The NATO training mission in Afghanistan needs more trainers to build a high-quality Afghan military institution, the deputy commander of the training effort said yesterday.

According to AFPS’ Judith Snyderman, Army Maj. Gen. David Hogg said U.S., NATO and Afghan partners have established military academies, officer candidate schools and specialty programs, but hundreds more trainers are needed. During a March 16 “DoDLive” bloggers roundtable, Hogg said more than 800 of 2,325 trainer positions requested from NATO remain vacant.

The U.S. Defense Department considers the training mission so important that it may bridge the gap for the short term, he said. “In January, the United States Army deployed to us an infantry battalion to help thicken our training structure,” Hogg said.

He added that pressure is being placed on Afghan authorities to meet their commitments to supply trainers, and Afghan officials have pledged to pull 30 noncommissioned officers from each army corps to augment the staff in basic warrior training courses. Even without the full complement of trainers, Hogg cited progress.

For example, this week the National Military Academy of Afghanistan, which is modeled on the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, N.Y., will graduate 212 army officers. A ceremony for new lieutenants to sign their orders symbolized a new merit-based military culture, Hogg said, because assignments were drawn in a transparent lottery.

Hogg said new officers will be distributed among the fledgling corps of Afghanistan’s military service. Many will be deployed in Helmand and Kandahar provinces, a few dozen will become pilots in the Afghan National Air Corps, and six will fill instructor positions at the academy.

Hogg also talked about changes improving the quality of the Afghan force down to brigade levels. He said the consolidated fielding center training has been extended from eight to nine weeks, not only to facilitate scheduling so Afghan commanders and U.S. partners can work in tandem with new soldiers, but also adding additional time for collective training, including improving literacy.

“The neat thing about this whole thing is the Afghans very much want to be literate,” Hogg said. “It is a motivating factor keeping them in the army and also bringing them into the army. There is a thirst to become literate.”

Taliban rule essentially destroyed Afghanistan’s educational system, he noted.

“And what you have is a bubble of folks who did not have the opportunity to go through elementary or high school,” he said, “and now we have a new generation that is starting to get educated.”

In the meantime, Hogg said, instructors at regional basic warrior training centers offer demonstrations and hands-on training. And for those who are literate, training manuals have been translated into Dari.

Next year, enrollment at the National Military Academy of Afghanistan will top 600 cadets, including some 40 future medical officers, Hogg said. He noted other positive signs, including a pilot program to train the first 22 female Afghan military officers that begins next month and the opening of a number of specialty schools for officers. New branch schools are producing needed expertise in areas of armor, artillery, signal, military policing and engineering.

Despite training shortfalls, Hogg said, he believes professional military education already is paying off. Feedback from the field indicates that the quality of the battalions and of the soldiers themselves is improving, he said.

Hogg added he expects the training gap for the Afghan military to close over time.

“As the quality of the institution increases, you’ll see a decrease in the need for trainers and advisors and contractors,” he said.

One of the U.S. military’s greatest advantages over its adversaries is its ability to move an enormous amount of people and equipment quickly anywhere in the world, the commander of U.S. Transportation Command told the House Armed Services Committee today.

According to AFPS’ Lisa Daniel, Air Force Gen. Duncan J. McNabb said he was honored to represent the 145,000 people who make up Transcom, which he called “a unique partnership” of active duty and reserve components, federal civilians, contractors and commercial partners.

“It is the crown jewel in our national strategy and gives us our true global reach,” he said of the command’s logistical capabilities.

“Together, we are an unrivaled, global team operating an integrated, networked end-to-end defense distribution system, providing logistics superiority when and where needed,” he added in prepared testimony to the committee.

Transcom works in coordination with the Air Force’s Air Mobility Command, the Navy’s Military Sealift Command, and the Army’s Military Surface Deployment and Distribution Command to provide military and commercial transportation, terminal management, aerial refueling and patient movement across the range of military and humanitarian operations around the world, McNabb explained. Last year, Transcom airlifted more than 2 million passengers and 750,000 tons of cargo, while its tanker fleet delivered 230 million gallons of fuel to U.S. and coalition aircraft, he said.

To support the war effort, Transcom deployed and redeployed 36 brigade combat teams; 34,000 air expeditionary forces and eight security force packages, and moved Marine expeditionary units, and Army Stryker and combat aviation brigades in support of the Afghan elections, McNabb said. The command is responsible for delivering an additional 30,000 troops to Afghanistan by August, while redeploying more than 40,000 out of Iraq this summer, he said.

In 2008, Transcom improved logistics into the Iraq and Afghan theaters by standing up the Northern Distribution Network, in partnership with U.S. Central Command, U.S. Pacific Command and the departments of Defense and State, McNabb said. Last year, 80 percent of equipment into Afghanistan came through the network, he said, calling the routes “a key strategic alternative to the congested Pakistan ground lines of communication.”

The distribution network secured routes across northern Europe, Russia, Central Asia, and the Caucasus region to allow shipments by commercial air, ship, truck and rail, McNabb said. The network has delivered 8,100 containers since March 2009, and has delivered more than 2,600 mine-resistant, ambush-protected vehicles, he said.

Coordination is the toughest challenge, McNabb told the panel, noting that the command supported the unforeseen humanitarian mission to Haiti while continuing its work in drawing down forces and equipment in Iraq while supporting the build-up in Afghanistan.

“Afghanistan is a particularly tough place to get into,” he said. “It has the highest mountains in the world to get into, and some very interesting neighbors. We need to make sure that our forces not only get in there, but that they have everything they need.”

Afghan and international forces detained several suspected insurgents and seized illegal drugs and enemy weapon stockpiles in recent operations in Afghanistan, military officials reported.

An Afghan-international security force detained a suspected insurgent in the Garmsir district of Helmand province.

In Helmand’s Nad-e Ali district today, an International Security Assistance Force patrol found a weapons cache containing more than 10 pounds of homemade explosives, an 81 mm mortar round, two 60 mm mortar rounds, three 60 mm tail fins, six rocket-propelled grenade motors, a 105 mm artillery round, six RPG cones, pressure-plate devices, command-pull switches and other bomb-making materials.

In Kandahar last night, a combined force captured a Taliban bombing cell leader believed to be responsible for directing roadside-bomb emplacement and coordinating supply issues. Two other insurgents also were captured.

An Afghan-international force in the Terayzai district of Khost province detained several suspected militants last night.

Also last night, a combined force in the Zormat district of Paktia province captured a Taliban subcommander responsible for instructing other militants on building and emplacing roadside bombs and how to conduct bomb-damage assessments.

In the Shah Wali Kot district of Kandahar province yesterday, a combined Afghan-international patrol called for air support after it came under a sustained and intense attack by a large group of insurgents using assault rifles, rocket-propelled grenades and heavy machine guns. ISAF aircraft dropped precision-guided bombs on the positively identified insurgent positions. Damage assessments indicated all of the insurgents were killed.

Combined Afghan-international patrols discovered two significant drug caches in the Bakwah district of Farah province yesterday. The first cache contained 37 pounds of morphine, more than a half-ton of opium, 220 pounds of soda ash, 66 gallons of ammonium hydroxide, 50 bottles of hydrogen chloride, multiple bags of processed heroin, and narcotics-processing equipment.

The second cache, discovered two hours later and about a half-mile away by a separate patrol, contained 10 55-gallon drums of liquid opium, 50 bags of a cutting agent, a large pile of heroin and opium on the ground, pressure cookers with opium cooking inside, scales and narcotics-processing equipment. The drugs and equipment were destroyed on site.

No Afghan civilians were harmed during these operations, officials said.

Several conclusions drawn from a nearly complete review of the nation’s nuclear posture already have been incorporated into the Defense Department’s fiscal 2011 budget request, a senior Pentagon official told Congress yesterday.

The 2010 Nuclear Posture Review will be presented to Congress within a month, James N. Miller, principal deputy undersecretary of defense for policy, told the House Armed Services Committee’s subcommittee on strategic forces.

“The Nuclear Posture Review will be a foundational document for this administration,” Miller said in a hearing on the status of U.S. strategic forces. It’s intended to be a practical work plan for the agenda laid out by President Barack Obama, he added.

According to AFPS’ Jordan Reimer, the congressionally mandated review establishes U.S. nuclear policy, strategy, capabilities and force posture for the next five to 10 years. It’s conducted by the Office of the Secretary of Defense and the Joint Staff, with representation from the military services and combatant commands. It is written in collaboration with the Energy and State departments and in coordination with the National Security Council.

The process was done concurrently with the Quadrennial Defense Review and the Ballistic Missile Defense Review, both published last month. The Nuclear Posture Review originally was scheduled to be released this month, Miller said, but defense officials concluded that additional time was needed to address the range of issues under consideration in the report.

Obama has sought to minimize the role of nuclear weapons in defense policy, with the ultimate goal of ridding the world of nuclear weapons. The report will provide concrete steps outlining how the United States will carry out this process while still maintaining a secure and effective nuclear arsenal as long as other nuclear states remain, Miller said.

The nuclear review also was valuable for the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty negotiations with Russia, he said, helping to refine several U.S. negotiating positions, particularly on the treaty’s limitations of nuclear warheads and delivery vehicles. The talks are ongoing in Switzerland and could prove historic, Miller told the panel.

“U.S. and Russian negotiators are now meeting in Geneva to complete an agreement that will reduce operationally deployed strategic nuclear weapons to their lowest levels in decades,” he said in a prepared statement.

The fiscal 2011 defense budget submission already reflects several conclusions drawn from the review, Miller said. The United States will retain a “nuclear triad” under the new START, composed of land-based missiles, submarine-launched missiles and bomber aircraft.

Budget submissions for added infrastructure investment, such as in nuclear facilities at Los Alamos National Laboratory in California and Oak Ridge, Tenn., also were determined based on the review. The Defense Department also requested a 13-percent increase for the National Nuclear Security Administration, in part to support life-extension program research to maintain the usefulness of aging warheads.

Miller said it’s essential that the United States continues to invest in its nuclear arsenal and infrastructure while pursuing a nuclear-free world.

“Guaranteeing the safety, security and effectiveness of our stockpile, coupled with broader research and development efforts, will allow us to pursue nuclear reductions without compromising our security,” he said.

U.S. Joint Forces Command is providing military leaders with valuable insight for the future of the military, the command’s chief of staff said this week.

Air Force Maj. Gen. David M. Edgington discussed a paper called U.S. Joint Forces Command Joint Operating Environment 2010 during a “DoDLive” bloggers roundtable March 15, reports AFPS’ Ian Graham.

The document depicts the strategic framework of the future operational environment and its implications on the joint force, both structurally and operationally, Edgington said. The idea behind the new plan, he explained, is to help U.S. combatant commanders determine their resource requirements over the coming years.

“What we’re trying to do is set the context for what are possibly evolutions in the future,” he said, explaining that the document is “speculative,” not “predictive.”

The document doesn’t claim one thing will happen as opposed to other possible outcomes, the general said. Rather, it simply lays out a number of possible outcomes. From there, he said, it’s the job of the military’s top brass to determine which are most likely, and then to prepare for one or more of the outcomes.

The Joint Forces Command document uses data from outlets ranging from the Energy Department and the Congressional Budget Office to civilian publications such as “The Economist.” Though the report doesn’t necessarily contain anything brand new, Edgington said, it uses available data to support different speculations.

“We’re trying to lay out possibilities for the future, so we can encourage intellectual dialogue [and] strategic discussion as to what types of futures we should be prepared for … so we can determine the implications for the future force,” Edgington explained. “We aren’t pretending to try to predict that any of these things will happen.”

Using energy as an example, Edgington noted that energy resources and the effects of energy consumption pose possible threats to national security. But the report doesn’t necessarily link those outcomes to operations in, for example, Afghanistan or Iraq.

Though someone can make a case for connecting Afghanistan with energy-related challenges, Edgington said, specific connections are not the report’s aim. “That’s certainly not our intent to focus on a specific country and their relation to a certain challenge,” he said.

Neither, he added, does the Joint Forces Command document make any recommendations for required resources or action. Those decisions, the general said, are left to the leadership in the services. From there, the information might be transformed into specific missions or training requirements for rank-and-file troops, but the strategic picture Joint Forces Command is presenting is intended for higher-level officers, Edgington said.

National Guard helicopters and crews are supporting aviation missions along the Rio Grande River following the recent rise in violence.

Nearly 250 military medical personnel who have died in the line of duty since 2001 were remembered in a ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery.

Preparations for the establishment of U.S. Cyber Command are underway. The formal launch is currently awaiting approval from Congress.

The White House is launching a battle against childhood obesity, and DoDEA is helping lead the fight. Plus, defense leaders prepare for a tough road to take back Kandahar from the Taliban.

Nat sent this in:

(WASHINGTON) – Rep. Mike Coffman (R-CO) today introduced a bill to address the looming rare earths crisis.  Coffman’s legislation, H.R. 4866, the Rare Earths Supply-Chain Technology and Resources Transformation Act of 2010 (RESTART Act) would, through a series of assessments and specific programs, attempt to reestablish a competitive domestic rare earth supply chain.  Rare earths are the key to technological innovation and the growth of green jobs and critical to U.S. national security.  Currently the U.S. is nearly 100 percent reliant on imports for these vital materials and a disruption in supply could jeopardize national security.

“Over 95 percent of worldwide rare earth mining today is located in China.  There is no rare earth element mining taking place in North America and with worldwide demand growing exponentially the situation is only going to get worse.  Rare earth elements are critical to high-technology industries and many critical weapons systems.  It is a critical national security issue with potentially severe consequences.  The looming crisis can be averted, but the U.S. needs to act now.” Coffman said.

The RESTART Act would initiate a number of key activities including; establish a federal rare earths working group to assess and monitor strategic needs, create a national stockpile, evaluate international trade practices, facilitate loan guarantees for domestic supply-chain development, and support innovation and workforce development to support the industry.

Coffman continued, “The U.S. needs to support and encourage the development of a competitive, domestic rare earth supply chain to support American jobs and manufacturing and ensure our national defense interests.  This legislation is critical to creating a competitive, domestic rare earth supply chain in the U.S. over the next 5 years.  We have ample resources, just not the ability to access and process them.  That must change; our national security depends on it”

Uses for rare earths have grown exponentially during the last twenty-five years in the automotive, defense, oil, electronics, and renewable energy industries.  In addition to green technology, many military systems and national security concerns that keep us safe and free rely on rare earths. 

Rep. Coffman previously introduced legislation included in last year’s defense authorization bill requiring the Comptroller General to determine the extent to which specific military weapons systems are currently dependent upon rare-earth materials and the degree to which U.S. is dependent upon sources that could be interrupted or disrupted.  The report is due to be complete on April 1, 2010.

Click here to view the text of the legislation.

This week the Navy, Marine Corps and Air Force announced a decrease in activated reservists, while the Coast Guard announced an increase.  The Army had no change.  The net collective result is 51 fewer reservists activated than last week.

At any given time, services may activate some units and individuals while deactivating others, making it possible for these figures to either increase or decrease.  The total number currently on active duty from the Army National Guard and Army Reserve is 108,647; Navy Reserve, 6,228; Air National Guard and Air Force Reserve, 16,062; Marine Corps Reserve, 6,515; and the Coast Guard Reserve, 714.  This brings the total National Guard and Reserve personnel who have been activated to 138,166, including both units and individual augmentees.

A cumulative roster of all National Guard and Reserve personnel who are currently activated may be found at: http://www.defense.gov/news/d20100316ngr.pdf.

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom:

• Spc. Steven J. Bishop, 29, of Christiansburg, Va., died March 13 in Tikrit, Iraq, while supporting combat operations.  He was assigned to the 422nd Civil Affairs Battalion, 352nd Civil Affairs Command, U.S. Army Civil Affairs and Psychological Operations Command, Fort Bragg, N.C.