Pacific partner engagements remain increasingly innovative, effective

By David VergunJanuary 26, 2015

Pacific partner engagements remain increasingly innovative, effective
1 / 2 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Lt. Gen. Stephen Lanza, I Corps commanding general, is briefed by his staff in the I Corps joint operations center in Camp Yongin, South Korea, during a combined arms rehearsal meeting, Aug. 21, 2014. Soldiers of I Corps and Third Republic of Korea a... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
Pacific partner engagements remain increasingly innovative, effective
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WASHINGTON (Jan. 23, 2015) -- The Army has always had a footprint in the Pacific region. But in the past, training exercises with those nations were not linked together in a meaningful way that would reflect complex operational dynamics, said Lt. Gen. Stephen R. Lanza.

Today, exercises are taking place simultaneously in different places -- South Korea, Japan, the Philippines, Alaska, and Hawaii, for example -- with multiple command posts using forces that are adaptable and scalable, he explained.

Lanza serves as commander of I Corps, at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, or JBLM, in Washington. He spoke at a media roundtable at the Pentagon, Jan. 23.

This new way of engaging with partners, he said, comes from the Army Operating Concept, which serves as a blueprint for winning in a complex world by preventing conflict from occurring in the first place and by shaping the security environment by training and collaborating with partner nations.

Lanza then added some developing news: the 7th Infantry Division, an I Corps component that was stood up to be a training readiness oversight headquarters for the brigades at JBLM, is now going through the process of possibly operationalizing its headquarters. That would make it deployable.

PACIFIC PATHWAYS

An effective part of the Army's "prevent, shape, win" strategy is the "Pacific Pathways" concept, which began last year, Lanza said.

The first Pacific Pathways exercise involved the active duty Army, Army National Guard and Army Reserve, as well as the militaries of partner nations of Indonesia, Malaysia and Japan.

The second Pacific Pathways, beginning at the end of January, will partner the Army in training exercises with Thailand, Korea and the Philippines.

The Pacific Pathways exercises are conducted as "an operation, a deployment, experimentation and innovation" all rolled into one, Lanza said. "They allow us to rehearse with different countries, conduct reconnaissance and build relationships in the human domain."

Besides that, he said, participation in Pacific Pathways helps increase the overall readiness of U.S. forces through high-fidelity training.

In addition to Pacific Pathways, the Army participates in bilateral exercises such as Yama Sakura, the last iteration of which wrapped up last month with Japan's Eastern Army.

"It's been extremely important working with the Japanese Ground Self-Defense Force," Lanza said, noting that the next bilateral exercise with Japan will involve the Middle Army. Japan has a total of five armies.

Yama Sakura involved an I Corps headquarters set up in Japan, working simultaneously with the Japanese headquarters. They shared intelligence, targeting information and supporting rear operations, he said.

The relationship is a two-way street, he said. Japanese forces come to the U.S. to train each year as well. They participate annually in Exercise Rising Thunder at JBLM and also at the National Training Center at Fort Irwin, California.

PARTNERSHIP BENEFITS

"Our relationship with Japan and most countries in the Pacific region continues to grow and expand," Lanza said.

Besides military-to-military benefits of Pacific partnering, there are other benefits that sow goodwill between nations, he said. For instance, a lot of the armies in the Pacific are also their countries' primary first responders. The Army plays an important role in helping them to expand their capacity and build more capabilities.

And, in addition to working with other militaries, the Army is building links to government and nongovernmental agencies to coordinate responses, such as with the State Department, he said.

The Army is also working closely with its sister services. "We need the capabilities of all the services," Lanza said, adding that the way ahead requires "multicomponent solutions."

For instance, the Army is working closely with the Navy's 7th Fleet and the Marine Corps' III Marine Expeditionary Force and I MEF. After a recent typhoon in the Philippines, the Marines provided an effective and rapid first response and the Army followed on to provide sustainment and logistical support.

"We're not going to fight as a single service anymore," he emphasized.

The Army, he noted, brings unique and valuable capabilities that nations throughout the Pacific appreciate. Such capabilities include brigades of engineers, medical, fires, aviation, civil affairs, and military police that add layers of "depth and capacity for any contingency."

As for future challenges, Lanza said he thinks improving and protecting the network and establishing more robust communications with partner nations will continue to be important. These are "growth areas in the Army," he said.

Another challenge will be countering weapons of mass destruction, particularly on the Korean peninsula. I Corps is working on that with Special Forces and with the 20th Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear and high-yield Explosives Command, he said.

BEARING FRUIT

I Corps' reach extends from JBLM to India, Australia, Japan and Alaska and includes the 7th ID, 593rd Expeditionary Sustainment Command, 25th ID, I Corps Forward in Japan and combat brigades in Alaska.

"Our forces are extremely busy, both globally responsive and regionally aligned," Lanza said.

The relationships the Army and its sister services bring to the Pacific region are now bearing fruit as a result of the trust and teamwork they foster with partner nations, Lanza concluded.

Those relationships will continue to bear even more fruit in the coming years, he said, calling it "a return on investment."

Lanza cautioned that maintenance of those relationships require that the Pacific strategy continue to be fully resourced.

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Related Links:

Army News Service

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Joint Base Lewis-McChord

I Corps

Lieutenant General Stephen R. Lanza