation (ARFORGEN) model to the new and innovative Sustainable Readiness Model (SRM). This nascent model promotes sustained readiness by eliminating the Reset phase and the associated readiness cliff that every unit experienced post-deployment under ARFORGEN. SRM allows the Army to achieve and preserve readiness at optimal levels for longer periods of time. SRM emphasizes centralized planning and decentralized execution and empowers commanders with the responsibility for readiness.
Demanding, multi-echelon collective training is the key effort to achieving and maintaining unit readiness. A review of how training readiness is generated and reported concluded that greater objectivity and less subjectivity is necessary to more accurately assess unit training readiness. Mission Essential Tasks (MET) currently lack quantifiable and objective measurements, resulting in commander assessments subjectively influencing Training (T) ratings. The desired outcome is a methodology for calculating T-ratings that is nested within OSD and Joint Staff requirements, linked to measurable standards, influenced by execution of key supporting tasks, sensitive to available resources and aligned to a level of maneuver and live fire proficiency. The new Objective T-rating will provide greater granularity to the training readiness of units across the Army by blending the art of command with the scientific metrics of unit training at the individual and collective levels.
Until a balance has been restored between the size of the Army and the resources available for training, it is imperative that leaders at all levels develop tough, realistic, innovative and multi-echelon home station training. The reestablishment of a disciplined training program that allows commanders the ability to focus on training with minimal distracters will provide the framework for training success. Commanders will encounter risk as they develop their unit's training plan given the resources available. This will necessitate the need to weigh the costs and benefits of the unit training plan and the subsequent effect on readiness. The Army has completed a thorough review of all mandatory training requirements in order to mitigate some of this risk. This review resulted in a significant reduction in the time required to conduct training and provide greater latitude to our leaders on how the training will be conducted. Commanders will have to balance the mix of live, virtual and constructive training at every echelon to best utilize the available resources required to achieve the highest levels of training readiness within available resources.
Our Combat Training Centers (CTC) are key to rebuilding our core competencies and provide Army units the most challenging and realistic collective training opportunity available. This training includes Unified Land Operations executed through decisive action in a realistic and complex training environment against a hybrid threat. The Army has incorporated many of the lessons learned from 14 years of combat into CTC rotational design such as the importance of coalition interoperability and interdependence between General Purpose and Special Operations forces. CTC rotational designs challenge units to operate in multiple domains simultaneously including land, air, SOF and cyber thus enabling units to better execute Joint Combined Arms Operations globally. We will continue to ensure that our CTCs provide the best possible training to enhance readiness and expeditionary maneuver across our force.
CONCLUSION
The Total Army, which remains globally responsive and regionally engaged, is seizing the opportunity to transform into a more flexible, agile and lethal organization while concurrently balancing force structure, readiness and training requirements. In cooperation with our commanders, HQDA G-3/5/7 will continue to set priorities and make prudent choices to provide the best possible land force--Active, Guard and Reserve--for the Nation both today and tomorrow. Our Army is and will remain the best-trained, best-equipped and best led combat-tested force in the world.
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