FORT BENNING, Ga., (Aug. 24, 2016) -- As part of a regional security discussion, international representatives visited Fort Benning Aug. 17 to talk about the key factors influencing the South China Sea dispute.
"Part of the Maneuver Captain's Career Course involves discussions on regional security issues across the world," said Maj. David Gandy, an MCCC small group leader.
The purpose of these discussions is to promote awareness on international issues, Gandy.
According to Gandy, there are many international students in MCCC who are from countries where some of the security issues reside. In order to get a more personal perspective on the matter, students from these countries shared their own opinions on their country's situation.
"It's good for international students to communicate in what may not be their first language as to why they believe the issue to be important," said Gandy.
This isn't the first time discussions have been held on regional security issues, Gandy explained.
"We hold discussions about every six weeks," said Gandy. "We've had officers from Egypt, Israel and Palestine give their point of view on what's going on in their area. As you can imagine, things can get heated sometimes. The point is, though, that we want students to know about the factors in other regions besides the U.S."
Gandy said that even though the U.S. isn't directly involved in the South China Sea dispute, it is still important for officers to know what is going on.
"They are professional officers, who may or may not deploy to one of those countries one day. If anybody is a professional, then they should educate themselves about how the world ticks," said Gandy.
"Especially when you're talking about doing counter insurgence or stability operations where you need to go to a foreign country. It's pretty embarrassing if you don't know anything about that country's religion or language."
Social Sharing