United States General Accounting Office National Security and International Affairs Division Washington, D.C. 20548 B-259886 March 2, 1995 The Honorable Togo D. West, Jr.: Secretary of the Army Dear Mr. Secretary: The Department of Defense (DOD), in its bottom-up review of the nation's defense needs in the post-Cold War era, judged that it is prudent to maintain the capability to fight and win two nearly simultaneous major regional conflicts. In responding to a single conflict during Operation Desert Storm, the Army had difficulty providing support units, even though it deployed only a portion of its total combat force. Because of this experience, we examined whether (1) the Army might face similar challenges in supporting the two-conflict strategy and (2) support capability in certain Army National Guard units could be used to alleviate any potential shortfalls. This report discusses our detailed findings on these issues. We reported separately on DOD's bottom-up review. [1] Background In October 1993, DOD reported on its bottom-up review. In particular, the review outlined an overall defense strategy for the new era, specific dangers to U.S. interests, strategies for dealing with each danger, and force requirements. Chief among the dangers was the threat of large-scale aggression by major regional powers. To counter regional aggression, DOD evaluated various strategy and force options. DOD selected the two-conflict strategy and determined the combat forces capable of executing the strategy. For the Army, these forces consisted of 10 active divisions and 15 Amy National Guard enhanced readiness combat brigades. [2] DOD also provided for other National Guard combat forces, now organized as eight divisions, that it does not envision using in a two-conflict situation. These divisions are expected to perform missions, such as providing rotational forces for extended crises and protracted peace operations. These forces are also called upon to meet domestic dangers, such as natural disasters and civil unrest. In addition to combat forces, the Army maintains support units to repair equipment, transport and distribute supplies, provide services, and otherwise sustain combat operations. These units are (1) divisional support units, which are part of active and National Guard combat divisions and provide support to divisional units, and (2) non-divisional support units, which are separate units in the active component, National Guard, and U.S. Army Reserve that support divisional and non-divisional units. [3] The numbers and types of divisional support units are determined by Army doctrine. For example, all divisions are doctrinally required to have one military police company to provide security and law enforcement For non-divisional support, the Army determines the numbers and types of units that are required for its total combat force through a biennial process, referred to as the Total Army Analysis. [4] The Army then identifies, based on weighing its priorities, the units that will be allocated resources-personnel and equipment. In July 1994, the Army began the Total Army Analysis process to determine non-divisional support requirements for the bottom-up review force, and it expects to complete the analysis in mid-1995. Footnotes [1] Bottom-Up Review: Analysis of Key DOD Assumptions (GAO/NSLAD-95-W, Jan. 31,1995). [2] These enhanced brigades are existing National Guard combat brigades with improved readiness. [3] Non-divisional support units supplement divisional support units and also provide unique type of support, such as construction or specialized medical care. [4] This analysis is a computer-assisted study involving the simulation of combat to generate non-divisional support requirements, based on DOD war-fighting scenarios. Back to Table of Contents Force Structure US Army Back to GAO List of Issues Back to MagWeb Magazine List © Copyright 1995 by US GAO. This article appears in MagWeb.com (Magazine Web) on the Internet World Wide Web. Other articles from military history and related magazines are available at http://www.magweb.com