16-18_Multinational interoperability Reference Guide Handbook (Jul 16) (Public).pdf [PDF - 4.9 MB]
The challenges and complexity of the future will require the Army to provide a broader range of capabilities to achieve strategic outcomes across a complex and diverse range of global missions. The Army Vision cites “integrate operations” as one of the unique roles performed by the Army, providing combatant commanders with foundational capabilities, to include headquarters capable of integrating joint, interagency, and multinational operations. In the future, the need for interoperability will extend to lower echelons of Army forces in order to effectively integrate smaller national contributions into multinational operations.
The Army Vision further describes interoperability as one of eight key characteristics of the Army of 2025.
As the foundation upon which other U.S., allied, and multinational capabilities will operate, the Army of 2025 must be interoperable by easily supporting and enabling joint, whole-of-government, and multinational land-based operations. We must develop and advance a base technological architecture into which other military Services, U.S. government agencies, and allies and partners can easily “plug and play.”
Improving the Army’s multinational force interoperability (MFI) with allies and partners remains a high priority for the Army. Army MFI activities enhance the Army’s readiness to fight and win as part of a multinational force that provides strategic options for civilian and military leaders in current and future crises.
The foundations of MFI are broad, running across all of the Army warfighting functions, and have human, procedural, and technical aspects. While interoperability often is most closely identified with technical issues related to mission command and automated information exchange, the broader requirements of interoperability demand that attention also be paid to its human and procedural aspects. The human dimension builds the basis of mutual understanding and respect that is fundamental to unity of effort and operational success. The procedural dimension ensures that we achieve sufficient harmony in our policies, doctrine, and tactics, techniques, and procedures that will enable us to operate together effectively.
The institutional Army continues to be heavily engaged in developing MFI solutions and enablers. The focal point for testing interoperability solutions and training to develop and maintain interoperability, however, is increasingly shifting to the operational Army. The combat training centers and the Army Service component commands are now a primary effort in training and executing our concept of interoperability with our multinational partners. The demanding training conducted by Army forces with allies and partners provides badly needed and realistic feedback on how well we are improving our interoperability.
U.S. national strategy makes clear that the U.S. Armed Forces will seldom, if ever, fight alone. Consequently, MFI must become a fundamental consideration in how the Army prepares to “fight tonight and fight tomorrow.”
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