The newly released Quadrennial Diplomacy and Development Review (QDDR) is a welcome initiative by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to provide some strategic planning horizons for U.S. diplomats. That document correctly focuses on using the contributions of all U.S. agencies operating overseas and coordinating their efforts in-country.
Over the last half of the 20th century, global security was a fairly straightforward challenge: contain communism, deter nuclear threats, and be ever-ready to defend freedom and our allies against a clearly identified enemy. But the world has changed, and a national security apparatus developed during the Cold War must change with it.
In this century, defined by post-9/11 realities, the political and security landscape requires a more integrated, inclusive approach to global security that combines all tools of national power.
Indeed, as expressed by the congressionally constituted Quadrennial Defense Review (QDR) Independent Panel, the U.S. government must adopt a "comprehensive approach" to its national security mission, creating partnerships among multiple federal agencies as well as state and local governments, private industry, allies, international organizations, indigenous elements, and the American people.
Not only does this approach help clarify the roles and responsibilities of participants, it will preserve the integrity of core functions. It will also allow for adaptive, flexible responses to rapidly changing events in a rapidly changing world.
In Afghanistan, coordinated efforts are underway where military and civilian leaders are working together to establish an environment that is secure enough so international and Afghanistan civilian agencies can provide development support.
PRTs - Provincial Reconstruction Teams, first established in Afghanistan and now operating in Iraq - are examples of the comprehensive approach to building and maintaining a secure, stable environment. A PRT includes military men and women, civilian police advisers, and representatives of U.S. or other national governments' agencies.
The key to these efforts has been the expansion of civilian capabilities in environments where security is fragile and deteriorating. Through a comprehensive approach, each agency adds to the community's information base and advances the opportunity for each member to enrich its own understanding of its missions within the larger goals prescribed by the National Security Strategy and the international community.
The comprehensive approach can also improve the effectiveness and efficiency of our humanitarian relief and disaster recovery efforts.
After last winter's earthquake in Haiti, the U.S. Agency for International Development deployed a Disaster Assistance Response Team to assess conditions and coordinate activities with humanitarian groups and nongovernmental organizations. Through its Office of U.S. Foreign Disaster Assistance, it activated a Washington-based Response Management Team which, in turn, was supported by the Department of Defense, through U.S. Southern Command and by the Department of Homeland Security, through FEMA.
The U.S. Coast Guard provided overflight data on the scope of the devastation, and the Army's 82nd Airborne Division assisted the U.N. Stabilization Mission. Meanwhile, throughout the crisis, the Haitian government set priorities in coordination with the members of the international community.
This coordinated effort also relied on open-source information, such as CrisisMapping and Google, and businesses large and small provided up-to-date information for rescue and relief efforts, providing translation services and imagery.
Over the last half of the 20th century, an isolating bureaucracy grew up around the functions of government, with each department and agency focusing on its area of expertise. Within this stovepiped structure, efforts often intersected only by accident, cooperation was rare and collaboration even rarer.
Now we have the opportunity to rethink the system, recognizing that isolated efforts no longer provide the greatest benefit for our missions or our taxpayers.
Our current structure comes from congressionally mandated rules and executive branch decisions instituted during the Cold War. Calling for a renewal of our national security apparatus and the laws that support them, the Independent QDR Review Panel provides a strong list of recommendations supporting a comprehensive approach to national security.
Combining the work of sectors once thought separate will help to make America, and the world, more prosperous and free. Legislators, policymakers and public leaders need to move beyond the stove-pipes and empower a whole-of-government approach to meet the challenges of today and tomorrow.