WASHINGTON—A proposal to give the National Guard a broader role in defending an increasingly vulnerable U.S. homeland would provide a badly needed new mission for the organization, but it may fit poorly with the Guard's desires and capabilities, some defense analysts say.
In a report to be released today, a congressionally mandated panel has urged that the Guard take an expanded role in countering the threat of attack from chemical or biological weapons, along with other unconventional threats. The advisory group, called the National Defense Panel, contends that the military has not moved quickly enough to counter the new dangers from enemy nations and groups, and argues that the Guard is well-suited to help respond to such emergencies because of its routine contacts with local civilian agencies.
The proposal tracks with a Pentagon initiative, announced last week, to give the 400,000-member Guard new responsibilities to help lead the response to chemical or biological attacks.
Defense officials have sought a new role for an organization they believe to be underused but backed by too much grass-root political support to be eliminated. The Pentagon has been "looking desperately for missions for the National Guard," said one high-ranking defense official, adding that officials understand that "they won't go away."
The National Defense Panel report recommends that the National Guard, "together with the Army Reserve, be prepared to train local authorities in chemical and biological weapons detection and decontamination, assist in casualty treatment and evacuation, quarantine if necessary affected areas and people, and assist in restoration of infrastructure and services."
The panel's proposal comes one week after Defense Secretary William S. Cohen, at an event to publicize a report on the spread of weapons of mass destruction, called for the Guard to broaden its role in responding to attacks by chemical and biological weapons.
—PAUL RICHTER, LA Times; December 1, 1997
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© Copyright 1999 by David W. Tschanz.
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