Task Force Civil Affairs Team Conducts Subject Matter Expert Exchange in Libya

Soldiers assigned to the Civil Affairs Team Libya, U.S. Army Southern European Task Force, Africa, conducted a military-to-military subject matter expert exchange with representatives of the Libyan National Army and the Government of National Unity in Benghazi, Libya, May 19-22.

This exchange was the first in what the civil affairs team plans to be a series of exchanges with partner forces representing the two distinct political entities that currently control Libya. Through the end of the fiscal year, exchanges with both the LNA and the GNU will occur monthly. This gives the civil affairs team a place from which to witness a new chapter in Libya's evolving history.

Since the fall of Muammar Gaddafi in 2011, Libya has experienced vast security improvements, according to U.S. Army Maj. Miles Dunning, civil affairs team lead.

Dunning explained that various governments recognize the LNA as Libya's legitimate government, while others recognize the GNU, but the preferred end state is a unified Libya with a combined armed forces' capability to combat terrorism in the region.

"What we're trying to do as [U.S. Army Southern European Task Force, Africa] - and specifically civil affairs - is get both entities to the negotiating table with the overall goal to unify Libya under one government," Dunning said. "The way we do that at [the task force], at the civil affairs level, is by conducting military-to-military exchanges with both partner forces … to facilitate a space where those partner forces can come together, cooperate and have face-to-face conversations through knowledge exchanges."

Twenty-one military officers, ranging from O-3 to O-6, represented both groups. Dunning noted that both partner forces seemed interested in making progress toward a stronger, more stable country.

"They get along together very well from what we've seen," Dunning said. "Both parties are amenable to a lasting peace and are eager to work with each other to continue these exchanges in the future. From what we observed, both partner forces were very cordial."

This event also marked the first time a task force has conducted an exchange with partner forces in Libya. Dunning emphasized that it represented a pivotal step in building relationships between the military forces of the U.S., LNA and GNU.

"It is specifically [the task force] that has been tasked to do these military-to-military exchanges with Libyan partners," Dunning said. "We are the only conventional U.S. Army force that has a presence in Libya after this engagement."

As part of the U.S. contribution to the knowledge exchange, the civil affairs team discussed how the U.S. Army conducts combined arms operations. This conversation went on to include U.S. warfighting functions, the military decision-making process, troop leading procedures and the operations order.

During a tabletop exercise - the exchange's culminating event - partner forces received a scenario in which they were operating in a fictitious country, and they had to complete a road-clearance operation from one village to another. Given specific resources to complete this notional task, representatives from both partner forces described how they would accomplish the mission.

"Insights [from this exchange] will enable successful rapport building between the U.S. and both Libyan partner forces," Dunning said, adding, these exchanges offer a distinct opportunity to participate in open dialogue and will set the stage for future operations, increasing partner force cooperation and facilitating communication between the LNA and GNU.

Dunning noted that these exchanges increase the U.S.'s ability to work with a partner force by providing a better understanding of how they operate. In return, those partner forces receive a better understanding of how U.S. forces operate, which will improve combined operations in the future.

"This was a groundbreaking event, and it has been many years in the making with a lot of parties," Dunning said. "People have put in hundreds of man-hours to make this happen, and my team was very lucky to be tasked with this mission. It is the first time a conventional U.S. Army element from any organization has been to Libya in 16 years, so it was a big deal and a big first step in reestablishing a military relationship with Libya."