Jane's Defence Weekly. US Africa Command comes of age. [Content preview Subscribe to IHS Jane s Defence Weekly for full article]

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1 Jane's Defence Weekly US Africa Command comes of age [Content preview Subscribe to IHS Jane s Defence Weekly for full article] Africa's demanding social, political and environmental landscape has proved a steep learning curve for the United States' youngest unified combatant command. Jim Dorschner examines the state of play in Africa Command and what may lie ahead On 30 July US National Security Adviser Susan Rice spoke in advance of a three-day summit of about 50 African leaders in Washington that featured a heavy focus on regional security concerns. "Contrary to some claims, the United States is not looking to militarise Africa or maintain a permanent military presence, but we are committed to helping our partners confront transnational threats to our shared security. Today, Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb is controlling parts of Mali, Boko Haram bombs markets and kidnap young girls, and Al-Shabaab terrorises a shopping mall in Nairobi. That is why we are stepping up our efforts to train peacekeepers that are professional and effective forces who can secure the region, and by extension the global community, against terrorist threats, and against threats that derive from conflict," she said. Rice went on to note that the Obama administration has contributed close to USD9 billion to UN military operations in Africa and has trained hundreds of thousands of military personnel from 25 African countries. Since 2008 the execution of US security policy in Africa has fallen largely to the US Department of Defense's (DoD's) Africa Command (AFRICOM), in partnership with the Department of State and other agencies. In 2006, when then Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld launched the controversial effort to establish a new unified combatant command (UCC) for Africa, there was little consensus around what exactly the new command would do and could do, how it would operate and with what resources. At the time the US military was focused almost exclusively on dealing with the desperate situation in Iraq, building up to an eventual force there of over 175,000 troops, and was unable to muster sufficient forces to counter a reconstituted Taliban in Afghanistan. Other theatres just had to just make do. The first thorny issue for planners was where to place AFRICOM headquarters (HQ). Given a lack of support among African countries and the limited resources available to operate a new UCC, the DoD decided to co-locate with European Command (EUCOM) HQ in Stuttgart, Germany. Today, some 1,500 military and civilian personnel constitute AFRICOM HQ at Kelly Barracks, the Cold War home of the army's VII Corps, with around 500 personnel based elsewhere in Europe. Army General David Rodriguez has commanded AFRICOM since April 2013, succeeding two previous generals, Kip Ward and Carter Ham. Page 1 of 7

2 USMC MV-22B Osprey tilt-rotors and KC-130J Hercules aerial refuelling aircraft prepare to depart Naval Air Station Sigonella, Italy, on 26 July to assist with the drawdown of personnel from the US Embassy in Tripoli, Libya, due to increased factional fighting there. (US Navy) Then and now Prior to the establishment of AFRICOM, EUCOM was the UCC responsible for most of Africa, with Central Command (CENTCOM) covering Egypt, the Horn of Africa and East Africa. After 2001 the focus shifted to keeping Al-Qaeda affiliates at bay in Yemen and Somalia, prompting the creation of CJTF-HOA as a CENTCOM component in October Based at Camp Lemonier in Djibouti within a large French base, CJTF-HOA was always a bare-bones affair with minimal forces available to execute limited missions. These include logistical and personnel recovery support to special operations forces (SOF) and intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) assets operating in the region, including unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). CJTF-HOA was transferred to AFRICOM in 2008 and now numbers approximately 4,000 US personnel, including military staff, DoD civilians, and contractors supporting several commands. The current commander is Major General Wayne Grigsby Jr. The air element consists of the 449th Air Expeditionary Group, with a C-130J Hercules-equipped airlift squadron and a rescue squadron with HC-130s. Other air assets include periodic detachments of USMC CH-53E heavy-lift helicopters and USAF F-15E Strike Eagle multirole fighters, along with CV- 22 Ospreys and other Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC) aircraft. A 2012 DoD initiative Page 2 of 7

3 calls for USD1.4 billion in infrastructure improvements at Camp Lemonier to support the steady growth now under way. Joint High Speed Vessel USNS Spearhead arrives in Souda Bay, Greece, for a scheduled port visit on 5 February during its maiden deployment supporting operations in the US 6th Fleet area of responsibility in the Mediterranean and off the west coast of Africa. (US Navy) A critical new CJTF-HOA element is the East Africa Response Force (EARF): a combined arms battalion task force established in 2013 by the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division (2-1 BCT), and built around 1st Battalion, 18th Infantry (TF 1-18 Infantry). The TF provides a quick reaction-capability across East Africa, covering Burundi, Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, Somalia, Tanzania and Uganda. In December the EARF executed its first mission by deploying to South Sudan for four months to secure the US embassy in Juba following an outbreak of factional violence. During the deployment it evacuated over 700 US and other non-combatants and earned high praise from South Sudan Ambassador Susan Page. "The EARF's consistent stance toward the US mission's leadership was 'Tell us what you need and we will do it,'" Page stated. "They provided continuous 24/7 security to the two embassy compounds, allowing the embassy to remain open. By making continued embassy operations possible, the EARF facilitated US government efforts toward humanitarian relief and ending South Sudan's conflict." Page 3 of 7

4 Three main pillars In concert with interagency and international partners, AFRICOM concentrates on three distinct mission areas that can overlap in widely separated regions of the continent: crisis response; engagement and capacity building with friendly African armed forces; and deterring and defeating transnational threats in order to advance US national interests and promote regional security, stability, and prosperity. A visit, board, search and seizure team from the Tunisian Navy's fast attack craft-missile La Galité conducts a simulated search for contraband on board the guided-missile destroyer USS James E Williams on 14 June. The exercises were part of an effort to enhance the skills of both teams and strengthen maritime security in the Mediterranean region. (US Navy) The EARF's Juba mission is one example of crisis response. Another is the July drawdown of the US embassy in Tripoli via an overland convoy to Tunisia. To cover the withdrawal the SP-MAGTF CR operated from Naval Air Station (NAS) Sigonella in Sicily, just 290 n miles from the Libyan coast, which is also a forward operating base for US SOF. During the operation two MV-22s from the SP-MAGTF CR element located at NAS Sigonella carried a quickresponse team of approximately 24 US military personnel and a two-person medical team. Three Page 4 of 7

5 USAF F-16s from Aviano, Italy, provided air support, while KC-135s from RAF Mildenhall provided refuelling support. Capacity building and engagement AFRICOM conducts hundreds of engagements each year across Africa. These engagements come in various forms, including senior leader meetings, exercises and security co-operation activities. They vary in scope from small group meetings to large-scale training events. Some are focused on mission-specific training for planned troop deployments, such as preparing forces headed for duty with the African Union Mission to Somalia (AMISOM). Another example is the Africa Partnership Station (APS), launched in 2007 and directed by US Naval Forces Africa (USNAVAF). In May USNS Spearhead (JHSV 1) completed the latest APS cruise, visiting nine countries and conducting multiple partnership engagements over three months. Focusing on West Africa, the Spearhead APS operated with regional navies, exercising maritime security procedures, particularly anti-piracy operations, and protecting valuable marine resources such as fish stocks. The APS concept involves deploying joint and combined training detachments aboard a suitable vessel to deliver tailored training directly to regional forces during scheduled port calls. The Spearhead APS worked with the Senegalese Navy, Liberian Coast Guard, Ghanaian Navy and marine police, Togolese Navy, Nigerian Navy and Special Boat Service (SBS) and the Cameroonian Battalion d'intervention Rapide (BIR). Among the exercises Spearhead participated in was the annual 'Obangame Express' series. Sponsored by USNAVAF, the exercise is designed to improve co-operation among participating nations in order to increase maritime safety and security in the Gulf of Guinea. 'Obangame Express' focuses on maritime interdiction operations, including visit, board, search, and seizure (VBSI) procedures. Participants included Cameroon, Gabon, Ghana, São Tomé and Príncipe, and Spain. A premier AFRICOM exercise is the annual 'Flintlock' series, launched in 2005, sponsored by SOCAF's Joint-Special Operations Task Force-Trans Sahara (JSOTF-TS) and involving African, Western, and US counter-terrorism forces. Executed in nations across the Sahel region of Africa, exercises are planned by SOCAF to develop capacity and collaboration among African forces. 'Flintlock 2014' was hosted by Niger in February with contingents from Burkina Faso, Canada, Chad, France, Mauritania, the Netherlands, Nigeria, Senegal, the UK and the US. More than 1,000 troops practised airdrops of personnel or equipment, conducted weapon range exercises, rehearsed small unit tactics and delivered aid to remote areas. Past participants have also included Algeria, Mali, Morocco, South Africa, Tunisia, Italy, Germany and Spain. Deterring and defeating Deterring and defeating transnational threats is a central AFRICOM mission that overlaps, and even drives, engagement missions and merges with crisis response. Examples include multinational efforts Page 5 of 7

6 to combat Boko Haram in West Africa, Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Magreb (AQIM), Al-Shabaab in Somalia and Kenya, and the Lords Resistance Army (LRA) in Uganda and Central Africa. The LRA has been a serious destabilising actor in central Africa and has created significant humanitarian challenges. The African Union Regional Task Force (AU-RTF) against the LRA, with advice and assistance from the United States, is reducing the threat posed by the LRA to populations in central Africa. In 2011 AFRICOM deployed a small contingent of around 100 military personnel, mostly special forces, to advise and assist the Ugandan-led task force, but not to conduct independent operations. According to AFRICOM, as with nearly all its commitments, "this has always been an African-led mission; a major contribution that US military forces offer is our experience with operations-intelligence fusion, communication systems and a sustainable logistics infrastructure". An important role for the SOCAF-directed force is to improve information-sharing and co-ordination among regional military forces. SOCAF elements provide planning, training and intelligence support for ongoing Uganda People's Defence Force (UPDF) operations against LRA groups in the Central African Republic (CAR) and South Sudan. In the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), US advisors assist the UN Organization Stabilization Mission in the DRC (MONUSCO) and the Congolese military to plan their joint operations in LRA-affected areas. AFRICOM does not believe there is a purely military solution to the LRA threat. Rather, military support is one part of a broader US government strategy to strengthen democratic institutions; promote economic growth, trade and investment; promote opportunity and development; and advance peace and security. Military efforts to advance peace and security are intended to complement civilian efforts to increase the protection of civilians, facilitate LRA defections, and help affected communities. In late March the anti-lra effort was reinforced with an AFSOC deployment to Uganda of four CV-22 Ospreys and two MC-130 special mission Hercules aircraft, supported by two KC-135 tankers. However, this force was withdrawn just two weeks later. Meanwhile, the SOCAF anti-lra force is supported by contractor-operated aircraft. On the other side of Africa AFRICOM established a base for MQ-1 Predator UAVs in Niger last year. Around 100 USAF operators, analysts, logistics and security personnel fly Predators over Mali, Niger and neighbouring countries from a French base in the capital, Niamey, collecting intelligence on AQIM. This dovetails with long-standing US initiatives for dealing with AQIM in conjunction with European and African partners. "AFRICOM has supported French operations in Mali and the Central African Republic. We have worked closely with the UK on countering Boko Haram in Nigeria, and we continue to work together in Somalia in support of AMISOM," said Benson. "We also enjoy good working relationships with other European countries. Italy and Spain provide AFRICOM with basing and other support capabilities, which are critical [not only for supporting AFRICOM's crisis response, but also its] exercises and security co-operation programmes. Belgium, Germany, and the Netherlands contribute to EU and UN missions as well as undertaking institution building activities in African nations where there is little or no US presence." Page 6 of 7

7 What now? Jane s At the African Summit in Washington during the first week of August Obama pledged USD110 million over the next few years to boost counter-terrorism efforts across the continent. Part of the initiative includes establishment of a rapid reaction capability for AU and UN missions with US assistance but employing forces from Ghana, Ethiopia, Rwanda, Senegal, Tanzania and Uganda. This clearly builds on the hard work of AFRICOM since 2008 to increase the capacity and professionalism of African forces. These efforts will surely continue with renewed energy and urgency. Operationally, AFRICOM will likely broaden recent initiatives with proven value, such as the SP- MAGTF CR, the EARF and the JSOTF-TS, incorporating lessons learned from successful deployments and exercises. Africa Partnership Station and 'Flintlock' will remain valuable, enduring tools to strengthen West African naval forces, particularly in the Gulf of Guinea, and SOF in the dangerous Sahel region. As the army-led EARF and USMC training teams have successfully demonstrated, conventional forces can play a significant role in African crisis response and engagement missions, and this trend will certainly continue. Copyright IHS Global Limited, 2014 For the full version and more content: IHS Jane's Defence Industry and Markets Intelligence Centre This analysis is taken from IHS Jane s Defence Industry & Markets Intelligence Centre, which provides world-leading analysis of commercial, industrial and technological defence developments, budget and programme forecasts, and insight into new and emerging defence markets around the world. IHS defence industry and markets news and analysis is also available within IHS Jane s Defence Weekly. To learn more and to subscribe to IHS Jane s Defence Weekly online, offline or print visit For advertising solutions contact the IHS Jane s Advertising team Page 7 of 7