Forum Explores Civil-Military Relations
FrontLines - October 2009
Military and civil society experts met to discuss the importance of cooperation at a recent Administrator’s Forum titled "Smart-Power and Development: Civilian-Military Cooperation."
"Successful global leadership requires all three ‘Ds’: defense, development, and diplomacy," then-USAID Counselor Lisa Chiles said at the July event held in the Ronald Reagan Building in Washington. "USAID has made significant strides in civil-military cooperation over the years."
The event featured Reuben Brigety, director of the Sus-tainable Security Program at the Center for American Progress; Linda Poteat, director for disaster response at InterAction; and Col. Greg Hermsmeyer from the Office of the Secretary of Defense.
Brigety emphasized the need to send development experts with military brigades in overseas missions. He said that one military strategist in Iraq told him: "‘I really wish I had a Peace Corps on steroids.’"
"He needed most someone who understood the humanitarian impact of the battle," Brigety said.
Brigety called for an overarching plan to define and explain foreign assistance goals, and said that USAID needs more flexibility and money.
"Development will never be as large as the military, but we can increase USAID’s presence and have more finances and flexibility. This requires congressional action," Brigety said. "Until people believe that money spent on development is as important as money spent on finding weapons of mass destruction, we will not move forward."
Hermsmeyer praised the recent plan for the Quadrennial Diplomacy and Development Review and said that the next logical step would be articulating
the national strategy for global development.
"From the perspective of civil society, the lack of coherence
of U.S. government at the field level is apparent," Poteat added. "I think it would be fair to ask that Department of Defense, USAID, and State are held to the same accountability and flexibility."
The July Administrator’s Forum was the third in a series of Agency-sponsored discussions
about issues related to USAID’s mission and international
development. It was co-hosted with the Agency’s Knowledge Services Center.—L.A.
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