By Adm. Dennis C. Blair, USN
Commander in Chief, U.S. Pacific Command

As you read through this issue you will notice that most of our theater security cooperation exercises with the militaries of the region took place before the 11 September terrorist attacks on the United States.  These include Exercise BALIKATAN 2001 in the Republic of the Philippines (RP), where joint and combined RP and U.S. military personnel cross-trained in military operations and engaged in humanitarian activities; Cooperation Afloat Readiness and Training in which six countries in Southeast Asia - Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand - joined forces with us for the U.S. Navy&8217;s premier series of exercises; and Combined Logistics Over-the-Shore in Korea involving offshore delivery and distribution systems that supply fuel or fresh water to combined forces onshore.  We also have an article on the efforts of the Pacific Area Senior Officer Logistics Seminar (PASOLS) to spread the use of common supply item identifications by using the Pacific Area Cataloging System (PACS).  This facilitates the exchange of military logistics support during multilateral peacekeeping or other combined operations or exercises.

Our theater security cooperation exercises and seminars, such as those described in this issue, have developed a cadre of competent coalition partners able to contribute when called upon. Such a call a came 11 September. Under Operation ENDURING FREEDOM (OEF) in Afghanistan, many of our Asia-Pacific partners in enhanced regional cooperation stepped forward to make significant contributions to the emerging OEF Coalition as did countries in other regions. 

In an address to the nation last October, President Bush said, "... our staunch friend, Great Britain [and] other close friends, including Canada, Australia, Germany and France, have pledged forces as the operation [against terrorism] unfolds.  More than 40 countries in the Middle East, Africa, Europe and across Asia have granted air transit or landing rights.  Many more have shared intelligence.  We are supported by the collective will of the world."  

Combating terrorism challenges the very depth of our ability to take concerted action. The terrorist target is fleeting. It requires unprecedented cooperation among diplomatic, financial, intelligence, law enforcement, and military forces within Asia-Pacific countries, as well as among them. In the U.S. and Pacific Command, we are just coming to grips with the implications of the campaign against terrorism on our organizational arrangements, including our exercises. As these implications become clearer, so will the measures we need to take to adjust current initiatives for enhancing regional security cooperation. I expect scenarios for future workshops and exercises to address terrorism and include participation from a broader range of agencies.

The U.S. Pacific Command has a wide range of initiatives to enhance theater security cooperation. Over the past year, we in the Pacific Command have been working to make our training and interactions with our allies and security partners more realistic. The surest way to promote regional security and peaceful development is to abandon the symbolic scenarios and exercises of the Cold War, and focus upon realistic current tasks that we should be ready to conduct together. We should train in the way that we would operate together.

The principal missions of armed forces remain defending their territory, maintaining national sovereignty, and internal security. Competent military forces capable of defending their territory limit the temptations of others, including terrorists, to resolve disputes by force.  Such forces provide incentives for diplomatic solutions. So, in my discussions with regional leaders, during exercises, and in setting U.S. security assistance priorities, I encourage the development of competent, professional armed forces.

The nations of Asia increasingly realize that territorial defense and internal security are the core - but not the whole - of the security responsibilities of their armed forces. Regional cooperation is a vital component of a durable security structure.

In my view, no framework for security in the Asia-Pacific region will be complete without unprecedented cooperation among regional armed forces. The armed forces of each nation must provide for their nation&8217;s defense. However, they also must work side-by-side in a variety of operations, from providing humanitarian assistance and disaster relief, to supporting UN peace operations, and in countering terrorism and other illegal international activities. Initiatives to enhance cooperation among the armed forces of the Asia Pacific region are gaining momentum.

A fundamental question is whether the demand for cooperation in combating terrorism will enhance security cooperation, or divide us. Will nations welcome help dealing with terrorists in their lands, or will traditional concerns over sovereignty stymie our efforts and erode our ability to cooperate on other issues? Failure to cooperate surely means that the cancer of terrorism will spread.

By working together, we improve the readiness of regional forces to be effective in multilateral operations, while we develop habits of cooperation and a shared sense of responsibility for regional security. The trust and confidence resulting from habits of cooperation contributes directly to developing dependable expectations of peaceful change, further enhancing trust and cooperation.