Contingency Bases and the Problem of Sociocultural Context.

摘要

United States (US) military presence during contingency operations can have a large impact on the host nation and other regional actors. Recent experience has shown that even on-base actions can have profoundly negative consequences for the success of US missions. One key to successful missions is to win and preserve the trust and confidence of the affected population. A thorough understanding of a host nation s customs, laws, and practices enables the commander to execute the mission with fewer obstacles, both locally and regionally. This Technical Note discusses the issue of how to approach setting up and operating contingency bases within different sociocultural contexts. The authors consider the range of impacts that a contingency base life cycle may have upon the nearby community economically, culturally, and socially. Detailed criteria are presented for consideration in the acquisition, construction, and operation of contingency bases, and the outline of a research program is proposed to address both documented and prospective negative sociocultural impacts.