Photo By Staff Sgt. Clayton Wear | Brig. Gen. Peter Huntley (center), U.S. Special Operations Command South commander,...... read more read more
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TAMPA, Fl. – Brig. Gen. Peter Huntley, U.S. Special Operations Command South commander, spoke on regional influence inside the U.S. Southern Command area of responsibility during a Special Operations Forces Week panel in Tampa, Fl., May 10, 2023.
During this panel, Huntley addressed the importance of having a layered and generational approach with partner special operations forces.
“We have to look at things from a long-haul perspective because it allows us to take a layered approach,” said Huntley.
Huntley continued, “For instance, through our relationship with Colombia, we are learning a ton, not just from the operational experience we’re getting, but we have a partner who has been operating for more than four decades.”
“This layered approach also allows members like our Special Operations Liaison Officers, that work in the embassy, to help them work through institutional level issues with the help of us or our neighbors in NATO SOF.”
Speaking on a recent engagement with the Colombian Chief of Defense, Huntley drove home the sheer importance of a multigenerational approach.
“A great example recently at SOUTHCOM is we had the Colombian Chief of Defense visit our combatant commander, but he also made it a point to stop by SOCSOUTH. We were shocked thinking, ‘what the heck’. So, he then shows up with a large picture of himself as a younger team leader in the Colombian Special Forces, and he is in the jungle with a bunch of Green Berets back in the nineties - which again highlights a long-haul, multigenerational approach.”
Huntley then shifted gears to highlight an integrated deterrence model and the importance of consistency.
“We can also look at partnership as a way to not get into conflicts,” said Huntley. “Following an integrated deterrence model, if we can do it right over multiple generations of multiple commands and stay consistent, we can then help our partners maintain civility and thriving democracies.”
SOCSOUTH’s area of responsibility comprises 31 countries and 10 overseas territories of other nations, which contains more than 410 million people from varying cultures, including 25 languages and ten religions.
Maj. Gabriel Wood, a SOCOM Special Operations Liaison Officer to Panama spoke on these same themes of readiness and deterrence.
“Following what General Huntley mentioned on stage in terms of our AOR, SOCSOUTH is in a unique position to deter outside threats through the strength of our partnerships, training, and investments within partner special operation forces throughout SOUTHCOM,” said Wood.
“Having our partners understand what SOF does holistically is really important to help develop our partnerships,” said Wood. “For instance, serving as a SOLO has allowed me to help develop a relationship on behalf of SOF with the Panamanians, and to even have them come here to SOF Week.”
Huntley then closed by saying, “It is truly through this layered approach, and multi-generational relationship, that we are able to form those ties that bind and get to a deeper level of friendship.”
| Date Taken: | 05.10.2023 |
| Date Posted: | 05.18.2023 09:32 |
| Story ID: | 445010 |
| Location: | TAMPA, FLORIDA, US |
| Web Views: | 355 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
This work, Partnerships as a Pacing item: SOCSOUTH commander speaks at SOF Week, by SSgt Clayton Wear, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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