MARINE CORPS FAO NOTES

Maj Pat Carroll
International Affairs Officer Program Coordinator

Since December 1999's issue of the FAO Journal, the Marine Corps' Unified Command and International Issues Branch (PLU, PP&O) has continued to wrestle with enhancements to its International Affairs Officer Program. At present, we have nine FAOs conducting in-country training (ICT) in eight different locations. Maj Dyson is studying at Sogang University in Korea and will be joined shortly by Maj Mauro. Also in East Asia, Maj Bloesl continues his ICT in Thailand and Capt Drake in Beijing, China. Branching out from the Marshall Center in Garmisch, Germany, the following FAOs are conducting 3-4 month internships in various Eastern European countries: Maj Sumner (Moscow, Russia), Maj Sachar (Tajikistan, having just returned from Minsk, Belarus), and Maj Collins (Moldova). Maj Enney based in Chile continues his travels throughout Latin America, and Maj Palmer is settling into his ICT in Cairo, Egypt. Maj Cunningham will soon head off to Muscat, Oman for his year of ICT as an alternate site for Middle Eastern FAOs. By the end of the current calendar year we should also have FAOs heading off to China, Vietnam, Israel, the Marshall Center, and our first student at the Baltic Defense College in Tartu, Estonia. We also intend to have our first study-track East Asian (Japanese) FAO, Capt Perry, attending the Foreign Service Institute in Yokohama starting in August 2000. Along those same lines, we are diligently preparing the ground for a second FAO, Maj Goff, to audit the Japanese Ground Self-Defense Forces' Command and Staff School (Jyokyukangako) starting in the summer of 2001. Distinguishing themselves as FAOs currently utilizing their regional expertise are Maj Sipko in Bulgaria and Capt Przepiorka in Poland; both officers are participating in Marine Liaison Teams to their respective countries as a means to increase regional engagement.

Through an experienced-track board conducted at PLU, PP&O in Feb 00 we have also added nine FAO/RAOs to our current pool of 274 International Affairs Officers. The announcement for the next study- track selection board has also recently been published as MARADMIN 073. The board will take place at Manpower and Reserve Affairs Division, MCCDC, Quantico from 1-4 August at which time 10 new FAOs and 8 new RAOs will be selected to commence training at NPS Monterey, CA in 2001. Due to scheduling difficulties, this is a change from the date published in the last issue of the FAO Journal.

As to the current status of the Marine Corps FAO Program, please see the February issue of the Marine Corps Gazette, which contains an article written by the IAOP Coordinator as a means to bring everyone in the Corps up-to-date regarding the Marine Corps' International Affairs Officer Program. A draft version of the update to the MCO 1520.11D (Marine Corps Foreign Area Officer/International Relations Officer Program) has been completed and is making its way through the circuitous staffing process of HQMC. For an advance-copy please contact the IAOP Coordinator. The final version should be published sometime in the year 2000. Additionally, the Memorandums of Agreement between HQMC and DIA and DSCA are also continuing through the staffing process and will hopefully be signed by all parties by the end of the current year. After many months of discussions with Total Force Structure Division (TFSD), MCCDC we are determined to reduce the total number of billets (236+) that were being proposed for redesignation to FAO/RAO billet MOSs in order to make the transition more manageable from Manpower's and TFSD's standpoint. Among those billets not specifically designated for a FAO or RAO, the IAO designator will still be added as a secondary billet MOSs (beneficial but not a firm requirement). While this is not ideal from the program's standpoint, there are other factors which will also have a positive effect on improving utilization. We will make a concerted effort to consistently steer study-track graduates directly to those designated billets while not jeopardizing an officer's primary MOS credibility. Secondly, for those FAO/RAOs looking for an additional utilization tour, our proponent office will continue to provide information on the full 236+ billets' availability. We will regard them as legitimate payback/utilization, and each year we will make recommendations to MMOA for all FAO/RAOs for service at appropriate MCCs to capitalize on their regional expertise. This will be done en masse in Jan/Feb of each year, and then individually as a FAO or RAO requests assistance from the IAOP Coordinator. For those unfamiliar with the orders procedure, most billets are not looked at for replacements outside of 6-8 months, except for the attaché field. There are currently 31 attaché posts for Marine Majors and LtCols (4 are not yet manned, however). Of those 27 currently manned posts, 12 are filled by bona fide FAOs. Because the application procedure is so lengthy, it is advisable for any interested applicant to contact the IAOP Coordinator or the Defense Attaché Sponsor as far out as possible (usually 18-24 months from expected rotation date). More details are available from the IAOP Coordinator.

From the advocacy standpoint, the IAOP Coordinator will be delivering talks about the FAO/RAO Program at DLI, Monterey from 26-31 Mar, at Amphibious Warfare School on 7 Apr, and at the Marine Intelligence Officer's Course on 17 May. BGen Cortez, the head of Strategy and Plans Division, will likewise be addressing the current study-track FAO/RAOs at Monterey on the 31st of March. The Unified Command and International Issues Branch (PLU, PP&O) highly recommends that all FAOs and RAOs currently serving in the operating forces and joint/external billets submit articles of interest pertaining to the International Affairs Officer Program and FAO/RAO issues for publication in the FAO Journal. Submit articles directly to the journal at faoa@erols.com or send them to the IAOP Coordinator at carrollpj@hqmc.usmc.mil . Take care, good luck, and Semper Fidelis.

USMC FAO Proponent

Col Brendan Kearney- Head, Unified Commands
and International Issues Branch, PP&O, HQMC
EMAIL: KearneyB@hqmc.usmc.mil

Maj Pat Carroll- International Affairs Officer Program
(IAOP) Coordinator, and Middle East/North Africa
EMAIL: CarrollPJ@hqmc.usmc.mil

LtCol Mike Brooker- Middle East and SWA
EMAIL: Brookermf@hqmc.usmc.mil

LtCol Jeff DeWeese- China, Japan, Korea
EMAIL:Deweesejl@hqmc.usmc.mil

LtCol Tom Braden- Eastern Europe
EMAIL: Bradentc@hqmc.usmc.mil

LtCol Ray Griggs- East Asia and SWA
EMAIL: GriggsIIIFR@hqmc.usmc.mil

LtCol Bill Leitheiser- Western Europe and Sub-Saharan Africa
EMAIL: Leitheiserwj@hqmc.usmc.mil

Maj Jose Cristy- Latin America and Canada
EMAIL: Cristyjg@hqmc.usmc.mil

Contact these officers at (703) 614-3706/4221 or DSN:224-3706/4221.

2000, Foreign Area Officer Association
Springfield, Virginia
Maintained by LTC Steve Gotowicki.
http://www.faoa.org