WASHINGTON (Army News Service, April 3, 2008) - The commander of the
Combined Arms Center at Fort Leavenworth, Kan., testified this week to
the Airland Subcommittee of the Senate Armed Services Committee about
the Army's new operations manual, FM 3-0 .
Lt. Gen. William B. Caldwell IV told Senate Subcommittee Chairman Joe
Lieberman and Ranking Member John Cornyn that while Soldiers are
performing magnificently in the war on terrorism, FM 3-0 is their
blueprint for operating in an uncertain future. He also said creating a
total-government approach for future conflicts is crucial for success,
adding that this depends on Congressional resourcing of other
government agencies.
FM 3-0 marks the first major changes to Army doctrine since the Sept.
11 terrorist attacks and institutionalizes simultaneous offensive,
defensive and stability operations. In fact, stability and combat
operations are given equal importance.
"A tremendous amount of change in FM 3-0 has come from lessons learned
in Iraq and Afghanistan," Caldwell said after the manual's launch in
February. "It was important for us to go back and take those lessons
that we have learned over time and incorporate them into our doctrine,
training and leader development."
Both Lieberman and Cornyn were concerned about how the Army could
support and budget for such a wide spectrum of operations, but Cornyn
congratulated the military for its ability to successfully perform so
many missions.
While Caldwell was in the capital, he also stopped by the Army's
Worldwide Public Affairs Symposium and talked to public affairs
officers about the changing face of media and the importance of
engagement.
"Telling the story of the United States Army and our Soldiers is not
only a noble calling, but in today's information environment, it is
essential to the success of our mission and to the overall success of
our nation in this era of persistent conflict," said the former
Multi-National Force-Iraq spokesman.
Now every student at the Command and General Staff College, which falls
under Caldwell's direction, is required to conduct at least one media
interview, one public-outreach event and write one blog.
"As Soldiers, we understand the maximum effective range of our primary
weapons systems and exactly what that means," he said. "But with the
emphasis on information as an element of combat power, we need to
understand that the maximum effective range of a message, once it is
launched, is unlimited.
"All communications have the potential to be global, and we need to
expect that our messages will be heard and understood in multiple
countries, in many different languages, and more importantly, through
many various cultural filters. Always think through the implications of
your messages and how they will be perceived on a global scale.
Remember that in many parts of the world, an American Soldier will be
the only contact that many people will have with our great nation."
(Editor's Note: A report from John Harlow contributed to this article.)
Source and credits :http://www.army.mil/-news/2008/04/03/8296-armys-new-field-manual-discussed-on-hill/
Lt.
Gen. William Caldwell speaks at the 2008 Worldwide Public Affairs
Symposium March 31 in McLean, Va. He told more than 500 Army public
affairs practitioners how their mission is critical to the success of
the United States Army. Photo by David McNally, USAG-Yongsan
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