By Maj. Preston Arnold, USAF

The Republic of Korea co-hosted the 31st Pacific Area Senior Officer Logistics Seminar (PASOLS) in Seoul. Member nation attendees were: Australia, Bangladesh, Brunei, Canada, China, Fiji, India, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Madagascar, Malaysia, Maldives, Mongolia, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Singapore, Solomon Islands, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Tonga, and the United States. Cambodia and Mauritius attended as observer nations.

Streamlining logistics through cooperative efforts among nations in the Asia-Pacific region is critical to successful peacekeeping, humanitarian and disaster relief operations, and operations other than war. And that is exactly what the 31st annual Pacific Area Senior Officer Logistics Seminar (PASOLS XXXI) set out to do. Held in Seoul, Republic of Korea (ROK), from 2 to 6 September 2002, PASOLS XXXI was the third PASOLS hosted by Korea since the seminar’s inception. PASOLS XXXI featured presentations and panel discussions on the theme, "Logistics Cooperation: Mutual Support."

PASOLS provides an annual, multinational forum where senior logistics officials from member Asia-Pacific and Indian Ocean armed forces exchange information to strengthen logistics ties and foster cooperation. It offers a forum to discuss new ideas and an organization to establish specific bilateral or multilateral logistics initiatives that will improve national or multinational logistics procedures and cooperation.

Only through working together can the countries of the region overcome basic logistics problems. These include language barriers, incompatible equipment among peacekeeping forces, lack of spare parts, long supply lines, limited infrastructure, varied currency exchange rates, and inhibiting local customs and legal systems in crisis areas. When nations work together in such areas as international disaster relief, peacekeeping, or contingencies operations, it is logistics that is basic to the success of these efforts, and PASOLS provides the forum to do that.

Headquarters, U.S. Pacific Command (USPACOM) sponsors and co-chairs each PASOLS, with a second member’s armed forces hosting the gathering in its country. USPACOM’s Director for Logistics, Engineering and Security Assistance (J4) serves as Permanent Secretariat of the organization.

Twenty-three of 25 member nations attended PASOLS XXXI: Australia, Bangladesh, Brunei, Canada, China, Fiji, India, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Madagascar, Malaysia, Maldives, Mongolia, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Singapore, Solomon Islands, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Tonga, and the United States. In addition, Cambodia and Mauritius attended as observer nations.

Approximately 110 delegates – 25 of whom were flag/general officers or their equivalents – took part in the conference. The level of attendance and enthusiastic participation demonstrated the high level of commitment of the participating nations.

Traditional Korean music highlighted the opening ceremony. Co-chairs, Maj. Gen. Choi In Su, Director-General of the Logistics Bureau of the ROK Ministry of National Defense, and Brig. Gen. James Lewis Kennon, USPACOM’s Director of Logistics, Engineering and Security Assistance, and PASOLS Secretariat, provided welcoming remarks. Members welcomed India as the newest PASOLS member in an induction ceremony during the seminar’s opening events.

Rear Adm. Lee Hyun Keun of the ROK Ministry of National Defense, and Vice Adm. Gordon S. Holder, Director for Logistics for the U.S. Joint Staff, gave the keynote addresses. Both speakers noted the value of PASOLS gatherings and its secretariat for advancing logistics cooperation in the region. As Vice Adm. Holder pointed out in his address to PASOLS XXXI attendees, "The world will need a robust and efficient logistics system with nations working together as close teammates in order to provide assistance when needed."