Reestablish government payment mechanisms to fulfill recurrent and emergency expenditures.
Establish simple and reliable capacity to process, record, and report payments.
Facilitate assessment of revenue-generating activities for the national treasury.
Identify tax structure and sources of revenue.
Facilitate establishment of basic audit functions to ensure officials use local government resources appropriately.
Support Public Sector Investment Programs
3-65. Although organizations such as U.S. Agency for International Development usually manage public sector investment in a fragile state, the military force also can influence success in these programs. Public sector investment ensures the long-term viability of public education, health care, and mass transit. It also provides for development in industries—such as mining, oil, and natural gas—and hydroelectricity. At the local level, military forces may spur investment through grant programs or direct public investment projects. The list of essential tasks may include—
An initial response in which military forces—
Prioritize public investment needs.
Develop plans to allocate available resources.
Pay civil service debts.
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Transformation in which military forces invest in critical projects neglected by the private sector.
Support Private Sector Development
3-66. Developing the private sector typically begins with employing large portions of the labor force. In addition to acquiring goods and services from the local economy, the tasks that support private sector development infuse much-needed cash into local markets and initiate additional public investment and development. Even in the most remote, austere regions of the world, local markets offer unique entrepreneurial opportunities, as well as services often considered vital to the economies of developed countries. The list of essential tasks may include—
An initial response in which military forces—
Assess the depth of the private sector and enterprise creation.
Identify obstacles to private sector development.
Transformation in which military forces—
Facilitate access to markets.
Strengthen the private sector through contracting and outsourcing.
Provide investors with protection and incentives.
Facilitate access to credit for legitimate banking and financial activity.
Protect Natural Resources and Environment
3-67. Protecting a nation’s natural resources is an extension of the requirement to secure and protect other institutions of the state. Additionally, it preserves the long-term economic development and investment capacity of a fragile state. This capacity includes the revenues generated by the storage, distribution, and trade in natural resources. Rival factions often target these resources to finance illegitimate interests. The list of essential tasks may include—
An initial response in which military forces assess and secure access to vital natural resources.
Transformation in which military forces prevent the illicit generation of revenues from natural resources.
Support Agricultural Development Programs
3-68. The agricultural sector is a cornerstone of a viable market economy, providing crops and livestock vital to local markets and international trade. The development of this sector may be hindered by property disputes, difficulty accessing nearby markets, poor irrigation, animal disease, minefields, or unexploded explosive ordnance. Therefore, development agencies prioritize and integrate projects with related tasks in other stability sectors to establish and institutionalize practical solutions to the long-term growth of the agricultural sector. The military contribution to agricultural development parallels related efforts to spur economic growth in local communities. Together, they draw on local labor pools to help reestablish basic services central to the agricultural sector. The list of essential tasks may include—
An initial response in which military forces—
Assess the state of agricultural sector.
Secure and protect postharvest storage facilities.
Rebuild small-scale irrigation systems.
Establish work programs to support agricultural development.
Transformation in which military forces—
Protect water sources.
Identify constraints to production.
Assess health, diversity, and numbers of animals.
Channel food aid to promote market activity.
Establish transportation and distribution networks.
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Encourage host-nation enterprise creation to provide goods and services to the agricultural sector.
Ensure open transit and access to local markets.
Restore Transportation Infrastructure
3-69. Restoring the transportation and distribution capability of the state is central to economic recovery.
An underdeveloped or incapacitated transportation infrastructure limits freedom of movement, trade, social interaction, and development. Military forces often initiate immediate improvement to the transportation and distribution networks of the host nation. These networks enable freedom of maneuver, logistic support, and the movement of personnel and materiel to support ongoing operations. Transportation infrastructure improvements help to ease the transportation challenges common to relief efforts in fragile states. These improvements facilitate the vital assistance efforts of civilian agencies and organizations that follow in the wake of military forces. The list of essential tasks may include an initial response in which military forces—
Assess overall condition of national transportation infrastructure (airports, roads, bridges, railways, and coastal and inland ports, harbors, and waterways), including facilities and
equipment.
Determine and prioritize essential infrastructure programs and projects.
Conduct expedient repairs or build new facilities to facilitate commercial trade.
Restore Telecommunications Infrastructure
3-70. The telecommunications infrastructure of the state exists to support every element of a society, from the government to the financial sector, and from the media to the local populace. The failure of this infrastructure accelerates the collapse of the state, isolates the state and the populace from the outside world, and hampers development efforts. The military contribution to reconstruction efforts in the telecommunications infrastructure is limited; normally, few essential tasks exist in this area. The list of essential tasks may include an initial response in which military forces—
Assess overall condition of the national telecommunications infrastructure.
Determine and prioritize essential infrastructure programs and projects.
Support General Infrastructure Reconstruction Programs
3-71. General infrastructure reconstruction programs focus on rehabilitating the state’s ability to produce and distribute fossil fuels, generate electrical power, exercise engineering and construction support, and provide municipal and other services to the populace. The United States Army Corps of Engineers and Field Force Engineering have the expertise to support host-nation capacity building in many of these areas.
Such capacity building spurs rehabilitation efforts that establish the foundation for long-term development.
As with the restoration of essential services, support to general infrastructure programs requires a thorough understanding of the civil component of the operational area. Civil affairs (CA) personnel support this information collection to help prioritize programs and projects.
3-72. The forward engineer support team, part of the United States Army Corps of Engineers, provides detailed infrastructure reconnaissance in the operational area. These efforts are central to understanding the needs of the state and prioritizing programs and projects. In a fragile state, fuels, energy, engineering, and construction industries represent the difference between a primitive tribal state and a developing country with a vibrant, functioning society. The list of essential tasks may include an initial response in which military forces—
Assess overall condition of national energy infrastructure.
Determine and prioritize essential infrastructure programs and projects.
Assess conditions of existing power generation and distribution facilities.
Assess conditions of existing natural resources conversion and distribution facilities.
Assess conditions of existing facilities integral to effectively execute essential tasks in other sectors.
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Assess conditions of existing local, municipal facilities that provide essential services.
Conduct expedient repairs or build new facilities to support local populace (such as schools, medical clinics, and municipal buildings).
INFORMATION ENGAGEMENT TASKS
3-73. Although not considered stability tasks, information engagement tasks are fundamental to each stability sector. Information engagement tasks are deliberately integrated with activities in each stability sector and primary stability task to complement and reinforce the success of operations. This integration is vital to success; information engagement tasks must be carefully sequenced with other tasks and supported with thorough risk assessments. Exploiting or ceding the initiative within the information domain is often a matter of precise timing and coordination. Combined with broad efforts to reduce the drivers of conflict and build host-nation capacity, information engagement is essential to achieving decisive results: the recovery of the host-nation government and the attainment of a lasting, stable peace. Figure 3-1 illustrates the relationship between information engagement and each of the primary stability tasks.
Figure 3-1. Relating information engagement to the primary stability tasks
3-74. In executing stability operations, the military force focuses on people. They aim to gain the cooperation and support of the populace. Stability tasks that improve their safety, security, and livelihood help to shape their perceptions that supporting the objectives of the operation are in their best interest.
Shaping perceptions that the operation is legitimate will increase support for it. Executing the following essential tasks can further the populace’s and the international community’s understanding of the commander’s objectives:
Identify or establish outlets for international, national, and local news media.
Provide factual, accurate information to the media to control rumors and disinformation.
Issue effective press releases and prompt information in local languages.
Assist transitional civil or military authorities with public information programs.
Synchronize messages with operations; ensure messages are consistent with actions.
Assess media capability and capacity of the host nation; tailor information engagement strategy to the ability of the local populace to receive messages.
Integrate cultural understanding with information engagement strategy.
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THE ROLE OF CIVIL AFFAIRS IN STABILITY OPERATIONS
3-75. CA forces support full spectrum operations in every environment across the spectrum of conflict, from stable peace to general war. They are essential to the conduct of successful stability operations. CA personnel provide unique area and linguistic orientation, cultural astuteness, advisory capabilities, and civilian professional skills that generally parallel those of host-nation governments. They provide the commander with specialized expertise on the civil component of the operational environment. The commander draws on this expertise to analyze and influence the human dimension through specific processes and dedicated resources and personnel.
THE CIVIL AFFAIRS MISSION
3-76. The mission of CA forces is to engage and influence the local populace by planning, executing, and transitioning CA operations in Army, joint, interagency, and multinational operations. These forces conduct CA operations that support and are nested within the overall operation. CA forces support these operations by addressing civil considerations within the operational area before, during, or after a conflict or disaster. CA forces help to shape the operational environment by interacting with the local populace to facilitate military operations. A supportive local populace can provide valuable resources and critical information that supports friendly operations. A hostile local populace threatens the immediate success of military operations and may undermine domestic public support for those operations. When executed properly, CA operations reduce the friction between the local populace and the military force.
CIVIL AFFAIRS OPERATIONS
3-77. During full spectrum operations, CA forces conduct operations that support and are nested within the overall mission and commander’s intent. CA operations improve the relationship between military forces and host-nation authorities in areas in which the military force operates. They involve applying CA functional specialty skills to areas normally under the responsibility of a host-nation government. CA operations establish, maintain, influence, or exploit relationships between military forces and all levels of host-nation governments and officials. These operations are fundamental to executing stability tasks successfully.
3-78. CA organizations and personnel develop detailed assessments based on civil considerations. These include information about infrastructure, civilian institutions, and attitudes and activities of civilian leaders, the local populace, and host-nation organizations. These assessments may reveal that a viable host-nation government does not exist or cannot perform its basic civil functions. In such cases, military forces may support or implement transitional military authority until a legitimate host-nation government is established. (JP 3-57 and FMs 3-05.40 and 3-05.401 provide doctrine on CA.)
3-79. CA operations help to ensure the sustained legitimacy of the mission and the transparency and credibility of the military force. This is accomplished by minimizing the effects of military operations on the local populace, limiting how civilians impact those military operations, and providing sound advice to the commander on the legal and moral obligations of the force as it conducts operations. The key to successful CA operations is in leveraging the relationship between the military force and every individual, group, and organization in the operational area.
3-80. CA personnel help the commander to understand and visualize the civil component of the operational area. They provide detailed analysis based on careful consideration of operational and mission variables. (See FM 3-0 for doctrine for the operational and mission variables.) This analysis is critical to determining the following within the supported unit’s operational area:
The root causes of instability and civil strife.
The requirement for civil-military operations centers to facilitate communications and
coordinate with civilian agencies and organizations.
The need to use liaison teams to enhance communications and coordination with civilian
agencies and organizations to facilitate operations at all echelons.
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What, when, where, and why civilians might be encountered; what ongoing or planned military operations might impact the activities of those civilians; what activities those civilians are engaged in that might affect military operations; and what actions the military force must take to mitigate the effects of those civilians.
Measures of performance and measures of effectiveness for CA operations to support the larger military operation.
MISSION-ESSENTIAL TASKS IN STABILITY OPERATIONS
3-81. A mission-essential task is a collective task a unit must be capable of performing successfully to accomplish its mission. Since organizations must be able to conduct full spectrum operations, they cannot afford to focus training exclusively on one element of full spectrum operations at the expense of the other elements. Yet they also cannot conceivably maintain proficiency on all tasks across the spectrum of conflict. Therefore, commanders use the mission-essential task list to focus organizational training. There are three types of mission-essential task lists:
Joint mission-essential task list derived from the Universal Joint Task List.
Core mission-essential task list (CMETL) standardized for brigades and above units by the
Department of the Army.
Directed mission-essential task list (DMETL) developed by a commander.
3-82. Units train on only a single mission-essential task list at any given time but may be required to report readiness on more than one mission-essential task list.
CORE MISSION-ESSENTIAL TASK LIST
3-83. An organization’s CMETL is a list of the tasks derived from a unit’s specific capabilities based on the organization, mission, and doctrine for that unit. A CMETL reflects the tasks the organization was designed to perform and general tasks applicable to all organizations, regardless of type. The CMETL
consists of general mission-essential tasks and core capabilities mission-essential tasks. Each mission-essential task is comprised of task groups of related collective tasks that support a specific portion of a mission capability. (See FM 7-0 for a detailed discussion of general mission-essential tasks and core capabilities mission-essential tasks.)
3-84. For stability operations, the specific focus of the CMETL will typically vary between echelons and organizations and will be regulated by procedures outlined in FM 7-0. However, for all echelons, CMETL
will aim for proficiency in those tasks most likely during or immediately after a violent conflict or disaster.
Divisions and corps will orchestrate a broad range of missions and must maintain proficiency in selected primary stability tasks during training. Since CMETLs are reviewed periodically by Headquarters, Department of the Army, those lists and their associated task groups are subject to change. For division and corps headquarters, an example of the task groups underpinning the core capabilities mission-essential task of conduct stability operations could include the following:
Establish civil security.
Establish civil control.
Restore essential services.
3-85. For brigade-level headquarters, the focus of the CMETL varies according to the type of brigade, its mission, and established doctrine. The CMETL only trains brigades to minimum capability. In stability operations, the brigade combat team remains the principal means of executing the broad range of tasks required for success. Other brigade-level organizations, such as the maneuver enhancement brigade, play a significant role in stability operations; these brigades provide the force with significant capabilities to conduct a wide array of stability tasks. For these support brigades, the CMETL will likely focus training on providing their core capabilities mission-essential tasks during full spectrum operations, including the stability element. For example, an aviation brigade may provide specific support focused on stability tasks performed by other elements of the force.
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3-86. Functional brigades, like the support brigades, have a subordinate organizational structure that may vary considerably among brigades of the same type. Unlike the support brigades, however, functional brigades typically operate under theater army control and depend on theater-level elements for signal and other support. The theater army may task-organize them to corps or division headquarters. For functional brigades, the core capabilities mission-essential tasks reflect the most likely tasks according to its organization, mission, and doctrine.
DIRECTED MISSION-ESSENTIAL TASK LIST
3-87. When an organization is assigned a specific mission, the focus of organizational training shifts from CMETL to a DMETL and training conditions that realistically portray mission conditions. The commander develops a list of the tasks required to accomplish that mission. This list, a unit’s DMETL, is based on a thorough mission analysis and, once established, forms the new foundation and focus for unit training until mission accomplishment. When developing the DMETL, commanders may capture a broad range of stability tasks required for the directed mission, possibly expanding on the CMETL significantly.
3-88. Analysis of the situation and conditions within the operational area helps determine the DMETL
with respect to specific stability tasks. The DMETL for stability operations may remain consistent with a unit’s CMETL, assume a broader focus on tasks that encompass reconstruction activities, or focus on stability tasks conducted during peacetime military engagement. For division and corps headquarters, the DMETL may expand to include the primary stability tasks support to governance and support to economic and infrastructure development. (See FM 7-0 for doctrine on CMETL and DMETL development.) 3-89. For brigade-level organizations, the DMETL may expand to include various tasks that support the efforts of the other instruments of national power, the host nation, and other actors and stakeholders. In operations where host-nation security forces cannot provide security adequately for the state and its people, brigade combat teams may be assigned the mission of conducting security force assistance. Though not integral to the CMETL of these organizations, security force assistance draws on many skills already resident in these organizations, as well as the developed command and control infrastructure to coordinate the broad and often dispersed efforts involved. (See chapter 6 for a discussion of security force assistance.) 3-22
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Chapter 4
Planning for Stability Operations
A plan, like a tree, must have branches—if it is to bear fruit. A plan with a single aim is apt to prove a barren pole.
Captain Sir Basil Liddell Hart
Thoughts on War
PLANNING FUNDAMENTALS
4-1. For every operation, commanders develop personal, detailed understanding of the situation and operational environment. They then visualize a desired end state and craft a broad concept for shaping the current conditions toward that end state. Finally, they describe their visualization through the commander’s intent, planning guidance, and concept of operations, setting formal planning processes in motion. Thus, planning is an adaptive process that ebbs and flows with the situation; as understanding of the situation evolves, planners develop branches and sequels to account for such evolution. Planning is a continuous activity, constantly adapting as the conditions of the operational environment are shaped by activities, both natural and human. Since planning is an ongoing process, the resultant plan is an interim product of deliberate thought, based on knowledge and understanding at a specific point in time and space. The truest measure of a good plan is not whether execution occurs as planned, but whether the plan fosters flexibility, initiative, and adaptability in the face of unforeseen events.
4-2. Planning consists of two separate, but closely related aspects: a conceptual component, represented by the less tangible aspects of visualization, and a detailed component, which introduces specificity to the plan through a deliberate process. During planning these activities overlap; there is no clear delineation between either. As commanders conceptualize the operation, their vision informs the staff to add detail to the plan. As the plan increases in detail, it helps to refine the commander’s visualization. This chapter addresses the conceptual component of planning.
REDUCE COMPLEXITY
4-3. Conflict, by nature, is a complex endeavor; it is fundamentally human in character and, as such, is inherently unpredictable in nature. Uncertainty, chance, and friction are ubiquitous. This is the essence of complexity. In an era of persistent conflict, human interaction, globalization, and technological diffusion characterize an increasingly complex global security environment. Planning provides the tools necessary to understand this environment and to minimize the adverse effects of complexity on operations.
4-4. Given the inherently uncertain nature of war, the object of planning is not to eliminate or minimize uncertainty but to foster decisive and effective action in the midst of such uncertainty. Planning does not aim to predict the future but contains an element of forecasting. Effective planning provides an informed forecast of how future events are likely to unfold based on understanding the current situation and conditions of the operational environment. This forecast accounts for the uncertainty, chance, and friction innate to complex situations. Commanders express it through planning as flexibility and adaptability.
4-5. Sim