WASHINGTON, Feb. 3 (UPI) -- The new Quadrennial Defense Review recommends a big boost in special operations forces, a top admiral said.
"We're increasing capability in people, expertise, skill sets and also getting more equipment," Navy Adm. Edward Giambastiani, the vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told the American Forces Press Service in an interview published Friday.
The review calls for a force with better language capabilities, better intelligence-gathering capabilities, better human intelligence "and all those things needed to pursue a long campaign not operating against state entities, but terrorist networks," the admiral said
The Marine Corps has added 2,600 Marines to U.S. Special Operations Command. The Army is increasing its number of units assigned to SOCOM and is adding to the number of Special Forces units. The Navy is adding SEAL teams, and the Air Force is adding squadrons to the command as well, Giambastiani said.
However, conventional forces' operational arms also will grow, the admiral said. This means conventional forces will shift people from combat service and combat service support jobs into combat jobs, he said. The services will do this inside their end-strength constraints -- in other words, without adding to their authorized overall manning levels.
Giambastiani said shifting emphasis "from artillery units to military police, civil affairs, engineers -- those who can be helpful in this long war, the more irregular war."
The conventional forces would also perform more special operations jobs, the admiral said.
Conventional forces would train foreign militaries, as the Marines have done in the country of Georgia, for example. "In the long war, it's important to assist in creating police forces and armed forces like in Iraq, Afghanistan, Bosnia and Kosovo," he said.
