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Discussion Challenge II: Findings

The participants agreed that CDJTFAC as a concept has potential as a tool for engagement of more then one nation in the planning process of a humanitarian or peace operation. However, overall they felt that the architecture of the CDJTFAC was taking shape too quickly if involvement by Asian nations in developing the concept was a desire of USCINCPAC.

Participants emphasized that consideration to participate is a policy decision. Because it is a political issue, it needs to be addressed through a political process. Political will and understanding are necessities to involvement. Civilian decision-makers in their nations at the level of Ministry of Foreign Affairs needed to be presented with the idea packaged so that the benefits and costs of participation are clearly articulated. A similar presentation focused on implications for the military needs to be developed for Chiefs of Defense. Answers to questions about technology standards, language, etc. should be anticipated and discussed beforehand.

Many expressed the reservation that participation requires resources that many countries could not afford. Program managers of the CDJTFAC clarified that the concept is still in the developmental stage; they are open to suggestions and understand that flexibility is important.

The recommendation was made to rename the CDJTFAC to be less U.S.-centric, and for ease of use and discussion. The value of the concept is appreciated, but a simplified name will reflect adaptations made by participating countries to the concept, and thus more accurately reflect a more mature architecture.

The relationship to the UN (in particular DKPO) and regional organizations and associations such as ASEAN and ARF must be defined and linkages with them considered. This would enhance legitimacy. Information sharing must be addressed. The focus of the CDJTFAC - whether it is operations, capacity building, training, contingency planning or a combination of these and others - must also be better defined; proponents must be clear as to CDJTFAC's main purpose, its goals and objectives and what it will and will not accomplish.

Adjustments were made by the end of the symposium to reflect the comments of the participants. The name was changed to Multinational Peace Augmentation Team (MPAT). The establishment of SOPs was dropped in favor of broadening the discussion and considering other possibilities before reaching conclusions too quickly. It was suggested that the Asia Pacific Area Network (APAN) could serve as the nexus for information sharing.

At the conclusion of discussions, participants had a much greater understanding of the concept and the program's managers were much more cognizant of the requirements of the South East Asian nations necessary for their continued interest and participation in future workshops on CDJTFAC.


Discussion Challenge III: Questions

Training for Peace Operations is a vital component to ensuring that these operations are conducted successfully. ASEAN has already participated in the development of United Nations selection and training standards for civilian police and military observers. Both have been promulgated by DPKO.

Training remains a National responsibility and it is assumed that units will be prepared for the operations for which they have been offered. Yet we have seen several recent examples where forces were unprepared for the environment, particularly the levels of violence that they encountered. This brings up several questions.

1. To what standards should potential UN units and personnel be trained, specifically:
   • Should there be universal standards?
   • Should these be minimum or higher standards? Should they be promulgated in the form of Tactics, Techniques and Procedures (TTPs)
   • Who should set the standards?
   • How could these be developed?
     
     
2. What elements should be included? (Pre-mission, in-mission, generic or general)
   
3. How can the UN be assured that the standards are being met. Should a system of validation be put in place to ensure that units are prepared for UN operations?
   
4. Who would conduct this validation?
   
5. How can the international community assist those Nations that are preparing forces for deployment?
   • Provision of training assistance?
   • Development of National and Regional centers?

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