By Terri Moon Cronk DoD News, Defense Media Activity
WASHINGTON, Feb. 27, 2018 — Based on military progress in
the campaign to defeat the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, U.S. Central
Command is undertaking an operational alignment and rebalancing effort to
achieve three specific goals, Centcom commander, Army Gen. Joseph L. Votel told
the House Armed Services Committee today.
However, the commander said, “We remain very cleareyed
regarding both the permanence of that progress and the challenges that we face
in the future.”
The first goal, he outlined, is to complete major combat
operations in Iraq and Syria and bring the campaign to defeat ISIS to a
responsible close. Military success in the campaign up to this point presents
Centcom with an opportunity to reposition some of its resources from Iraq and
Syria to Afghanistan, he said, “in a manner that keeps the pressure on ISIS but
also sets us up to break the stalemate in Afghanistan.”
“We retain sufficient capability to continue our efforts
against ISIS,” he emphasized, “despite the increasingly complex situation
across Syria and especially in the northwest province of Afrin.”
Afghanistan Strategy
The second goal is to prioritize the implementation of the
South Asia strategy in Afghanistan, Votel said. This strategy reaffirms the
U.S. government's enduring commitment to Afghanistan by reinforcing the two
complementary military missions: the NATO-led train, advise and assist mission,
and the U.S. counterterrorism mission.
“We are making sure that with our support, the Afghan
national defense and security forces are well-postured to begin operations to
seize the initiative, expand population control and secure credible elections,”
the Centcom commander said. “Part and parcel of this effort is our regionalized
approach to engage all countries with a stake in Afghanistan’s stability,
especially Pakistan.”
The third goal is to ensure that Centcom has aligned its
military efforts with its broader interagency and international efforts to
neutralize, counterbalance and shape the destabilizing impact that Iran has
across the region, Votel said.
“Make no mistake: While we continue to confront the scourge
of terrorism, Iran's malign activities across the region pose the long-term
threat to stability in this part of the world,” he said. “We view ourselves --
the military -- as supporting the many other and more effective resources and
capabilities of the U.S. government and its partners in this endeavor.”
National Defense Strategy
Votel emphasized that the recently published National
Defense Strategy “rightly identifies” the resurgence of great power competition
as the United States’ principal national security challenge.
“And we at Centcom see the effects of that competition
throughout the region,” he added. “Russia's support of the [Syrian President
Bashar Assad] regime has not only propped them up, but it's also added
complexity to the defeat-ISIS campaign.”
As for big-power competitions, China is pursuing a
long-term, steady economic growth in the region through its “one-belt, one-road
policy,” Votel said, adding, “but it is also improving its military posture by
connecting ports such as Gwadar in Pakistan with its first overseas military
base in Djibouti, adjacent to the critical Bab el-Mandeb.”
And while Beijing claims both locations support peacekeeping
and humanitarian operations, the new military base and port bolsters China’s
force projection into the region, the general testified.
Further, “both Russia and China are cultivating
multidimensional ties to Iran,” Votel pointed out. “The lifting of U.N.
sanctions under the joint comprehensive plan of action open the path for Iran
to resume membership application to the Shanghai Cooperation Organization.”
Postured For Purpose
“Our strategic approach of preparing the environment,
pursuing opportunities and working to prevail wherever we can is working. We
are postured for purpose, proactive in pursuing opportunities and resolve to
win,” he said.
The general told HASC members there are three dynamics that
Centcom assesses as central to prevailing in its region.
First, in the conduct of Centcom campaigns in Iraq, Syria
and Afghanistan and its operations in places such as Yemen, Lebanon and Egypt,
the combatant command has adopted a “by, with and through” approach that places
a heavy reliance on indigenous partner nation forces, he said.
“This approach is not [without] risk, as we are seeing
unfold in Syria today, but in general, it is proving very effective and will
likely pay significant dividends going forward,” Votel noted.
Second, successful pursuit of U.S. objectives in the Centcom
region only comes from an integrated approach aligned with interorganizational
partners, he said.
Defense ‘A Team Sport’
“Defense of the nation is a team sport,” Votel said. “This
applies not just within the command, but with our fellow combatant commands,
our component commands, our established combined and joint task forces, the
central regions, 18 country teams and other departments, agencies and
organizations of the U.S. government [that] have provided unwavering support
over almost two decades of a persistent conflict.”
Centcom’s allies in the region and the wider international
community are equally critical to supporting the command’s mission, he added.
Third, the support of Congress and the American people are
vital to Centcom’s mission, the commander said.
“Your support will remain important as we contend with what
potentially are generational struggles to defend our homeland from the threats
outlined in our national defense strategy,” Votel said. “U.S. government
commitment to the Centcom area of responsibility is more important now than
ever.”
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