|
Special Operations
Low-Tech Needs Trump High-Tech Dreams
4
2,009
By Grace V. Jean
Forget the latest and greatest technologies. U.S. special operations forces want tried-and-tested combat gear that they can easily take from one country to another. Most importantly, they want equipment that they can operate in remote areas and that requires little maintenance.
“What we need isn’t the best and most expensive,” said Navy Cmdr. Victor D. Hyder, an officer at Special Operations Command South.
During his time in Paraguay, he saw the drawbacks of advanced technology. The U.S. government provided satellite communications to the Paraguayan military, but the locals lacked the necessary capability to support the equipment to use it on their own. As a result, special operations troops grabbed older high-frequency radios into which the Paraguayans could plug their encryption devices. “It was a longer process to get those, longer than we really wanted. But that’s an example of taking a step back and saying, ‘what do we need?’” said Hyder.
Army Lt. Col. Charles Miller Jr., Afghanistan and Pakistan section chief of the planning and operations directorate at Special Operations Command Central, said there is such thing as too much technology, and too much high-tech equipment.
The Pakistani army, for example, is still largely a 1950s force that has yet to modernize. In some of its units, such as the frontier corps, which is responsible for administering security in tribal areas, it is not uncommon to see soldiers brandishing Soviet-era weapons and rifles and not wearing any protective gear.
If the U.S. military wants to work with these organizations, they must adjust accordingly.
In Pakistan, “it does no good to take high-tech solutions in there, which require significant logistical tail, recurrent training requirements and significant maintenance responsibilities,” said Miller. Once equipment is pushed outside of major bases, it should operate with very little maintenance, he said.
U.S. forces bring plenty of support when they work side-by-side with foreign units. But once U.S. troops start moving out, the support system often leaves with them. If the goal is to build the capacity of these foreign forces so they can help combat terrorist groups, the United States must make sure that they provide equipment that will last long after U.S. troops leave, Hyder said.
In Paraguay, U.S. special operations forces are working with the local military to disrupt narco-trafficking groups, money laundering and other illegal activities that could be exploited by terrorist organizations. The U.S. military, said Hyder, is “building capacity, just like in Pakistan, just like in the Philippines, building the partner nation capacity to help deal with this problem and preventing it from becoming a threat to the United States.”
|