lic education and information. The individuals and
teams resident in corps/division G-9 sections, brigade
S-9 sections, and CA units, are trained, organized, and
equipped to engage with the civilian communities
described earlier – often in the local language; conduct civil reconnaissance to answer civil information
requirements identified by commanders to enhance
situational understanding; plan, coordinate, integrate,
and deconflict civil and military interests in all phases
of operations across the range of military operations;
and, when required, perform activities and functions
normally the responsibility of local government. The
supported commander, therefore, needs neither to
look far for these inherent military capabilities nor
create competing or redundant capabilities in his or
her organization.
The following table (Table 1) provides a crosswalk
of future Army required capabilities, identified in the
AOC and Army Functional Concepts (AFC), with current capabilities of the Civil Affairs force.
Future Army Required Capabilities
Current Civil Affairs Capabilities
[] Develop and sustain a high degree of situational
understanding while operating in complex
environments against determined, adaptive enemy
organizations. (AOC)
[] Assess a nation-state’s ability for governance,
economic development, essential services, rule of law,
and other critical government functions to identify
strengths and deficiencies. (AFC for Engagement)
[] Understand regional considerations (cognitive,
moral, physical, and socio-economic) of the operational
environment in order to have scalable options. (AFC for
Engagement)
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[] Develop pre-mission, country or sub-national
CA area studies to establish baseline information
relating to the geography, historical setting, and the
social, political, military, economic, health, legal,
education, governance, infrastructure, and national
security systems and institutions of a specified area
using a combination of open- and restricted-source
materials. (FM 3-57)
[] Conduct civil reconnaissance and CA initial,
deliberate, and survey assessments to obtain a rapid
overview of existing conditions, to update the CA
area study, and/or to provide in-depth analysis on
specific issues or locations, according to priority
information requirements, to enhance situational
understanding and facilitate decision-making by
integrating into the overall supported commander’s
operations plan and enhancing the deployment of
the common operating picture. (FM 3-57)