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STAND-TO! Edition: Tuesday, May 3, 2011

Today's Focus:

New Brigade Combat Team Counterinsurgency Seminars

SENIOR LEADERS ARE SAYING

"That is true now, in today's wars. It has been true in all of our wars. And it is why we are here today. Long ago, a poet of the First World War wrote of the sacrifice of young Soldiers in war:

They shall not grow old, as we that are left grow old,
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning
We will remember them."

- President Obama, the commander-in-chief of the U.S. Military, sharing his pride of the men and women in uniform, at the White House Medal of Honor ceremony honoring Pfc. Anthony Kaho'ohanohano and Pfc. Henry Svehla and their families

Families of two fallen Soldiers receive Medal of Honor

WHAT THEY'RE SAYING

"I think it's a tremendous achievement. It shows that persistence and attention to detail, agility, flexibility, working together with special operations forces and the intelligence community - it pays off."

- Maj. Rob Born, brigade operations officer, 101st Airborne Division's 4th Brigade Combat Team, emphasizing that Osama bin Laden's death is a validation of the nation's efforts to combat terrorism

Task force assesses likely impact of bin Laden's death

TODAY'S FOCUS

New Brigade Combat Team Counterinsurgency Seminars

What is it?

The Army Counterinsurgency Center begins conducting pre-deployment counterinsurgency (COIN) training in May 2011 for Brigade Combat Team leaders. The focus of the seminar is to ground units in counterinsurgency, operational environment, and the theater campaign plan to prepare them to conduct counterinsurgency in full spectrum operations in the Afghan and Iraq theaters. Outcomes for the units are:

• grounded in insurgency, counterinsurgency and stability doctrine and practices
• immersed in and refreshed on the current operational environment to include the Theater Campaign Plan
• exposed to outstations, agencies, experts and knowledge management forums
• enabled to refine and issue the BCT Commander's planning guidance for training and development of the BCT Campaign Plan
• provided opportunity for team building

Units for several years have participated in battle command seminars in a COIN environment, conducted by the Army Battle Command Training Program. The new COIN Seminar focuses content on COIN, operational environment, and the theater campaign plan.

What has the Army done?

Unlike the era from the early 1960s through the early 2000s, COIN is now a mission that the entire Army, not just the Special Operations Forces, must master. The importance of that mastery has been clearly stated by Secretary of Defense Gates: "Units and individuals (both military and civilian) preparing to serve in Afghanistan must understand COIN and routinely assess the effectiveness of these standards in actual operational conditions." The COIN Center is basing the new seminars on the recently released COMISAF COIN Qualification Standards, approved by Secretary Gates in November 2010, as the "intellectual foundation."

What continued efforts does the Army have planned for the future?

The Army is developing a strategy to provide instruction and training on the approved standards to all deploying units. Army Forces Command is determining where training on these standards should occur-home station, Joint Readiness Training Center, National Training Center, or the Counterinsurgency Seminar.

Why is this important to the Army?

BCTs receive COIN seminar education early during the pre-deployment schedule to enable commanders to tailor their training to incorporate COIN theory, doctrine, and best practices. Conducting the seminar at the earliest possible point will also allow commanders to issue and refine their planning guidance as they develop their campaign plan. Units will schedule COIN seminars at the beginning of their ARFORGEN cycle during FORSCOM scheduling conferences. Seminars will occur at the Army Combined Arms Center, Fort Leavenworth, Kan.

Resource:

U.S. Army COIN Center website

STAND-TO! NEWS

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