Security Cooperation with the Pacific

Abstract

The IARP division of the Air Force International Affairs Secretariat (SAF/IA) represents the Air Force's security assistance oversight for U.S. Pacific Command's (PACOM) area of responsibility (AOR). This AOR covers over 50% of the earth's surface, 60% of its population, and 34% of the global economy. It comprises a wide diversity of cultures, political systems, and military challenges. The world's largest democracy (India), three of the world's remaining communist regimes (China, Vietnam, and North Korea), and the nation with the world's largest Muslim population (Indonesia), all fall within the purview of the Pacific division. To meet the challenges this region presents, SAF/IARP works within areas of overlap in which U.S. national interests are coincident with those of the host nation. SAF/IARP seeks to expand this overlap by promoting mutual understanding and goodwill between the USAF and host nation air forces. IARP, in coordination with other SAF/IA divisions, determines the scope and nature of training programs, foreign military sales (FMS) programs, cooperative armaments development, personnel exchange programs, and high-level visits between USAF senior officials and host nation leadership. IARP's role has transformed in recent years, from managing and administering FMS programs, to cultivating and maintaining politico-military affairs expertise for the countries with which it interacts. The goal is to deepen cooperation, interoperability, and understanding over a broad range of security issues. Increasingly, IARP's activities are geared toward addressing mutually beneficial programs that will lead to greater regional stability, including U.S. and coalition capability to respond to contingencies and crises in the region. Two examples serve to highlight IARP's efforts in the Pacific region: India's pursuit of a new multi-role combat aircraft (MRCA), and an overarching effort to develop an integrated C4ISR network in the Pacific.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Jan 01, 2005
Accession Number
ADA495939

Entities

People

  • Kenneth T. Cushing
  • William D. Anderson

Organizations

  • United States Department of the Air Force

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Air Platforms
  • C4I
  • Counter WMD
  • Space

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Air Force
  • Aircrafts
  • Cooperation
  • Fighter Aircraft
  • Military Education
  • Military Science
  • National Security
  • North Korea
  • Political Science
  • Political Systems
  • Security
  • Students
  • Training
  • United States Pacific Command
  • Unmanned Aerial Vehicles
  • Weapons
  • Weapons Of Mass Destruction

Readers

  • East Asian Political and Security Studies within the Soviet Union
  • International Relations and European Studies
  • Joint Military Operations and Doctrine.