United States Army Civil Affairs and Psychological Operations Command

Last updated

United States Army Civil Affairs and Psychological Operations Command (Airborne)
Civil Affairs & Psychological Operations Command shoulder sleeve insignia.png
U.S. Army Civil Affairs & Psychological Operations Command (Airborne) shoulder sleeve insignia.
Active1990–present
Country Flag of the United States.svg United States
BranchFlag of the United States Army.svg  United States Army
Type Seal of the United States Army Reserve.svg U.S. Army Reserve
Role USA - Civil Affairs.png Civil Affairs and
USA - Psych Ops Branch Insignia.png PSYOP
Garrison/HQ Fort Liberty, North Carolina
Website USACAPOC(A) official website
Commanders
Current
commander
MG Andrée G. Carter
Insignia
Distinctive unit insignia of the command
USACAPOC DUI.png
Unit flash of the command
United States Army Civil Affairs and Psychological Operations Command (USACAPOC) beret flash.png
Combat service identification badge
United States Army Civil Affairs and Psychological Operations Command CSIB.png

The United States Army Civil Affairs and Psychological Operations Command (Airborne), USACAPOC(A), or CAPOC was founded in 1985 and is headquartered at Fort Liberty, North Carolina. [1] USACAPOC(A) is composed mostly of U.S. Army Reserve Soldiers in units throughout the United States. The size of the Command is nearly 13,500 Soldiers, [2] which is 76% of the Department of Defense's Civil Affairs forces and 63% of Psychological Operations forces. [3]

Contents

Historically, USACAPOC(A) was one of four major subordinate commands composing the U.S. Army Special Operations Command (USASOC). In May 2006, the reserve component of USACAPOC(A) was administratively reorganized under the U.S. Army Reserve Command. The administrative move, however, does not detract from the capability of Army Reserve Civil Affairs Soldiers ability to carry out missions in support of unconventional environments or special operations. Both Active and Reserve component Civil Affairs Soldiers are products of the special operations community, they must go through qualification training at the John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School. The Army Reserve Civil Affairs is considered to be more dynamic than that of their Active duty counterparts. The largest difference being, while the Active component’s focus is mainly on unconventional environments, individual Soldiers from the Army Reserve Civil Affairs may be tasked with supporting both conventional or unconventional operations. In addition, the Army Reserve Civil Affairs largely maintains functional skills or specialties that the Active Component is typically unable to, due to the nature of a separate civilian career or the professional backgrounds of many Reserve Soldiers. The Army's active duty Special Operations Civil Affairs and Psychological Operations units, along with the Civil Affairs and Psychological Operations Force Modernization/Branch Proponents, continue to fall under the U.S. Army Special Operations Command and United States Army John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School, respectively. The Active Component Civil Affairs Brigade—the 95th Civil Affairs Brigade—and the two active component Psychological Operations Groups—the 4th Psychological Operations Group and the 8th Psychological Operations Group—fall under USASOC. [4]

U.S. Army Reserve Civil Affairs and Psychological Operations constitute 5% of the U.S. Army Reserve's total force, but account for approximately 20% of Army Reserve deployments. Reserve Civil Affairs are deployable specialized forces within the Reserve. Reserve Soldiers often bring civilian expertise and education that is typically not found among active-duty soldiers. The projects these elements coordinate are worldwide, but more recently have focused on Iraq, Afghanistan, and the Horn of Africa regions.[ citation needed ]

Civil Affairs Calling Cards Civil Affairs Calling Cards.pdf
Civil Affairs Calling Cards

Information Operations Units

Information Operations (IO) units are organized and trained to conduct Operations in the Information environment (OIE) defined as the "Military actions involving the integrated employment of multiple information forces to affect drivers of behavior. (JP 3-04)" This is primarily done through the integrated employment of Information Forces (formerly referred to as ‘information related capabilities’ (IRCs), such as Civil Affairs (CA), Psychological Operations (PO), Combat Camera, Public Affairs (CA), and Cyber and Electromagnetic Activities (CEMA). [5]

The 151st Theater Information Operations is Group (151st TIOG) was realigned under the command of USACAPOC(A) in October 2015.

Information Operations units are the field commander's capability to synchronize and de-conflict IRCs in the commander's information environment. The Soldiers consist of teams which interface and provide IO expertise to the staff. [6] 151st TIOG IO practitioners are particularly suited for this mission as U.S. Army Reserve Soldiers with civilian occupations such as law enforcement, engineering, medicine, law, finance, public administration and civil service, etc.; and, civilian education such as Project Management Professional (PMP), Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), Juris Doctor (J.D.), Master of Business Administration (MBA), Master of Public Administration (MPA), etc. [7] [8]

Information Operations Soldiers are integral to U.S. missions across Northwest Africa, East Africa, Europe, Middle East, and various other locations.

Information Operations units
UnitDistinctive unit insigniaCommanderHeadquartersSubordinate Units
151st Theater Information Operations Group
151st TIOG DUI.png
Colonel Jonathan Steinbach Fort Totten, New York The 151st TIOG has two Information Operations Field Support Battalions

Civil Affairs Units

The primary mission of Civil Affairs is to conduct Civil-military operations. Civil Affairs soldiers are responsible for executing five core Civil Affairs tasks, Civil Information Management, Foreign Humanitarian Assistance, Foreign Assistance, Population and Resource Control, and Support to Civil Administration. Some sub tasks to these core tasks include identifying non-governmental and international organizations operating in the battlespace, handling refugees, civilians on the battlefield, and determining protected targets such as schools, churches/temples/mosques, hospitals, etc.

Civil Affairs units are the field commander's link to the civil authorities in that commander's area of operations. The soldiers make up teams which interface and provide expertise to the host nation government. USACAPOC(A)'s Civil Affairs soldiers are particularly suited for this mission since they are Army Reserve soldiers with civilian occupations such as law enforcement, engineering, medicine, law, banking, public administration, etc.

Civil Affairs Soldiers have been integral to U.S. peacekeeping operations in Iraq, Afghanistan, the Horn of Africa, Bosnia and Kosovo, among others. Tactical Civil Affairs teams meet with local officials, conduct assessments and determine the need for critical infrastructure projects such as roads, schools, power plants, clinics, sewer lines, etc., and check up on the status of the project after construction by a local company has begun.

USACAPOC Civil Affairs units
UnitDistinctive unit insigniaRegional
Alignment
HeadquartersSubordinate Units
350th Civil Affairs Command
350th Civil Affairs Command distinctive unit insignia.png
351st Civil Affairs Command
351st Civil Affairs Command distinctive unit insignia.png
352nd Civil Affairs Command
352nd Civil Affairs Command distinctive unit insignia.png
353rd Civil Affairs Command distinctive unit insignia.png

Psychological Operations (PSYOP) Units

CAPOC pamphlet disseminated in Iraq. The text translates as, "This is your future al-Zarqawi," and depicts al-Qaeda terrorist al-Zarqawi caught in a rat trap. The arm holding up the trap has the Iraqi flag on it. Your future al-Zarqawi.jpg
CAPOC pamphlet disseminated in Iraq. The text translates as, "This is your future al-Zarqawi," and depicts al-Qaeda terrorist al-Zarqawi caught in a rat trap. The arm holding up the trap has the Iraqi flag on it.

Psychological warfare are a vital part of the broad range of U.S. political, military, economic and ideological activities used by the U.S. government to secure national objectives. PSYOP is the dissemination of information to foreign audiences in support of U.S. policy and national objectives.

Used during peacetime, contingencies and declared war, these activities are not forms of force, but are force multipliers that use nonviolent means in often violent environments. Persuading rather than compelling physically, they rely on logic, fear, desire, or other mental factors to promote specific emotions, attitudes, or behaviors. The ultimate objective of U.S. military psychological operations is to convince enemy, neutral, and friendly nations and forces to take action favorable to the U.S. and its allies.

Psychological operations (United States) support national security objectives at the tactical, operational and strategic levels of operations. Strategic psychological operations advance broad or long-term objectives. Global in nature, they may be directed toward large audiences or at key communicators.

Operational psychological operations are conducted on a smaller scale. They are employed by theater commanders to target groups within the theater of operations. Their purpose can range from gaining support for U.S. operations to preparing the battlefield for combat.

Tactical psychological operations are more limited, used by commanders to secure immediate and near-term goals. In this environment, these force-enhancing activities serve as a means to lower the morale and efficiency of enemy forces.

Both tactical and theater-level psychological operations may be used to enhance peacetime military activities of conventional forces operating in foreign countries. Cultural awareness packages attune U.S. forces before departing overseas. In theater, media programs publicize the positive aspects of combined military exercises and deployments.

In addition to supporting commanders, PSYOP units provide interagency support to other U.S. government agencies. In operations ranging from humanitarian assistance to drug interdiction, psychological operations enhance the impact of those agencies' actions. Their activities can be used to spread information about ongoing programs and to gain support from the local populace.

Psychological operations units in the U.S. Army Reserve are language and culturally oriented. Seventy one percent of the Department of Defense's PSYOP capability rests within USACAPOC (A)'s 2nd and 7th Psychological Operations Groups located in Ohio and California respectively.

Psychological Operations units
UnitDistinctive unit insigniaCommanderHeadquartersSubordinate Units
2nd Psychological Operations Group
2 POG-100px.jpg
Colonel Lawrence E. Williams Twinsburg, Ohio
7th Psychological Operations Group
7 POG-100px.jpg
Colonel Matthew Gebhard Mountain View, California

See also

Related Research Articles

United States special operations forces (SOF) are the active and reserve component forces of the United States Army, Marine Corps, Navy and Air Force within the US military, as designated by the Secretary of Defense and specifically organized, trained, and equipped to conduct and support special operations. All active and reserve special operations forces are assigned to the United States Special Operations Command (USSOCOM).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">United States Army Special Operations Command</span> Army component of the U.S. Special Operations Command

The United States Army Special Operations Command (Airborne) (USASOC ( YOO-sə-sok)) is the command charged with overseeing the various special operations forces of the United States Army. Headquartered at Fort Liberty, North Carolina, it is the largest component of the United States Special Operations Command. It is an Army Service Component Command. Its mission is to organize, train, educate, man, equip, fund, administer, mobilize, deploy and sustain Army special operations forces to successfully conduct worldwide special operations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fort McPherson</span> Former U.S. Army base in Atlanta, Georgia, USA

Fort McPherson was a U.S. Army military base located in Atlanta, Georgia, bordering the northern edge of the city of East Point, Georgia. It was the headquarters for the U.S. Army Installation Management Command, Southeast Region; the U.S. Army Forces Command; the U.S. Army Reserve Command; the U.S. Army Central. Situated on 487 acres (1.97 km2) and located four miles (6 km) southwest of the center of Atlanta, Fort McPherson has history as an army post dating back to 1867.

Civil Affairs (CA) is a term used by both the United Nations and by military institutions, but for different purposes in each case.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Psychological operations (United States)</span> Psychological operations within United States military and intelligence agencies

Psychological operations (PSYOP) are operations to convey selected information and indicators to audiences to influence their motives and objective reasoning, and ultimately the behavior of governments, organizations, groups, and large foreign powers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">95th Civil Affairs Brigade</span> U.S. Army civil affairs and special operations force

The 95th Civil Affairs Brigade (Airborne) is a Special Operations civil affairs brigade of the United States Army based at Fort Liberty, North Carolina. The concept for a civil affairs brigade had been under consideration for years, but was finally approved as a result of the 2006 Quadrennial Defense Review. The 95th Civil Affairs Brigade makes up a significant portion of the four percent of civil affairs soldiers in the active component.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1st Information Operations Command (Land)</span> US Army Cyber Command unit

The 1st Information Operations Command (Land), formerly the Land Information Warfare Activity Information Dominance Center (LIWA/IDC), is an information operations unit under the operational control of U.S. Army Cyber Command (ARCYBER) and headquartered at Fort Belvoir, Virginia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">4th Psychological Operations Group</span> US Army special forces support unit

The 4th Psychological Operations Group (Airborne) or 4th POG(A) is one of the United States Army's active military information support operations units along with the 8th Psychological Operations Group (Airborne), which was activated 26 August 2011 at Fort Liberty. The 8th Group has responsibility for the 3rd and 9th Psychological Operations battalions while the 4th Group has responsibility for the 1st, 5th, 6th, 7th, and 8th battalions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">United States military beret flash</span>

In the United States (US) military, a beret flash is a shield-shaped embroidered cloth that is typically 2.25 in (5.72 cm) tall and 1.875 in (4.76 cm) wide with a semi–circular base that is attached to a stiffener backing of a military beret. These flashes—a British English word for a colorful cloth patch attached to military headgear—are worn over the left eye with the excess cloth of the beret shaped, folded, and pulled over the right ear giving it a distinctive appearance.

United States Department of Defense, and associated, civil affairs are civil-military operations (CMO) use of military force to control areas seized from the enemy, minimize insurgency or civil interference with military operations, and maximize civil support for military operations. CMO is conducted in conjunction with combat operations during wartime and becomes a central part of a military campaign in counter-insurgencies. CMO operations have been in frequent use since 1775 by the United States Army, as well as more recently by the Navy and Marine Corps.

In US military doctrine, unconventional warfare is one of the core activities of irregular warfare. Unconventional warfare is essentially support provided by the military to a foreign insurgency or resistance. The legal definition of UW is:

Unconventional Warfare consists of activities conducted to enable a resistance movement or insurgency to coerce, disrupt or overthrow an occupying power or government by operating through or with an underground, auxiliary or guerrilla force in a denied area.

According to JP 1-02, United States Department of Defense Dictionary of Military and Associated Terms, a military journalist is "A U.S. Service member or Department of Defense civilian employee providing photographic, print, radio, or television command information for military internal audiences. See also command information. "

<span class="mw-page-title-main">97th Civil Affairs Battalion (Airborne)</span> Military unit

The 97th Civil Affairs Battalion (Airborne) is a civil affairs battalion of the 95th Civil Affairs Brigade (Airborne) based at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. It is a member of the only active duty Special Operations Civil Affairs unit in the United States Department of Defense. The concept for a Civil Affairs brigade had been under consideration for years, but was finally approved as a result of the 2006 Quadrennial Defense Review.

Information Operations is a category of direct and indirect support operations for the United States Military. By definition in Joint Publication 3-13, "IO are described as the integrated employment of electronic warfare (EW), computer network operations (CNO), psychological operations (PSYOP), military deception (MILDEC), and operations security (OPSEC), in concert with specified supporting and related capabilities, to Information Operations (IO) are actions taken to affect adversary information and information systems while defending one's own information and information systems.

Mission Command Training Program, based at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, is the U.S. Army's only worldwide deployable Combat Training Center. MCTP provides full spectrum operations training support for senior commanders and their staffs so they can be successful in any mission in any operational environment. Its Senior Mentors counsel and offer their experience to Army senior commanders, subordinate commanders and staff. Additionally, MCTP's professional observer-trainers assist units with objective feedback and suggestions for improvement.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">United States Special Operations Command</span> Unified combatant command of the United States Armed Forces responsible for special operations

The United States Special Operations Command is the unified combatant command charged with overseeing the various special operations component commands of the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, and Air Force of the United States Armed Forces. The command is part of the Department of Defense and is the only unified combatant command created by an Act of Congress. USSOCOM is headquartered at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, Florida.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">490th Civil Affairs Battalion</span> Military unit

The 490th Civil Affairs Battalion is a civil affairs (CA) unit of the United States Army Reserve located at the Grand Prairie Armed Forces Reserve Complex in Grand Prairie, Texas and organized under the 321st Civil Affairs Brigade, 350th Civil Affairs Command, United States Army Civil Affairs and Psychological Operations Command (Airborne) or USACAPOC. The 490th is composed of Headquarters and Headquarters Company (HHC) and its four tactical companies, Alpha, Bravo, Charlie, and Delta. The unit was activated for service during World War II, the Berlin Crisis, and Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">151st Theater Information Operations Group</span> Military unit

The 151st Theater Information Operations Group, or 151st TIOG, is an Information Operations formation of the United States Army Reserve, headquartered at Fort Totten, New York. Founded in 2009, the 151st TIOG is the only Theater Information Operations Group in the U.S. Army Reserve. It is composed mostly of Army Reserve Soldiers in two battalions based out of Parks Reserve Forces Training Area, Fort George G. Meade, and Fort Totten. The current commander is Colonel Jonathan Steinbach, who assumed command in July 2023.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">353d Civil Affairs Command</span> Military unit

The 353rd Civil Affairs Command organizes, trains, and equips assigned Civil Affairs forces to mobilize, deploy, and conduct civil military operations. On order, the 353rd Civil Affairs Command organizes, trains, and equips assigned Civil Affairs forces to mobilize, deploy, conduct civil military operations, and redeploy in order to support Geographic Combatant Commander mission requirements with focus on the US Africa and US European Command areas of responsibility.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">489th Civil Affairs Battalion</span> Military unit

The 489th Civil Affairs Battalion is a civil affairs (CA) unit of the United States Army Reserve (USAR) located at the US Army Reserve Center in Knoxville, Tennessee, part of the 354th Civil Affairs Brigade, 352nd Civil Affairs Command. In turn the 354th CA Brigade is part of United States Army Civil Affairs and Psychological Operations Command (USACAPOC). The 489th is composed of Headquarters and Headquarters Company (HHC) and its four tactical companies, Alpha, Bravo, Charlie, and Delta. The unit was activated for service during World War II, Bosnia, Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF), and the Iraq War.

References

  1. Pike, John. "Army Civil Affairs and Psychological Operations Command (Airborne)". GlobalSecurity.org. Retrieved 21 April 2016.
  2. Brooks, Drew (21 October 2017). "Guthrie takes command of USACAPOC". The Fayetteville Observer. Retrieved 30 September 2019.
  3. "About Us". U.S. Army Civil Affairs & Psychological Operations Command (Airborne). Retrieved 26 October 2021.
  4. "Our Commands: U.S. Army Reserve Command: About Us". U.S. Army Reserve . Retrieved 21 April 2016.
  5. ADP 3-13 (2023 ed.). HQ, Department of the Army. 2023.
  6. Unknown, Unknown. "FTSTESTS". www.dvidshub.net. Retrieved 12 April 2019.
  7. Moyer, Jonathan (24 January 2019). "Soldiers, looking to reclass? The information operations career field needs you". armytimes.com. Retrieved 12 April 2019.
  8. Bridgers, James. "America's Army Reserve". www.csis.org. Retrieved 12 April 2019.