Moreover, Civil Affairs is not ground-force specific. Maritime aspects surfaced recently that had not
been appreciated since Admiral William Radford (later
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff) relinquished his
position as High Commissioner of the Trust Territory
of the Pacific Islands in 1951. Recent experience indicates the desirability of joint CA billets on combatant
command staffs and those of sub-unified commands.
But effectively filling such positions should demand
both joint and CA experience. The primary question
in a period of reducing organizations will be how we
maintain institutional knowledge as well as organizational capabilities.
Dr. Kurt E. Müller is a Senior Research Fellow with
the Center for Complex Operations at the National Defense
University. His CA assignments include command of the
416th CA Bn, J3/CA for JTF 160, USAREUR CIMIC team
chief, Special Functions Chief of the 304th CA Bde, and Civil
Affairs Advisor to SACEUR and C9 at SHAPE. After retirement, he became a CA subject-matter expert for the U.S.
Special Operations Command, then at the State Department Civilian Response Corps.
21