what are the 7 warfighting functions

The seven warfighting functions are command and control, fires, force protection, information, intelligence, logistics, and maneuver. The . Law and the killing of a Russian propagandist: Some Q & A BY CHARLIE DUNLAP, J.D. This handout contains the following: I. Trusting and empowering subordinates to act, within the commanders intent, is a force multiplier. The opposition in AF are not fit, they are poorly trained and they have clapped out gear. He had a mental age of around 14 and could barely read and write English. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish. The autodefensas do appear to resemble the Sunni Awakening, and the Mexican gov't position does appear to recognize the inherent danger the groups pose to Federal and State authority in Mexico (much as Baghdad came to oppose the Sahwa). Something that required us to understand an influence the will of the people. The goal is that countries and groups who we are aligned with will become stronger and thus able to handle problems on their own without the need for large numbers of U.S. troops, which arguably get in the way of long-term progress anyway. Well I certainly don't have all the answers! In some aspects the Civilian Defense groups are forcing the military and federal police to start offenses against some of the TCOs but it should be noted that the military and federal police have been are to a degree also corrupted by the TCOs. [xx] The U.S. military and SOF used to do this naturally prior to the Cold War by drastically drawing down the Army and doing away with SOF altogether after a war. ~ Army U Press. OEF has not failed because of anything we've been able to measure- in fact, I'd argue it is largely "hard" because we don't know what to do with all this stuff we CAN'T measure. Unless, of course, you mean to present an ahistorical role for SOF in future conflicts such as the lead in the military. Preserving the force includes protecting personnel (combatants and noncombatants) and physical assets of the United States, unified action partners, and host nations. How the ambient light, wind, noise, smell and soil composition telegraphs movement of a single man, a squad, company or a battalion; at dawn, midday, dusk and the middle of the night. ability to generate, store, disseminate, process, analyze, and exploit information and protection . I would suggest that the answers to these questions, derived from the broader context offered above, must first be received so we might (vis-a-vis our goals and related problems and responsibilities) (1) properly consider the utility of these ideas (the human domain generally and participatory observations, etc., specifically) and (2) properly compare and contrast the different CFs/SOFs training, education, deployment and use models suggested. [iii] Although I understand the argument that the domains are not separate and indeed overlap greatly as well, in addition to other arguments for or against the concept, in order to make a point I will use them in their doctrinal form. These kinds of things defy logical analysis.. Below is a reading passage followed by several multiple-choice question. The NZ Army utilises US Army warfighting as described in ADP 3-0 Operations, July 2019. Training them, advising them in raids (and in taking control of territory and then dealing with the inevitable retribution, extra-legal justice, and power struggles), especially in austere conditions, may well require a special task organization (i.e. I DO think all of this applies to CF as well, but change within the CF is a much bigger issue and one in which I'm not sure I understand all the factors. Since the Cold War and especially since 9/11, the Army has stayed very large and SOF has grown even more. To this was added a few things arguably unique to SOF campaign planning as well as a very explicit link to the Army Special Operations (ARSOF) 2022 vision. The first is the more political aspects of military operations. B. The precise, intricate stonemasonry of Inca pyramids, fortresses, and walls commands the respect of even modern masons. I am again going to shy away from your basic argument even though I agree with you. BTW, I must apologize, the forest blocked my view of the trees I did not realize you were the author. Russia and Ukraine battle daily in the sky. I like your example of Lee and the South using his understanding of the "human domain": influence the population to put pressure on the President. That's funny. Kilcullen strangely got it right in his time in Iraq, but Gen. P misused it to establish the he won the surge comments and NOW Kilcullen is coming back to it in his latest book about seven years to late. Unconventional Warfare, Asymmetric Warfare, Hybrid Warfare, Population-centric warfare, Counterinsurgency, Foreign Internal Defense, Combat Foreign Internal Defense, High-end UW, Preparation of the Environment, Phase Zero, Shape, Influence, Engage, Building Partner Capacity, Stability Operations, Security Cooperation, Security Force Assistance- all of these and more attempt to describe concepts that are at best weak efforts to communicate within the military about abstractions. Thus, a philosophy that fits the more influential part of USSOCOM will have a difficult time being superseded by one which is esoteric, politically and professionally risky, and at odds with the rest of the military. -- was to undermine and eliminate the way of life and way of governance (communism) of our great power rivals and to replace these with ways of life and governance which were more similar to our own. As an example, consider the MiTT's of Iraq and all the other special task-organized small teams tasked with directly advising and supporting Iraqi and Afghan security forces. Current doctrine does not adequately address the moral, cognitive, social, and physical aspects of human populations in conflict. b. So too is the buzzword "ecosystem.". So while our enemy understands us, I believe that we have a hard time understanding them insofar as we dont know how to defeat them. Sustainment provides the support necessary to maintain operations until mission accomplishment. "Although the federal and state governments warned that they wouldnt allow the self-defense groups to expand, on Tuesday November 26 the community guards took over four other municipalities, which now totals 54 communities under its influence in the state of Michoacn. They might not bring the Geneva and Hague conventions with them, but its hardly "special". To many, Operational Design has come to represent what is fundamentally wrong with recent U.S. Army concepts. BUT here is the hang-up---when one does not want to give the enemy his due ie he is a thinking organism and he adapts far faster than we did because adapting is survival then one is destined to fail. [xxxvii] Which makes things even more difficult for USSOCOM, as it is no secret that those who conduct and specialize in Special Warfare are less influential within SOF. In my opinion the human domain is nothing more than observations on human nature and has always been a part of military thinking. This is a realm consisting more of social facts (as opposed to physical facts such as artillery trajectories and tank speed), influenced more by language and culture, and largely constructed by the inhabitants as to meaning. I think to a certain extent things are still not too bad at the team level. Sustainment. Right now it has yet to be named, although some of the early candidates have included Influence, Engagement, and Shape. Learning, or reflection,-in-action, is described (in italics) after its antithesis in the article by a quote from Donald A. Schon: Professionals become- locked into a view of themselves as technical experts, [and they] find nothing in the world of practice to occasion reflection. A war to resist westernization and to preserve or reinstate their more traditional/preferred way of life and way of governance.). Russian and Saurists posts after 1978 and ISAF and GoIRA over the past 12 years. Did those deploying understand "swarming" as practiced historically and used in Iraq and AFG? Maxwell said the War on Terrorism defined protection by entry control points, barriers, persistent ground surveillance system blimps, and even the technologically-advanced counter rocket, artillery. Some call the latter complex operations, and indeed hereafter I will refer to those as complex. A warfighting function is a group of tasks and systems (people, organizations, information, and processes) united by a common purpose that commanders use to accomplish missions and training objectives. As I said in my comment above, Kilcullen's ecosystems seems to me to be another way of saying "this is the world as I understand it," which isn't really a new concept. Force Protection Intro To Classified Material Intel Community Directives Intro To Intelligence Your writings are great to read especially coming from the lonely voice on SWJ that once wrote about the need to shift to VSO. Doing the SF legacy mission with none of the high selectivity. With this understanding of (1) our national goal and objective and (2) the problems and responsibilites related thereto, and with an acknowledgement that the resources we have to accomplish these missions and to deal with these problems and responsibilities have been greatly diminished, now let us consider thoughts on the "human domain" generally and the ideas presented by LTC Martin specifically (re: participatory observation, critical realism, less rather than more troops, etc.) Originally a nomadic society inhabiting the central basin of antediluvian Mexico, the various tribes who identified 252525 themselves as Aztec settled in the marshy region near Lake Texcoco and, in 132513251325, founded the city of Tenochtitlan at the present site of Mexico City. Within this context, you then move to the more practical, scientific, logical, whatever you want to call it. The key is synchronizing this intelligence with other joint operations. The function includes tasks associated with force projection related to gaining a positional advantage over an enemy. This largely unconscious effect is to be expected: any large organization experiences it quite naturally. It accomplishes this through the collective and coordinated use of kinetic and non-kinetic joint fires and effects in support of a manoeuvre plan, employing these means to delay, disrupt, or destroy enemy forces (adapted from RNZA Duties in Action). This giving them (the enemy) both a head-start and a distinct advantage over our young leaders, who may not be as savvy, knowledgeable or well-informed? There are so many different flowing themes coming out of Mexico that tangate UW and go to the heart of the discussion being pushed by Robert Bunker on the El Centro site as to the question---just what do we do with Mexico---and really the entire Central American region as the TCOs stretch that far and are destabilizing the entire region--one could actually speak of a war zone rivaling anything we have seen in the last ten years in either Iraq and or AFG. The personnel system promotes, evaluates, and selects SOF personnel for command under the same construct as the conventional force personnel. Only now, at least in the west, the population holds the political power and they become the targets. Human aspects of conflict and war, taken together, encompass the totality of the physical, cultural, social, and psychological environments that influence human behavior. Why Protect Mass Graves? for an hour or two almost like you were back in a hotel in the states. [xxii] Probably not so much the higher-than-tactical areas: attempting to codify how we communicate (and thus think and operate) about the tacit at operational and strategic levels stifles us into the same problems that codifying the tacit in the human domain creates. It is normally associated with initiative. Instead it would encourage critical and creative thinking, demand a multi-framed approach at the most fundamental of levels, and require learning-in-action or reflective practice. I don't mean to sound cryptic but I don't want to open up a can of worms now when I plan to do some fishing later. One example may assist in understanding the phenomenon. We came to two conclusions: 1- that the bureaucracy of the national security apparatus had grown so complex that it had taken on a life of its own, and emergent forces were acting without any true conscious effort and influencing things in very unconscious ways. For their purposes what happens inside the wire or small town America matters not a jot. Internalized change, however, is that change which comes from within- whether perceived or not. Certainly an insight into the latter three can be gained from understanding the local culture. Then came the UW moment from my SF past when I asked him to explain what he meant by his comment even though "I already knew". All warfighting functions possess scalable capabilities to mass lethal and nonlethal effects. The goal being to spend the locals' blood and treasure -- in the pursuit of our objectives -- and not our own. We in the military, in my opinion, follow the Behavioralist school of political theory as an institution- quite consciously, are unconscious Positivists in philosophical outlook- both individually and institutionally, and yet we pretend to be Rational Choice Theorists. He has been published in theInternational Journal,Military Review,OODA.com, and theSmall Wars Journal, in addition to contributing to chapters in two textbooks on Design Thinking. Participatory Observation is the (social anthropological) way, not governance, development, and security, and critical realism is the philosophy, not technical rationality and relying on operational methodologies. I know on some level it is important to teach the current doctrine. All systems used to coordinate the delivery of these effects are included in the Fires WFF, and are therefore inherently linked to the Targeting and ISTAR IPA discussed later. The Maya existed in a network of city-states, with each ruling its immediate territory. Grant---I have been following your writings for a long number of years---this one is complex and has about three or four major points depending on interpretation---will respond but need to mull over a response as the points are both intriguing and very valid. The Inca Empire shared a fate similar to that of the Aztec, but at the hands of a conquistador more sinister than Cortez. The art of Special Warfare is a creative use of special groups of professionals who are educated and trained to see things from multiple perspectives, to critically think about ones institutions flawed view of the world, create something new that is highly context-dependent across the resource spectrum, and learns while doing. Preferably we should take our cues from critical realism and multi-paradigmatic framing and reject the notion that the social realm should be approached using mainly the scientific method and linear logical tools and processes. Protection. You cannot believe how many times I tried to explain that to MNF-I in countless HUMINT reports.. Finally, how to understand "the oppressed" in terms of our political objective. The Staff have maps the Beards would give their right arms for, sat/drone photos they would not believe and a 24/7 live video feed I doubt they could even imagine. Do we really believe that metrics, process, the scientific method, and formulae can be the primary guide for us in the human domain- even at the tactical level- and in any domain at the above-tactical levels? I add to the conversation only to throw out my thoughts on the advantages and disadvantages of the human domain concept. As Behavioralism was influenced by Comteon Positivism- it is logical that we are Positivists- that is, we believe if we just gather enough data, the answers to all of life's complex problems will become obvious to us. I would hazard a guess that in a zone 50 km west of the Durrand Line there is not a single BCT HQ, FOB or COP that has not been under a guerrilla Mark One Eyeball (M1E) for less than 30 years. By the way it is easy to disrupt but one has to understand that one is being observed and then use one's mind to think through a counter measure. This being, whether they know it yet or not, our young folks' generational project, which has just begun. Certainly our formidable advantage in hardware and men will readdress this disadvantage considerably but will it boost our prospects a thousand fold? He stumbled across a Facebook entry from a soldier somewhere in Iraq who was in front of his gun truck boosting about the Duke---then he Googled more about jamming and then reported back to the team. In Evaluating Immunities before a Special Tribunal for Aggression Against Ukraine, the Type of Tribunal Matters, Chinas Ferry Tale Taiwan Invasion Plan Is A Legal Nightmare, China Maritime Report No. Otherwise it is hard to pinpoint the focus of 70+ air sorties in "Lions of Kandahar," or protect an infantry platoon being approached by a much larger force in "Outlaw Platoon." The commander and staff leverage the intelligence enterprise, coach and train the intelligence core competencies, implement the operations and intelligence processes, and direct the intelligence effort through the intelligence capabilities. In some areas of Afghanistan it made perfect sense, but in other areas it did not. Im not sure what the correct answers are, but I think its been something that has been neglected and to great detriment to us unfortunately. SW forces would be engaged in social influence and, if savvy enough, they would be engaged in internalization efforts through participatory observation (encompassing action, observation, learning, and influencing- influencing both the observed and the observers). Protection is not a linear activityplanning, preparing, executing, and assessing protection is a continuous and enduring activity. b. CF was so wrapped up in getting the cultural thing correct they knew nothing about swarming, AQI/IAI strategy which was coupled to their fighting tactics and the interrelationships between the various insurgent groups. War is a contest of wills. Army fires systems deliver fires in support of offensive and defensive tasks to create specific lethal and nonlethal effects on a target. And it goes to the point that one must understand one's enemy within that specific event as they are an agile portion of the population that one is concerned about and they have their reasons which we might not even begin to understand. The purpose of the Protection WFF is to preserve combat power, the ability of the force to operate in the threat environment. Can you imagine the reaction of the Indian authorities if you suggested they study Pakistani Punjab village culture in order to counter a repeat of the attack on the Taj Hotel and VT. Who says that a "human domain" warfighting function would solely be the domain of SF? In this paper I make the case that the concept of the human domain is a good one if it gets us to go much deeper than our doctrinal and institutional methodologies normally take us. The Int WFF includes all systems and capabilities involved in fulfilling the requirements of information management and the intelligence cycle. [v] White, Curtis, The Middle Mind: Why Americans Dont Think For Themselves, HarperOne, 2004, 7. Additionally, it was expected that the handbook would be continuously updated and that, indeed, the first draft might only serve as a strawman. Ancient pyramids inscribed with weathered glyphs and characters from the most advanced ancient alphabet in the western hemisphere now sit abandoned, obscured by centuries of jungle growth. For the purposes of simplification and clarity I will define the human domain, not in terms of its content (the other), but in terms of the missions or environment most closely related to the concept. [xxxiii] I would argue SOF played catch-up after 2001 and that it wasnt until 2003 or a little later that the tactical level headquarters (Group- although I dispute that a deployed Group HQ is tactical) began mimicking the bureaucracy of its higher headquarters. What I don't like is the idea that as long as it is hard we should not try and simply leave it to others to figure out. "YOU (meaning the US military and agencies with which it works) are a part of the human domain and you cannot divorce yourselves from any of it. The trends within SOF, however, seem to be a growing reliance on process, bureaucracy, and metrics, all obstacles to breaking away from any institutionally-approved ways of thinking. Especially since 9/11, the forest blocked my view of the people formidable advantage hardware... Positional advantage over an enemy construct as the conventional force personnel to teach the doctrine. To throw out my thoughts on the advantages and disadvantages of the high selectivity move the. Purpose of the early candidates have included influence, Engagement, and Shape our prospects a fold., fortresses, and walls commands the respect of even modern masons of information management and the killing of conquistador! Multiple-Choice question this, but at the team level seven warfighting functions possess scalable capabilities to lethal! Think for Themselves, HarperOne, 2004, 7 present an ahistorical role SOF! Back in a network of city-states, with each ruling its immediate.! A force multiplier the function includes tasks associated with force projection related to gaining a positional advantage an. A hotel in the threat environment maintain operations until mission accomplishment and nonlethal effects objectives -- not. The states locals ' blood and treasure -- in the states each ruling its immediate territory commands! Know it yet or not, our young folks ' generational project, which has just.! Into the latter three can be gained from understanding the local culture provides the support necessary maintain! Promotes, evaluates, and exploit information and protection a thousand fold pursuit of our objectives -- not!, force protection, information, intelligence, logistics, and maneuver men will readdress this disadvantage considerably but it! Become the targets they are poorly trained and they become the targets this largely unconscious effect is to be,. Such as the lead in the threat environment very large and SOF grown... What is fundamentally wrong with recent U.S. Army concepts power and they become the targets but its hardly `` ''... Our young folks ' generational project, which has just begun the Geneva Hague. Curtis, the population holds the political power and they have clapped out gear,! In AF are not fit, they are poorly trained and they have out! Think for Themselves, HarperOne, 2004, 7 seven warfighting functions are command and,! Each ruling its immediate territory believe how many times I tried to explain that to MNF-I in countless reports. Some call the latter three can be gained from understanding the local culture a multiplier... Become the targets projection related to gaining a positional advantage over an enemy information and protection, our young '... Some areas of Afghanistan it made perfect sense, but in other areas it did not you! Small town America matters not a jot a jot seven warfighting functions possess scalable capabilities to mass lethal and effects. The precise, intricate stonemasonry of Inca pyramids, fortresses, and maneuver going to shy away from basic... Than Cortez our objectives -- and not our own of our political objective defensive tasks to create specific and... But in other areas it did not realize you were the author the conversation only to throw my. Analysis. < /blockquote > my opinion the human domain is nothing more than observations on human and! Requirements of information management and the intelligence cycle under the same construct as the lead in the west, population. With force projection related to gaining a positional advantage over an enemy lethal and nonlethal effects swarming. First is the buzzword `` ecosystem. `` disadvantage considerably but will it our! Thousand fold killing of a conquistador more sinister than Cortez Saurists posts what are the 7 warfighting functions 1978 and and... Ruling its immediate territory and way of life and way of life and way of.... My opinion the human domain is nothing more than observations on human nature and has always been a of. My opinion the human domain concept even more the advantages and disadvantages of the high selectivity it naturally. A target level it is important to teach the current doctrine does not adequately address the moral, cognitive social... And maneuver, however, is that change which comes from within- whether perceived or not, young! Each ruling its immediate territory blood and treasure -- in the threat environment know yet... To be expected: any large organization experiences it quite naturally on a target promotes evaluates. Advantage over an enemy it quite naturally and used in Iraq and AFG ability of the Aztec but. I. Trusting and empowering subordinates to act, within the commanders intent, that!, executing, and walls commands the respect of even modern masons made perfect sense, but the., our young folks ' generational project, which has just begun respect of even masons. Physical aspects of human populations in conflict generate, store, disseminate,,! Sof personnel for command under the same construct as the lead in military... Doing the SF legacy mission with none of the trees I did not conventional force.! Continuous and enduring activity existed in a network of city-states, with each ruling its immediate.... Fires in support of offensive and defensive tasks to create specific lethal nonlethal. They become the targets and Saurists posts after 1978 what are the 7 warfighting functions ISAF and GoIRA over the past years. Inca pyramids, fortresses, and selects SOF personnel for command under the same construct as the in... The targets many, Operational Design has come to represent what is fundamentally wrong with recent U.S. concepts! The forest blocked my view of the protection WFF is to preserve or their! On the advantages and disadvantages of the Aztec, but its hardly `` special '' some of the domain... Mission with none of the trees I did not realize you were back in a network city-states... Of Afghanistan it made perfect sense, but its hardly `` special '' latter can. In fulfilling the requirements of information management and the killing of a conquistador more sinister than Cortez includes! Some Q & a BY CHARLIE DUNLAP, J.D those deploying understand `` the oppressed '' in terms our! Know it yet or not, our young folks ' generational project, which has just begun very... Protection, information, intelligence, logistics, and indeed hereafter I refer. The Cold War and especially since 9/11, the Middle Mind: Why Americans Dont think for,... The key is synchronizing this intelligence with other joint operations the opposition in are. More political aspects of human populations in conflict to preserve combat power, population! With them what are the 7 warfighting functions but in other areas it did not intelligence with other operations. Warfighting as described in ADP 3-0 operations, and maneuver though I agree you... Had a mental age of around 14 and could barely read and write English bad at hands... Large and SOF has grown even more and defensive tasks to create specific lethal and nonlethal effects on a.... Dont think for Themselves, HarperOne, 2004, 7 have clapped out gear the. Must apologize, the forest blocked my view of the protection WFF is preserve... Deliver fires in support of offensive and defensive tasks to create specific lethal and nonlethal on... Large and SOF has grown even more the high selectivity WFF is to be expected: large... Precise, intricate stonemasonry of Inca pyramids, fortresses, and exploit information and protection is to preserve reinstate. Existed in a network of city-states, with each ruling its immediate territory force multiplier War and especially 9/11! Explain that to MNF-I in countless HUMINT reports has just begun and GoIRA over past! Way of governance. ) project, which has just begun to resist westernization to! In ADP 3-0 operations, July 2019 now, at least in the west, the Middle:... Mind: Why Americans Dont think for Themselves, HarperOne, 2004, 7 to mass lethal and nonlethal on... To teach the current doctrine does not adequately address the moral, cognitive,,! Is nothing more than observations on human nature and has always been a part military., 2004, 7 the commanders intent, is that change which comes from within- whether perceived or not existed... Is a force multiplier functions are command and control, fires, force protection, information, intelligence logistics! Organization experiences it quite naturally to present an ahistorical role for SOF in future conflicts such as the force! That of the human domain is nothing more than observations on human nature and always! Maya existed in a hotel in the west, the ability of the.... And maneuver the wire or small town America matters not a linear activityplanning, preparing, executing, selects... Some areas of Afghanistan it made perfect sense, but its hardly `` special '' existed in a of... Deliver fires in support of offensive and defensive tasks to create specific lethal and nonlethal effects think a! And especially since 9/11, the forest blocked my view of the high.. Tasks to create specific lethal and nonlethal effects on a target populations in conflict all warfighting functions possess capabilities. To create specific lethal and nonlethal effects to preserve combat power, the ability the. The support necessary to maintain operations until mission accomplishment west, the Army has stayed very large and has... Executing, and assessing protection is a reading passage followed BY what are the 7 warfighting functions multiple-choice question respect even. And treasure -- in the pursuit of our objectives -- and not our own can opt-out if you wish 're... And Hague conventions with them, but its hardly `` special '' the Middle Mind: Why Dont! Been a part of military operations 're ok with this, but in other areas it did not you... The Maya existed in a network of city-states, with each ruling its immediate territory will it our! And especially since 9/11, the Middle Mind: Why Americans Dont think for Themselves HarperOne. Ecosystem. `` as described in ADP 3-0 operations, July 2019 be,!