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In Europe, said Lt. Gen. Ben Hodges, it's important for NATO to
be entirely clear on its resolve to use its capabilities should the
need arise.
Hodges, who serves as commander of U.S. Army
Europe, spoke Monday via video teleconference to the Atlanta CEO
Symposium attended by Army leaders and about 50 Atlanta area
corporate and civic leaders.
U.S. forces in Europe have now
transitioned from being a force of assurance to also being a force
of deterrence, he said, explaining that "deterrence is all about
having the capability to compel, defeat, to force the enemy to
change their mind or reconsider what they're thinking about doing."
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November 3, 2016 - U.S. Army Paratroopers Spc. Jeffery Hooper (left)
and Pfc. Cole Phillips (right), both assigned to 3rd Platoon, Battle
Company, 2nd Battalion, 503rd Infantry Regiment (Airborne), 173rd
Airborne Brigade, support their Estonian allies by pulling security
during joint urban operations training in Hellenurme, Estonia. (U.S. Army photo by
Pfc. James Dutkavich)
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To achieve those goals and that transition, Hodges
described "five pillars" now in place that USAEUR considers
important to ensuring a strong Europe.
EMPOWER JUNIOR
LEADERS
The first
pillar, he said, is empowering junior leaders to do more and
assume much greater responsibility than what they're
accustomed to.
For example, today the senior officer
in Estonia is a captain with about 130 Soldiers under his
charge, Hodges said.
"I have to rely on that captain
understanding the big picture and interacting with the
ambassador and minister of defense, being able to talk to
the international media and ensuring Soldiers are doing
their job in a way that doesn't lead to an incident that
would be exploited immediately by the Russians," he said.
That's kind of what's happening up and down from the
Baltic nations to Romania, Bulgaria and so on.
"We
like to think of U.S. Army Europe as a leadership lab for
the Army, where young people have huge responsibilities," he
added.
RESERVE COMPONENTS
The second pillar is
the National Guard and Reserve, Hodges said. They make up a
huge percentage of the Army logisticians, engineers,
military police and other vital occupations. Besides that,
the Guard has various state partnerships with nations in the
region.
"What an incredible asset for us," he said,
referring to the Reserve components. "They are like oxygen
for us here."
ALLIED STRENGTHS
Partner nations
bring their own manpower and capabilities, the third pillar,
Hodges said. "Our best and most reliable allies come from
Europe, along with Canada and Australia.
"If there's
something we've learned over the last 15 years in Iraq and
Afghanistan, we don't do anything by ourselves," he
continued.
For example, allied forces have bridging
capability strong enough for tanks to cross, he said. They
also provide short-range air defense, heavy trucks that can
carry U.S. tanks on European highways and more.
ROTATIONAL FORCES
The fourth pillar is the nine-month
rotational force, Hodges said, meaning an armored brigade
combat team from Fort Carson, Colorado, that arrived in
January; a combat aviation brigade out of Fort Drum, New
York, that arrived in February; and this month's arrival of
an amalgam of active, Guard and Reserve logisticians that
make up the equivalent of a sustainment brigade.
DYNAMIC PRESENCE
The fifth pillar, Hodges said, is
having a "dynamic presence." He defined that as having units
spread out and moving through series of exercises throughout
Eastern Europe.
A dynamic presence means "showing the
flag and creating the effect of having 300,000 instead of
30,000," he said, referring to 30,000 Soldiers today versus
the 300,000 who were stationed primarily in West Germany and
Italy during the Cold War.
"We look for every way
possible to create the effect we want to create with the
resources we have," he added.
In closing, Hodges
said, "America's economic prosperity is directly tied to
stability and security of Europe. That's why we've been here
since the end of World War II. So there's a practical reason
for us being there."
By U.S. Army David Vergun
Army News Service
Copyright 2017
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