Photo By Maj. April Olsen | Lt. Gen. R. Steven Whitcomb, Third Army/U.S. Army Central commanding general,...... read more read more
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By Maj. April N. Olsen
40th Public Affairs Detachment
KUWAIT — More than 300 Soldiers learned how to balance cultural sensitivities with mission requirements from the Jordanian Armed Forces during the fourth annual Peace Operations Training Center session held in Amman March 19 to April 5.
The joint U.S. and Jordanian team of observer/controllers brought combat experience and intelligence to the training.
"The leadership here at the POTC really focuses on every aspect of cultural awareness," said Brig. Gen. Joseph Martz, the Third Army/U.S. Army Central assistant chief of staff for operations.
"They say it and they mean it when they say our effort here is to save Iraqi blood and American blood...they are really focused on trying to help people operate in a very tough environment with as little loss of life as possible."
The center provides troops with cultural considerations they need to be aware of while conducting their missions in Iraq, such as clearing buildings, traffic checkpoints and mounted patrols.
Classes discussing the role of women in Iraqi society, Arab media awareness and tribal affiliations aim to provide students with basic knowledge of cultural differences so Soldiers can prevent misunderstandings while conducting military operations.
The students then practice that knowledge on situational training exercises, and return to their units to assist others.
"It is clear that each agency or nation brings its own cultural background," said Col. Ali Mahasneh, POTC commandant.
"Cultural [awareness] has a powerful affect on how the mission plays out on the ground," he said.
Mahasneh said that making sweeping generalities about others is dangerous, and taking part in POTC training can inform and educate Soldiers before they face cultural differences in Iraq.
Third Army/U.S. Army Central Commanding General, Lt. Gen. R. Steven Whitcomb, told instructors and students the training offers long-term benefits.
"It is not just about deploying to Iraq, but what you're doing to prepare Army leaders for the next 10-15 years," Whitcomb said.
"This is not about TTPs [tactics, techniques and procedures], how to search a house," Whitcomb said. "It's about cultural awareness. It is more about you as leaders...learning how to operate in a foreign land."
Many Soldiers with previous deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan are learning to focus more on the cultural aspects of completing their missions said Sgt. 1st Class Scot Hector, a Special Forces Soldier working with Third Army/U.S. Army Central Civil International Military Affairs
He highlighted the challenges with a class of troopers from the 82nd Airborne Division attending the training.
"What we identified, what we saw, was a lot of guys from Rangers and a lot of guys from Division were so well-trained in their unit TTPs and the way they've operated in their previous tours, we threw them off with culturally significant scenarios," said Hector.
"They were confident in their tactics, but cultural awareness can throw off even the best trained units."
Presenting scenarios such as deciding how to proceed with an apartment search where a female is home alone forces Soldiers to discern how to apply knowledge of cultural sensitivities to help accomplish the mission, said Hector.
Whitcomb said being culturally aware is not a hard and fast skill that can be taught like tank gunnery. Leaders can focus on preparing Soldiers by increasing their language proficiency.
"Here, we stress that it may diffuse the situation simply by being courteous and professional," said Whitcomb. "And that's easier said than done at about the eleventh month of your rotation."
Many of the students said they will take back the sense of urgency for language proficiency to their units.
"Even if a Soldier, a private, knows 10 to 15 phrases, that could mean the difference between pulling a trigger and killing someone or not," said 1st Lt. Michael Filanowski, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Abn. Div. "That language barrier is really what breaks everybody on deployment.
Filanowski said he intends to build on the skills he learned during the language labs at POTC.
"It's more important on our end that we can communicate effectively because we are the ones armed," he said.
| Date Taken: | 04.25.2007 |
| Date Posted: | 04.25.2007 12:47 |
| Story ID: | 10118 |
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| Web Views: | 715 |
| Downloads: | 432 |
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