The U.S. Army Stability Operations Field Manual: U.S. Army Field Manual No. 3-07 [Paperback]

Janine Davidson (Introduction), William B. Caldwell IV (Foreword), Michele Flournoy (Foreword), Shawn Brimley (Foreword)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 24, 2009 | Series: U.S. Army Field Manual

Field Manual 3-07, Stability Operations, represents a milestone in Army doctrine.

With a focus on transforming conflict, managing violence when it does occur and maintaining stable peace, The U.S. Army Stability Operations Field Manual (otherwise known as FM 3-07) signals a stark departure from traditional military doctrine. The Army officially acknowledges the complex continuum from conflict to peace, outlines the military's responsibility to provide stability and security, and recognizes the necessity of collaboration, coordination, and cooperation among military, state, commercial, and non-government organizations in nation-building efforts.

The manual reflects a truly unique collaboration between the Army and a wide array of experts from hundreds of groups across the United States Government, the intergovernmental and non-governmental communities, America's allies around the world, and the private sector. All branches of the armed forces, U.S. agencies ranging from the State Department to Homeland Security to Health and Human Services, international agencies from the United Nations to the Red Cross to the World Bank, countries from the United Kingdom to India to South Africa, private think tanks from RAND to the United States Institute of Peace to the Center for New American Security, all took part in the shaping of this document.

The U.S. Army Stability Operations Field Manual, marks just the second time in modern history that the U.S. Army has worked with a private publisher to produce a military doctrinal document.

Lieutenant General William B. Caldwell, IV is Commander of the Combined Arms Center at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas.

Michèle Flournoy, Under Secretary of Defense for Policy

Shawn Brimley, Fellow, Center for a New American Security

Janine Davidson, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Plans

"It is a roadmap from conflict to peace, a practical guidebook for adaptive, creative leadership at a critical time in our history. It institutionalizes the hard-won lessons of the past while charting a path for tomorrow. This manual postures our military forces for the challenges of an uncertain future, an era of persistent conflict where the unflagging bravery of our Soldiers will continue to carry the banner of freedom, hope, and opportunity to the people of the world."
—From the foreword by Lieutenant General William B. Caldwell, IV, Commander of the Combined Arms Center at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas

Product Details

• Paperback: 352 pages
• Publisher: University of Michigan Press; The University of Michigan Press Edition edition (February 24, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0472033905
• ISBN-13: 978-0472033904
• Product Dimensions: 6 x 0.9 x 9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,643,363 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Field Manuals as Literature March 26, 2009

By Joseph J. Collins

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Are Army Field Manuals literature? Usually, the answer is no. In most cases, Army manuals are to soldiers what cook books are to cooks. Army manuals tell soldiers the recipe for conducting military operations or operating equipment painted OD green or shades of gray. Many, by design, are didactic and simple, even at times simplistic.

Today, however, life and warfare are more complex. Military operations require a whole range of activities where military personnel, other government departments, international organizations, and civilian non-governmental organizations inhabit the same work space. The military not only conducts offensive and defensive operations, but also stability operations, where soldiers and civilians are engaged in providing security, improving governance, conducting humanitarian assistance, and supporting reconstruction and development. Accordingly, with such a wide audience, the doctrine for such complex undertakings has become literature and achieved a life outside the Army. The manual for stability operations joins the highly regarded counterinsurgency manual (FM 3-24) in being augmented and then re-published by a reputable publisher.

The new Army manual, prepared by military and civilian experts and published with excellent additional material by the University of Michigan Press, again marks the salience of stability operations and enshrines it as important priority. Indeed, one of the new introductions was penned by Shawn Brimley and Michele Flournoy, who is now the new Under Secretary of Defense for Policy. Lt. Gen. Bill Caldwell and Dr. Janine Davidson also add thoughtful introductions to the the new manual.

The manual itself, while not exciting, is clearly written and comprehensive. It covers everything from an analysis of the current security environment to how to develop an army in the host nation. It will not help President Obama to make the hard choices, but it will help operators of various origins and stripes to understand how to work together. It draws widely on lessons learned from Iraq and Afghanistan, but it goes beyond those cases and provides advice that will be relevant to future operations before, during, and after major combat.

The Stability Operations manual is a very solid piece of work.
It is well worth a close read and should be on the shelf of anyone interested in failed states and military operations in the developing world.

Professor Joseph J. Collins, National War College, March 26, 2009

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars The book for what comes after war... November 16, 2009

By E. M. Van Court TOP 1000 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE

"Mission Accomplished!" A phrase that shall not be uttered without irony for decades. The war is over, but now what? In a power vacuum after a war, 'civil disturbance', insurgency, or any other event that removes a political structure without replacing, the government is faced with "Now what?" At least for the Army, "what" in these circumstances means 'stability operations'.

From the first chapter, an unpleasant secret of U.S. military history is held up to the light; like counter-insurgency, stability operations are normal, big wars are the exception. But big wars are relatively straight forward compared to the complex, fluid, and entangled situations faced in stability operations.

The chapters:
Chapter 1 THE STRATEGIC CONTEXT
Chapter 2 STABILITY IN FULL SPECTRUM OPERATIONS
Chapter 3 ESSENTIAL STABILITY TASKS
Chapter 4 PLANNING FOR STABILITY OPERATIONSIONS
Chapter 5 TRANSITIONAL MILITARY AUTHORITYNSIONS
Chapter 6 SECURITY SECTOR REFORM
And the annexes focus on interaction with civilian government agencies and non-government agencies.

The single dominant theme throughout this manual is imperative for collaboration with civilians, both US and host nation. State department, International Red Cross, emerging civil leaders, former host nation military (rejoining the civil population), and other groups are constantly refered to and their roles in reconstruction and re-establishment of government are stressed and identified as essential.

Although the need for basic functions like sewage disposal, water, and electricity are addressed, this manual focuses on security and the need to provide security in order to provide infrastructure services. Even more basic than law enforcement's graffitti/broken window theory of urban improvement (paint over graffitti and fix broken windows fast to deter crime - there's more to it, but it works) providing an environment where stores can open, where people can move in the streets is essential to any further progress. This is what the Army tends to focus on. But as imperative as security is, it is also stressed that this is only one element of the picture.

The most flagrent short-coming of this manual is the sterility of it. Every task described is, in fact, important, but every task faces staggering obstacles and many tasks will have parties actively trying to subvert or undo efforts to establish stability. It would be easy to triple the word count of this book trying to begin to address the opposition faced by soldiers in stability operations though, and would seriously distract from critical points that need to be brought to the front.

Another thoughtful and in-depth manual written under the leadership of GEN William B. Caldwell IV, that addresses long-standing issues with both a practical framework for action and historic perspective, without being over specific.

E. M. Van Court