Central Command: Defeating Insurgency Requires Improved Information Networks

By Grace Jean

CentralCommand A top official in U.S. Central Command says the United States can expect more USS Cole-like, asymmetric attacks from small transnational groups in the future. To defeat these threats and to win the war on terrorism, he says, will require a network of interagency efforts and information sharing.

“We need to develop a network that will help us to defeat our adversary’s network,” Army Maj. Gen. Lloyd Austin III, chief of staff at Central Command, told a conference sponsored by the Association for Enterprise Integration. “Our network must be comprised of elements of the various agencies from both domestic and the international fronts as well as coalition partners. The network must have the ability to close gaps, to synchronize efforts and to accelerate decision cycles.”

Because the enemy has chosen to hide in urban areas, the military has been forced to rely upon multi-source intelligence to root out insurgents and other potential terrorists.

“This man-hunting business is awfully tough. When you’re involved in that kind of operation, it requires that you be able to quickly share information with other agencies,” he said.

For example, if troops discover a pile of money in Baghdad, they would want the Treasury Department to help them figure out where it came from.

“We need to be able to share that kind of information. That’s how we’re going to defeat this enemy,” he said.

While Austin acknowledged that information sharing, across the military and across other governmental agencies, is improving, it still has a ways to go.

“I am not confident, at this point, that we’ve developed those tools that will enable us to share information, enable us to cross boundaries and shorten the decision cycle. I think the community recognizes that must be done, but I don’t think enough work has been done to create the tools that enable that process,” he said.

Efforts to improve interagency collaboration and facilitate information sharing have been tackled within the command, he reported. Two joint interagency task forces, comprising elements of the Defense, State and Justice departments, have been stood up. Though they had to kick down some cultural walls between the agencies, Austin said there are some initiatives out there that have started to move this process along.

“I think this is what we must do; this is the direction we must go in, in order to be successful. If we don’t, the enemy will continue to find gaps and seams in our system here, and exploit those gaps and seams, and use our own rules and regulations against us,” he said.

Al Qaida and associated movements have developed a very sophisticated network, extending from the geographical world to the virtual world, he added.

“Advancements in information technologies and communications have significantly empowered criminals and terrorists, and linked these globally,” said Austin. “Terrorists can effectively use the Web to recruit and proselytize like never before. In addition, they have become masters at using the media for purposes of exploitation,” he added.

Between now and 2015, he said, the 23 countries covered by Central Command will see a substantial population growth of unemployed youth who will become fertile ground for recruiting terrorists.

Advanced technologies, such as night vision capabilities and global positioning satellite devices, not only are appearing on the battlefield but also are falling into hands of enemies.

“Our success in reducing costs and [establishing] good business practices and manufacturing strategy may have inadvertently aided our enemies,” he said.

But the key to winning the battle against terrorism still lies in the hands of technology.

“Industry has rightfully focused on primarily resourcing defense. But in this type of fight, perhaps we should look at enabling the entire network, because being able to reliably and quickly share accurate and relevant information will be a key issue in the future,” he said.