WHEN The Haitian earthquake is an
example of a nation close to U.S. shores, where stability in the region is crucial to U.S. security. But hu- manitarian assistance and disaster relief (HA/DR) extends beyond cri- sis response; it includes annual exer- cises targeting assistance to nations in need and requests to DoD from other agencies. It also has become a fundamental part of U.S. military missions; during the past decade in Iraq and Afghanistan, provincial re- construction teams and civil affairs support have played an important role in stability through assistance.
Historic legacy
While the tempo of humanitarian assistance and relief to those faced with disaster seems to have increased, extending a helping hand is nothing new. Shortly after Christmas 1908 — a year after America’s Great White Fleet made its world debut — an earthquake and tsunami crushed the Sicilian city of Messina. U.S. ships coaled up and quickly left Egypt for Italy. Supplies that had been intended for the fleet went to the survivors. Embarked med- ical personnel cared for the wounded. A succession of vessels steamed from the U.S.; one cobbled together a primi- tive, shipboard hospital. Other ships
52 MILITARY OFFICER JULY 2011
A 7.0-MAGNITUDE EARTHQUAKE
struck Haiti in January 2010, the U.S. military stepped up to help with 33 ships, 57 helicopters, and 264 fixed-wing aircraft. The number of military personnel involved in support efforts peaked at more than 22,000, and altogether they distributed 2.6 million liters of water, 2.7 million MREs, and 17 million pounds of bulk food.
arrived to help with reconstruction. The Navy’s relief work in Sicily con- tinued for five months. One of the most daring relief mis- sions came at the beginning of the Cold War. During the Berlin Airlift, the U.S. Air Force and Britain’s Royal Air Force flew more than 200,000 flights between 1948 and 1949 to aid choked-off West Berlin. The Soviet blockade of the city was rendered impotent by an operation that, at its height, transported more supplies via the airlift than previously had entered the city by traditional rail.
Aid and security During FY 2009, U.S. units con- ducted 154 humanitarian projects in 61 countries, according to the De- fense Security Cooperation Agency’s (DSCA’s) annual report to Congress. But numbers do not tell the compel- ling story of the U.S. armed forces ensuring stability by assisting the long-suffering as well as those struck by sudden catastrophe. From Afghanistan to Uzbekistan,
FY 2009 assistance efforts focused on medical, dental, and veterinary needs as well as construction projects across Africa and Eastern Europe. These missions must meet stringent standards before they are under-
taken. According to the DSCA, which handles programs ranging from HA/ DR to the sale of U.S. military hard- ware to foreign nations, humanitar- ian-assistance efforts must promote U.S. security interests as well as those of the host nation and target specific operational skills of the U.S. military. Efforts will complement — and not duplicate — assistance provided by other U.S. departments or agencies. Assistance must benefit the popula- tion at large and no individual or specific group. Projects are subject to State Department approval. There is a wide divide at DoD be-
tween humanitarian-assistance and disaster-relief efforts. Some HA op- erations are long-range, interagency initiatives with the under secretary of defense for policy, the DoD general counsel, and the State Department working together closely to ensure these missions comply with U.S. for- eign policy objectives and legislative initiatives. Other efforts are short-no- tice, like the assistance provided by an Army civil affairs unit that hastily con- structed and operated Haitian migrant camps at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, after the 1991 coup d’état in Haiti. Once projects have been green- lit, they go to the combatant com- manders for possible support. In
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