What's so special about Humanitarian operations?

Abstract

Many civilians and military officers working on humanitarian assistance (HA) operations appear convinced that such operations are completely new and different from traditional military operations, and thus require significant changes to military doctrine, organization, training, and equipment. This article challenges that assumption by demonstrating that most of the capabilities required for HA operations are also required for combat operations, especially low‐intensity conflicts. Thus the military already possesses (or at least should possess) these capabilities, including how to escort convoys, perform civil affairs tasks, and deal with restrictive rules of engagement in ambiguous situations. Although the skills that make up these capabilities are difficult and require more emphasis, they are not new. To address requirements for future HA operations, civilian and military analysts may have to jettison the assumption that such operations are inherently different and examine more closely the issues surrou...