Operational Reserve: National Guard Readiness when Current Conflicts End

Abstract

The past twenty years has seen the Army National Guard transform from a "hollow" strategic reserve to the indispensable operational reserve it is today. On 29 Oct 2008 the Secretary of Defense formally directed that the National Guard become an operational reserve. With the withdrawal of US Army forces from both Iraq and Afghanistan on the horizon, as well as anticipated DoD funding reductions, the Army's exigent need for operational National Guard units will significantly diminish, and competition for reduced Army dollars will begin. In this environment the National Guard risks reverting to a hollow operational reserve. This paper will examine how the Army National Guard was configured prior to its transition to an operational reserve, describe the transition to the operational reserve, outline some of the major challenges it faces in becoming an operational reserve. It will then propose that a persistent training cycle, as well as full manning, decreased personnel non-deployability, sufficient full time training staff, and time to train adequately are essential foundations to maintenance of the National Guard as an operational reserve.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Mar 01, 2010
Accession Number
ADA521911

Entities

People

  • Eric Judkins

Organizations

  • United States Army War College

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Biomedical

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Cold War
  • Contingency Operations (Military)
  • Department Of Defense
  • Deployment
  • Doctrine
  • Education
  • Management Personnel
  • Military Education
  • Military Science
  • National Guard
  • Organizational Structure
  • Students
  • Task Forces
  • Training
  • United States
  • War Colleges
  • Warfare

Readers

  • Maritime Combat Support and Expeditionary Logistics.
  • Maritime Security/Maritime Homeland Security
  • Strategic Security Studies