97608. DoD Must Anticipate, Prepare for Future Terrorism

By Douglas J. Gillert

American Forces Press Service



	SAN ANTONIO, Texas -- As long as terrorism remains a threat,

DoD must focus less on its accomplishments and more on what needs

to be done to protect U.S. assets at home and worldwide.

	Army Brig. Gen. Larry Dodgen delivered that message Aug. 19

at DoD's worldwide conference on anti-terrorism. Dodgen, a DoD

policy and missions expert for special operations and low-

intensity conflict, said the June 1996 terrorist attack on U.S.

service members in Saudi Arabia "exposed our fears, made us

wonder about our soft points and causes us to question to this

day, how much [protection] is enough."

	Reciting actions taken since the Khobar Towers bombing last

year, Dodgen said DoD must constantly re-evaluate every action in

the light of increasing and expanding terrorist capabilities.

	"We must ask ourselves, what have we accomplished with the

things we have put in place?" Dodgen said. "Are these measures

effective against the current terrorist threat, and are they

flexible enough for the future?"

	He said terrorists have a broad arsenal of weapons at their

disposal and won't hesitate to strike when they sense a

vulnerability.

	"We must consider how the changing world economy and

proliferation affects the threats that confront us," Dodgen said.

"We must anticipate our enemies and methods they will use against

us, such as weapons of mass destruction, attacks on our

infrastructure and information systems, and areas as of now

unknown to us."

	The general said terrorists are as likely to come from the

U.S. population as from Third World nations. It will become

increasingly difficult to detect terrorists from the general

population, he said, and international cooperation will be

imperative.

	"As we do today," he said, "our armed forces will find

themselves working as part of coalition operations. We must

ensure that our actions are synchronized. Moreover, we must not

forget the possibility of homegrown terrorists."

	Dodgen urged his audience of anti-terrorism and force

protection specialists to "look for what doesn't work. This will

take vigilance, attention to detail and in some cases, courage to

come forward and call it the way you see it," he said, "[but]

it's the only way to make sure anti-terrorism measures are

effective and remain relevant."

	While lauding Pentagon-level initiatives, Dodgen sounded a

warning about the total force responsibility to combat terrorism.

"We cannot allow ourselves to become complacent at lower levels,"

he said, "because when our guard is down, the terrorist will

attack.

	Fear of terrorists carries with it the risk of overreacting

to the threat, Dodgen said. "We must not allow ourselves to

become incident driven. Service in our armed forces is inherently

dangerous, and there is no way to avoid risk. A 'zero defect'

attitude can make us cautious and timid, jeopardizing success. We

cannot 'force protection' ourselves to a point where we are

paralyzed from accomplishing our mission."

	Dodgen forecast "many silent victories and some noisy

defeats" in the years ahead, adding, "There is no substitute for

establishing good habits across the board. Each of us -- from

senior leaders to junior troops -- must walk the talk."









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