Coalition Warfare: Coordination and Planning Options

Abstract

Abstract : In the aftermath of the Cold War, the world political environment has been, and continues to be, in constant change with evolving formats and cause-effect relationships. But change, in and of itself, is not a new phenomenon. More accurately for today, it is the rate of change and the lack of accurate lead indicators (i.e., the unpredictability) that complicate the coalition picture in the 21st Century. The results are, in general, short agendas with narrowly focused objectives and limited commitments. This paper identifies some of the issues associated with coalition building and coordination and reports on two effective but distinct methods of meeting national requirements in this arena. Originally, the intent was to compare the US Central Command's Coalition Coordination Center (CCC) in Tampa with the Multinational Planning Augmentation Team (MPAT) approach in US Pacific Command's area of operation but a direct comparison was abandoned because these are simply unlike entities. Additionally, the report avoids repeating, at least in detail, the information already in print or available from US Central Command and US Pacific Command. There is, however, much to discuss regarding how the two commands are approaching similar problems in dissimilar environments.