《060629-vickers》.pdf

SOCOM’S MISSIONS AND ROLES TESTIMONY OF MICHAEL G. VICKERS DIRECTOR OF STRATEGIC STUDIES CENTER FOR STRATEGIC AND BUDGETARY ASSESSMENTS UNITED STATES HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES COMMITTEE ON ARMED SERVICES SUBCOMMITTEE ON TERRORISM, UNCONVENTIONAL THREATS AND CAPABILITIES June 29, 2006 Thank you, Mr. Chairman, for the opportunity to appear before you today, and to share my views with you on missions and roles of United States Special Operations Command (SOCOM). I request that my prepared statement be made part of the record. Current Status of SOCOM Implementation of the 2006 Quadrennial Defense Review The 2006 Quadrennial Defense Review (QDR) produced a number of important decisions with respect to Special Operations Forces (SOF) operational capabilities, capacity, and posture. The number of active duty Special Forces (SF) battalions, which are essential for low visibility persistent presence, low-level intelligence collection, building the capacity of partners, and conducting unconventional warfare, will be increased by 33 percent. The 18X program, which allows qualified recruits to enlist for SF directly from civilian life, has been a great success, not only in helping to fill SF ranks and facilitate SOF expansion, but also in attracting talent into SF which otherwise might not be available to the military. Throughput of SF soldiers graduating from the SF School has more than doubled in the past two years. The number of Special Mission Unit (SMU) squadrons will be increased by one- third, which will further their transition from a reactive to a proactive counterterrorism posture, and significantly enhance their manhunting