In its continued effort to shape the future, Third Army/U.S. Army Central partnered with the Lebanese Armed Forces for the first of three theater security cooperation events which focused on the role of civil military operations. Lt. Col. Kyle Runte, chief of disaster response and operations, Third Army, explained that the exchange, which occurred in early February, created a venue for the United States and Lebanon to share ideas and work together to build learning.
"This event fostered the relationship between Third Army and the government of Lebanon by sharing information," Runte said. "The desired outcome of this exchange is to create a resident civil affairs capability within the Lebanese Armed Forces and to enable the LAF and the GOL to achieve civil and political military objectives within their territorial borders."
During the early part of the weeklong event, Third Army CMO officers shared their experiences on the importance of civil affairs by giving anecdotes from their work in Afghanistan and Korea. Runte also talked about his personal experiences with domestic operations during Hurricane Katrina.
The LAF delivered presentations on civil emergency planning, a topic that hits close to home for Lebanon because it is a country that lies along multiple fault lines.
The LAF presenters explained civil emergency planning is important because it enables countries to assist each other in preparing for and dealing with the effects of crisis, disaster or conflict. As the week wrapped up and plans were made for future engagements, participants discussed adding a hands-on learning component to the exchange.
In the future, the two countries hope to assess a real village to deepen participants' mutual understanding of civil affairs.
"This event (and the desired outcome) is critical in Third Army's mission as it will enable the LAF and the GOL to become self sufficient in dealing with civil military operations,"
Runte said. "What was most exciting about this exchange was the enthusiasm of the Lebanese attendees to participate, as well as the knowledge the Third Army team gained from their wealth of experience."
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