Summary of presentation on….
Responding to Increased Security
Challenges in Europe and Africa
with
General Carter F. Ham,
U.S. Army Retired
Former Commanding General, U.S. Army Europe,
And Commander, U.S. Africa Command
NSF participants were treated to a most professional, interesting and measured discussion of key national security challenges that General Carter F. Ham, U.S. Army Retired, encountered in his distinguished military career, that ranged from his enlistment as a Private (E1) to 4-star General! (Highly unique!). General Ham traced highlights of his career from his enlistment through assignments with increased responsibility that included command of the 1st Infantry Division, the U.S. Army Europe and 7th Army, and then AFRICOM (Africa Command).
While some of the conversation was “off the record”, here are some key points that General Ham made:
- NATO needs to be very concerned with increased Russian aggression, ranging from the invasion of Georgia in 2004 to more recent incursions in Ukraine and the Baltic region. Putin has also dispatched Russian troops into the Syrian conflict, with the goal of protecting its client, President Assad. The general would recommend that more US/NATO troops be moved forward at this time, particularly to the Baltic states (NATO members).
- He acknowledged that allied contributions to the NATO force structure had fallen below the commitments that have been made, including force levels and defense spending (the NATO agreed target is 2% of GNP to defense, a goal that only five countries have met). However, he stressed that the underlying rationale for why we are in the alliance is that it is in the national interest of the United States to do so—not because we are there only to protect European allies.
- The general turned to his time as commander of AFRICOM, and was asked what the primary security threats to Africa were, he said that there was no question that at the forefront were radical Sunni jihadist groups, including Al-Shabaab in Somalia, Boko Haram in Nigeria, and Al Qaeda offshoots in North Africa. To counter these threats, he said that AFRICOM, while a “Combatant Command”, had no (or very few) combatant units attached! In times of crisis, he as the CG would have to “borrow” forces from NATO or other commands.
- Several questions were raised regarding the incidents at Benghazi, Libya, the night of September 11-12, 2012. General Ham noted that U.S. Ambassador to Libya Chris Stevens had flown to Benghazi, despite the threat of terrorist violence there. He said that the ambassador clearly knew of the danger, but since Stevens had worked closely with the rebel forces that overthrew Muammar Qadhaffi, perhaps he felt that he could venture there safely. Ham said he did not know if the ambassador had requested permission to go there from the State Department.
- During the initial attack, one American was killed and the ambassador was missing. As that attack waned, the ambassador’s body was found. Despite the lull, reinforcements were on the way, but they were coming from Germany (and later staged to southern Italy), with a larger force from the U.S.
- Then the fighting renewed with increased intensity. It was clear that this attack was initiated by a more sophisticated military component. As a result of that attack, two more Americans were killed. That attack, as well, subsided within hours. Could forces have been mustered and deployed to influence the course of the attacks? A troubling question but it is difficult to identify where those forces could have come from in time to turn the tide. But we really don’t know.
- Was there an order to “stand down” and not respond to the violence, from the White House. The answer was “no”—no such order. Decisions regarding deployments of rescue teams were made by qualified military and State Department officials.
- General Ham was asked a number of questions regarding current security issues. Given that this session occurred the same day President Obama visited Vietnam, and announced the lifting the embargo on arms sales to that country, Ham was asked his opinion regarding that decision and what were his thoughts on the critics who lambasted this release given Vietnam’s continuing very poor record with respect to human rights. General Ham said that he supported lifting the embargo given the increasing concerns over Chinese ambitions in the region. He acknowledged the Hanoi regime’s very poor record on human rights, but felt that the accord was still in our national interests—as long as we continued to push the Vietnamese to change their domestic policies.
- The general also discussed the issue of handling the influx of refugees escaping the war zones in the Middle East, principally Syria. He called for a tolerant approach, but stressed the need for a thorough screening of the refugees to ensure they were not already converted Islamic radicals coming to Europe under the cover of a humanitarian exodus. And, he cautioned that some—mainly young, impressionable males— would likely also become radicalized in their new environs.
A great program with a superb soldier and statesman, General Carter Ham, U.S. Army Retired!