Civil Affairs
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Civil Affairs (CA) is the official name for special operations units that conduct civil-military operations.
According to the U.S. Army, "Civil Affairs units help military commanders by working with civil authorities and civilian populations in the commander’s area of operations to lessen the impact of military operations on them during peace, contingency operations and declared war." With their expertise in civil matters, they are the principle unit in assisting a commander in the conduct of civil-military operations.
CA units act as a liaison between the civilian inhabitants of a warzone or disaster area and the military presence, both informing the local commander of the status of the civilian populace as well as effecting assistance to locals by either coordinating military operations with non-governmental organizations (NGOs)and IGO's or distributing directly aid and supplies.
Comprised primarily of civilian experts such as doctors, lawyers, engineers, police, firemen, bankers, engineers, computer programmers, farmers, and others, CA special operators provide critical expertise to host-nation governments and are also able to assess need for critical infrastructure projects such as roads, clinics, schools, power plants, water treatment facilities, etc. Once a project has been decided on, a contract is put out at a Civil Military Operations Center for local contractors to come and bid. CA teams will periodically check up on the status of the project to make sure the money is being well spent.
CA provides the commander with cultural expertise, assesses the needs of the civilian populace, handles civilians on the battlefield, refugee operations, keeps the commander informed of protected targets such as schools, churches, hospitals, etc., and interfaces with local and international NGOs and private volunteer organizations, which provides the commander with a unique battlefield overlay of all civilian activity, ongoing infrastructure projects, and the presence and mission of NGOs in the area.
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[edit] United Kingdom
The British Army has a Civil Affairs Group, formed in 1997 and consisting primarily of Territorial Army personnel. Most personnel are members of the Royal Engineers and the group is administered by the Central Volunteer Headquarters Royal Engineers (CVHQ RE), based at Gibraltar Barracks, Blackwater, Camberley, Surrey. Members of the group have been deployed operationally in Bosnia, Kosovo, Albania, Macedonia, East Timor, Sierra Leone, Afghanistan and Iraq.
The British Army first formed CA units in 1943, and by August 1944 there were 3,600 CA personnel in France with the 21st Army Group.
[edit] United States
[edit] United States Army
Within the United States Army, CA units are administered through United States Army Civil Affairs and Psychological Operations Command, a subordinate of U.S. Army Reserve Command. USACAPOC contains psychological operations and CA units, consisting of Army reserve elements [active duty CA units are subordinate to the Army Special Operations Command (USASOC)].
As of 25 May 06, USAR CA units no longer fall under Special Operations Command for ADCON (administrative control), but do fall under USASOC for training and doctrine. Despite this move to USARC, CA continues to conduct periodic special operations missions in support of special operations forces in theater.
CA is task organized between four reserve Civil Affairs Commands (CACOMS) which integrate at the strategic and operational level with theater commands and joint/combined task forces (JTF/CJTF). CA brigades comprise these CACOMS and integrate at the corps. At the tactical level, active duty maneuver divisions are augmented by the CA battalions. The four CACOMs are the 350th CACOM, the 351st CACOM, the 352nd CACOM, and the 353rd CACOM. There is also a single active duty Army component CA unit, the 95th Civil Affairs Brigade, stationed at Fort Bragg, NC. The 95th CA BN contains three battalions (96th, 97th and 98th) and is organized under USASOC and is a rapidly deployable CA unit that supports Special Operations Command detachments including the United States Army Special Forces Groups and the 75th Ranger Regiment.
The majority of Civil Affairs personnel come from the United States Army Reserve. 96% are reservists, and 4% active duty. Using reservists means that their civilian skill sets such as lawyers, city managers, economists, veterinarians, policemen, and other skills are more knowledgeable and better suited for restoration of stability and reconstruction (nation building) tasks than can be obtained through the active military.
Typically, a CA battalion will contain a headquarters company, and one CA company for each maneuver brigade. Each CA company contains CA teams (known as CAT-As) which integrate at the maneuver battalion level. There will usually be one CA team per maneuver battalion. In this manner, the division will have OPCON (operational control) over a CA battalion, a brigade will have OPCON over a CA company and an infantry battalion will have TACON (tactical control) over a CA team. The CA battalion retains ADCON (administrative control) for its elements deployed in theater.
The CA battalion and its subordinate companies and teams become organic parts of their maneuver unit, augmenting the unit's S-5/9 or G-5/9 Civil Military Operations Cell, providing cultural expertise, functional specialty expertise, direct support tactical civil affairs, and establishing CMOCs for the geographic area the maneuver unit is responsible for.
[edit] United States Marine Corps
There are currently two permanent CA units in the United States Marine Corps: 3rd Civil Affairs Group (CAG) and 4th CAG. Both units are in the reserve of the Marine Corps. Other CAG unit designations, including 5th and 6th, have been created provisionally for Operation Iraqi Freedom deployments.
[edit] United States Navy
The Navy is in the process of standing up its own civil affairs unit[citation needed].
