The Combined Action Program for Iraq Today

The measure of our success in Iraq will be the Iraqi government's ability to preserve itself and provide security for its citizenry without foreign assistance. While the United States has enjoyed some marked success against the insurgency, the situation has remained frustratingly unstable in parts of the country where portions of the population refuse to put down their arms and join the political process. A solution to this situation may be derived from the tactics developed by the Marine Corps during successful counterinsurgency operations in Nicaragua, Haiti, the Dominican Republic, and the Philippines in the early part of the 20th century and later in Vietnam. Specifically, the Combined Action Program should be implemented by the Marine Corps in Iraq to deny the insurgency popular support and to facilitate the government's potency in the maintenance of peace and order. Under the Combined Action Program, formations called Combined Action Platoons (CAP) were stood up during the Vietnam War. They were the integration of Marine squads with "Regional Force" (RF) platoons, which were village militias under the control of pro-Republic of Vietnam province chiefs. The Marine element of the CAP was composed of a squad of 12 Marines, a grenadier, the squad leader and a Navy corpsman. The RF element of the CAP was composed of one sergeant and 35 privates. The Marines provided firepower (to include artillery and close air support), training, and access to medical evacuation. The RFs furnished expert knowledge of the population, terrain, and the local Viet Cong. Begun in 1965, the mission of the Combined Action Program was to keep the enemy out of the villages in South Vietnam. CAPs were each assigned to a village. After having defeated the enemy there they would stay and provide the village continual protection from the Viet Cong's terrorism, recruiting, and taxation.