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Begin New Search Topic Military Service Publication Year within 25 Years

1. Logistics outsourcing for armed forces: The mobilisation of civilian transportation vehicles

Author:
Nebojsa V. Nikolic
Publication Date:
09-2023
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Security and Defence Quarterly
Institution:
War Studies University
Abstract:
One aspect of the total defence concept involves the temporary requisition of civilian transportation vehicles to meet the increased logistical demands of a wartime army. These vehicles are selected and managed in peacetime, mobilised at the onset of the war, used by military units throughout the war, and returned to their original owners afterwards. This paper presents a model for the reception process of such civilian vehicles during mobilisation. In practice, however, reception processes are not without challenges. Under the time constraints of mobilisation, issues may arise, including inappropriate reception, missed deadlines, and compromised operational readiness. To investigate these issues, the study employs conceptual modelling, supplemented by insights from professional experience. The main contributions of this paper include a conceptual model of the mobilisation process, a framework for maintaining records of mobilised assets, and a focus on previously underexplored mobilisation issues. Proper reception of mobilised vehicles significantly affects the transportation capability and operational readiness of military units as well as the accuracy of the post-conflict return process. Implementation of the proposed solutions requires careful consideration due to interdependencies with other aspects of the mobilisation process, such as doctrinal arrangements, administrative systems, mobilisation procedures as well as the quality and regularity of both professional and reservist military training.
Topic:
Defense Policy, Armed Forces, Military Service, Logistics, Outsourcing, and Mobilization
Political Geography:
Global Focus

2. Noncitizens in the U.S. Military: Navigating National Security Concerns and Recruitment Needs

Author:
Muzaffar Chishti, Austin Rose, and Stephen Yale-Loehr
Publication Date:
05-2019
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Migration Policy Institute (MPI)
Abstract:
Noncitizens have a long history of serving in the U.S. military, and in many periods, the promise of expedited naturalization has been used to encourage them to do so. More than 760,000 noncitizens have enlisted and obtained U.S. citizenship over the past century, with peaks during the World Wars and a smaller uptick since September 11, 2001. Yet in recent years, Congress and the Defense Department have raised vetting requirements and changed training and naturalization timelines for noncitizen recruits, citing national security concerns. Such concerns are nothing new, but past military policies have generally reflected the view that national security is better served by having a fully staffed and highly skilled fighting force than by keeping noncitizens out. This policy brief puts these recent changes into context, offering both a historical look at noncitizens in the U.S. military and analysis of how they could help meet modern recruitment needs. Among other things, the brief looks at the Military Accessions Vital to the National Interest (MAVNI) program, through which more than 10,000 noncitizens with in-demand skills have entered the military since 2008 and before recent policies effectively halted the program. The brief also discusses approaches policymakers could take to balance security concerns with the potential benefits of allowing noncitizens with key linguistic, cultural, health-care, and cyber skills to serve in the armed forces.
Topic:
Immigration, Employment, Citizenship, Military Service, and Noncitizens
Political Geography:
North America and United States of America

3. Current Military Academy Service Obligation: Good for Civil-Military Relations

Author:
George Fust
Publication Date:
08-2019
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Department of Social Sciences at West Point, United States Military Academy
Abstract:
Imagine receiving a free undergraduate education at one of the best colleges in the United States. The military academies provide this. Any economist, however, will tell you that there is no such thing as a free lunch. The American tax payer foots the bill for all those who are admitted to attend one of the military’s academies. In exchange, these citizens will commission as officers and serve an obligation of five years on active duty. The most recent National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) includes a section directing the Secretary of Defense to assess if this five-year service obligation should be extended. Congress is now questioning if the increase in the cost of educating and training should equate to an increase in time served for graduates. In short, is the nation getting “an adequate return on investment for a service academy graduate?”
Topic:
Defense Policy, Education, Training, and Military Service
Political Geography:
United States and North America

4. Exploring the Meaning of Indigenous Military Service during the Second World War in Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the United States

Author:
R. Scott Sheffield
Publication Date:
02-2019
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Journal of Military and Strategic Studies
Institution:
Centre for Military, Security and Strategic Studies
Abstract:
This article explores the meaning of military service for Indigenous men who volunteered during the Second World War. At its core, this question can help elucidate what is often the “big why?” invariably asked by people encountering this subject for the first time: why did young Indigenous men fight for a freedom, democracy and equality that they had never experienced? Employing a transnational lens, the article seeks to do interrelated things. First, it examines the meaning of military service for Indigenous men in each of three distinct phases: prior to their enlistment, while serving in the army and in combat, and after demobilisation and transitioning to veterans. Second, this study considers Indigenous perspectives and experiences in relation to, and the broader context of, the non-Indigenous comrades-in-arms with whom they enlisted, served, and sacrificed. In the end, this examination reveals a diversity of interpretations amongst Indigenous soldiers at each stage, but cannot be definitive in the face of such complexity and the ultimately idiosyncratic and personal nature of veterans’ lived experiences.
Topic:
Military Affairs, transnationalism, Indigenous, and Military Service
Political Geography:
United States, Canada, Australia, North America, and New Zealand

5. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Military Service in the Second World War

Author:
Noah Riseman
Publication Date:
02-2019
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Journal of Military and Strategic Studies
Institution:
Centre for Military, Security and Strategic Studies
Abstract:
During the Second World War, approximately 4,000 Aboriginal and 850 Torres Strait Islander people served in the Australian military. They enlisted notwithstanding a formal colour bar and withstanding over a century of dispossession, discrimination and exclusion. In northern Australia, which doubled as a frontline in 1942-43, remote Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people also made contributions to the war effort in both formal and informal capacities. This article looks at the many dimensions of Indigenous contributions to the war effort, explaining the dominant narratives of Indigenous war participation while also exploring the diversity of Indigenous perspectives and experiences.
Topic:
Discrimination, World War II, Indigenous, and Military Service
Political Geography:
Australia and Australia/Pacific

6. “Growing Together”: The Cultural Contribution of Indigenous People in the Canadian Military since the First World War

Author:
John MacFarlane
Publication Date:
02-2019
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Journal of Military and Strategic Studies
Institution:
Centre for Military, Security and Strategic Studies
Abstract:
During the First World War the culture of the Canadian Army reflected the society of the time. Today Indigenous peoples are welcomed, their cultural heritage appreciated and encouraged. This transformation of the Canadian military can be explained in part by how our society has evolved but even more by how Indigenous members of the CAF have proven that they can ‘do the job.’ This article presents the perceptions of some Indigenous veterans who adapted, in various ways, to military culture while also retaining elements of their own culture. In most histories of Indigenous peoples in the Canadian military, the focus has been on how the Armed Forces changed them; but after a century it is increasingly clear how much Indigenous people have changed the military.
Topic:
Military Affairs, World War I, Indigenous, and Military Service
Political Geography:
Canada and North America

7. Women in Special Forces: The Debate on Combat Exclusion

Author:
Lani Hay
Publication Date:
06-2012
Content Type:
Working Paper
Abstract:
The Combat Exclusion Policy is a U.S. congressional policy based on a 1988 Department of Defense restriction on women’s military service that created the “Risk Rule” for assignment of women in the military, preventing women from being assigned to units that had the risk of exposure to direct combat, hostile fire, or capture. The policy has been revised over the past 24 years but still precludes women from being assigned to direct ground combat units such as serving at the battalion level, as infantry, and in the Special Forces. Women’s roles supporting military missions have significantly evolved during the past ten years of warfare in Iraq and Afghanistan. The realities of modern day warfare and currently fighting in an asymmetric environment have women fighting on the front lines in specialty positions such as medics, mechanics, and military police. Additionally, to avoid the Combat Exclusion Policy as written, women are being “attached to” and not “assigned to” battalions as intelligence officers and communications officers and yet are not getting any credit for being in combat arms. Not allowing women the opportunity to receive acknowledgement for their combat experience and contributions to front-line battalions ultimately denies them from choice assignments and hinders their career advancement opportunities. The recent partial lift of the Combat Exclusion Policy, currently under consideration, will now allow women to be “assigned to” jobs at the battalion level. However, it continues to prevent women from serving as infantry or in the Special Forces. This partial lift is the first time the Department of Defense has recognized the contributions that our female service members have been and will continue to contribute to our front line combat units, and indicates that future changes to this 24-year old Department of Defense restriction are being considered. This shows signs of progress, but until the Combat Exclusion Policy is completely lifted the military will not be able to establish a level playing field for qualified women to enter all military positions and specialties, which will greatly impact the realities and necessities of modern day warfare.
Topic:
Gender Issues, Military Affairs, Feminism, Military Service, and Civil-Military Relations
Political Geography:
North America and United States of America