Toward the Effective Use of Military Veterinarians in Stability Operations

摘要

In late 2005, the U.S. Executive Branch put forth a new national policy for how the U.S. government is to plan and conduct stability and reconstruction operations. Existing military policy and doctrine were further revised, with the Army more definitively articulating its concept of 'full spectrum operations,' consisting of offensive, defensive, and stability operations, all core missions and of equal importance. In active theaters such as Afghanistan and Iraq, medical civil-military stability operations figure prominently and include activities carried out by military veterinarians. Within the context of stability operations, military veterinarians can contribute to U.S. strategic goals of economic development and humanitarian assistance, especially related to the agriculture sector. This 'quick-response' study examines the policy and doctrine guiding the use of veterinarians in stability operations activities, military and civilian veterinary capabilities, examples of their stability operations activities in Afghanistan and Iraq, and perspectives on interagency cooperation. The study took place over two months, March April 2008. Interviews were based on a convenience sample and revealed a number of findings that can be directly useful to Army planners. This documented briefing reports not on comprehensive and full-blown research but rather on a preliminary exploratory effort pointing to practical next steps for the Army.