Combined joint task force-horn of Africa: defense, diplomacy and development

CHIPS, April-June, 2008

Brig. Gen. Holman: The aftermath of the elections in Kenya had a regional impact, logistically, as well as emotionally. We had civil affairs and mil-to-mil training ongoing in Kenya. Most of those activities are on military bases, so when it comes to force protection, it was a minimal impact to those missions.

The ambassador dictates the activities, and he has the lead on foreign policy. He is interacting with the president, the ministers and chiefs of defense as well as the senior leadership of CJTFHOA. We take our lead from the ambassador as well as sharing information we get from host nation key leaders to determine the best way to support them.

When it comes to Somalia, we have no troops in Somalia. We have done some medical and counterterrorism training to help troops deployed to Mogadishu. We have also done some maritime training with Ugandan forces and prepared them to perform port security that Ugandan marines are doing now.

In Darfur, we have a presence with liaison officers and observers to help us keep tabs on what's going on, so we can lean forward in the foxhole and be prepared to provide support if need be.

Q: Admiral, how much of your efforts will be devoted to these situations within the context of the mission?

Rear Adm. Greene: Those are three examples of situations that are important ones. There are others, from the piracy off Somalia to tensions on the Eritrean/Ethiopian border. I think it's important that we are watching all those events. Our objective, a collective objective that we have in conjunction with the State Department and our country team, and with the international organizations and regional organizations, is to participate in developing the partnerships and forging the relationships that help us improve security and stability.

Q: How many people are involved in this mission?

Col. Grymes: We have about 325 personnel involved in the training. There are 37 people that came back from the current staff that are participating in the exercise. We have a structure that helps us control the exercise and cover all the political, military, economic and information aspects. We call that the Joint Exercise Control Group.

We will link up with Admiral Greene and continue training now that he is in charge in theater. He may find that there are things he wants to work on with his staff, and we will assist him, as well as capturing lessons for the next exercise.

"There is a natural synergy between what we are doing on the defense side, what the development side is doing and what diplomacy is all about. With all of us working closely together, we are able to optimize the resources we have and to provide the best kind of assistance and response to help the Africans solve their challenges."

Commander CJTF-HOA Rear Adm. Philip Greene

Q: A number of the things that you mentioned as your mission set fully replicate what the Department of State does with political advisers and development advisers. How do you explain to the African countries what the need is for a group like this?