In a recent episode of the War on the Rocks podcast, Ryan Evans, founder of War on the Rocks, engaged in a comprehensive discussion with General Eric Smith, the newly appointed Commandant of the Marine Corps. The conversation, rich with insights and forward-looking perspectives, delved into the core tenets of General Smith’s Commandants Planning Guidance, offering a glimpse into the evolving landscape of the Marine Corps and its strategic direction amidst a complex global security environment. This in-depth interview provides critical understanding for anyone tracking modern defense strategy and the future trajectory of this pivotal military branch.
Continuity and Evolution of Force Design
General Smith immediately addressed the anticipated Commandants Planning Guidance, emphasizing a blend of continuity and personal imprint. He affirmed the continuation of Force Design, clarifying it as an ongoing journey rather than a fixed point in time like “Force Design 2030.” This journey, he explained, is threat-informed and data-driven, aimed at enhancing lethality and mobility against pacing threats – a shift in focus necessitated by the evolving global security landscape after years concentrated on conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan. The core themes of his guidance will revolve around “Marines, lethality, and mobility,” foundational pillars for a crisis response force. This signals a commitment to the strategic direction set by his predecessor while injecting his leadership style and priorities into the execution and adaptation of Force Design.
People First: Talent Management and Marine Retention
A significant portion of the discussion centered on talent management, a clear priority for General Smith. His philosophy is rooted in empowering Marines by including them in career conversations. He articulated a simple yet profound approach: understanding Marines’ aspirations and seeking common ground between their desires and the needs of the Marine Corps. This isn’t about Marines dictating their careers, but about fostering a collaborative environment to enhance retention. Recognizing the changing demographics of the Marine Corps, with more married Marines and dual-income families, General Smith highlighted specific initiatives. These include spousal employment support through credential portability and offering greater location stability for Marines to accommodate family needs, such as children’s education and spouses’ careers. Furthermore, he discussed programs like “opt-out” for command or promotion consideration for a year and “career intermission” to allow Marines to address personal or family matters without sacrificing their careers. These policies signal a move towards a more flexible and understanding Marine Corps, aimed at retaining experienced and valuable personnel by acknowledging and addressing their evolving life circumstances.
Smarter Training: Modernizing Marine Education for the Digital Age
General Smith envisions a modernization of Marine Corps training and education methodologies, drawing inspiration from readily available resources like YouTube tutorials. He pointed out the need to move beyond traditional, time-constrained computer-based classes towards more visual, practical, and on-demand training. The goal is to make learning more effective and relevant to the individual Marine. He acknowledged the need to balance this innovative approach with congressional mandates for specific training topics and the requirement to account for training hours. The vision is to integrate impactful visual training methods, akin to “YouTube-based” learning, while ensuring accountability and fulfilling mandated training requirements, ultimately leading to more proficient and adaptable Marines.
The Virtuous Cycle: Experimentation and War Gaming for Future Readiness
Experimentation and war gaming remain central to the Marine Corps’s approach to Force Design and future planning. General Smith emphasized the continuation of the “virtuous cycle” – concept, war game, experiment, feedback – a continuous loop of learning and adaptation. He highlighted the upcoming Robert Neller Center for war gaming and analysis, underscoring the commitment to sophisticated modeling and simulation. Crucially, he stressed the importance of real-world experimentation with Marines and equipment to validate concepts and gather practical feedback. General Smith also cautioned against misinterpreting war game results as definitive predictions, emphasizing they are data points in an iterative process. He advocated for boldness and agility in adopting promising concepts even before complete validation, drawing historical parallels to Pete Ellis’s early insights into expeditionary advanced operations. This iterative, data-driven approach, combined with real-world testing, ensures the Marine Corps remains adaptable and ahead of evolving threats.
Littoral Dominance: The Marine Littoral Regiment in Action
The Marine Littoral Regiment (MLR) stands as a tangible manifestation of Force Design in action. General Smith confirmed the full operational capability of the 3rd MLR in Hawaii and the forthcoming 12th MLR in Japan. He emphasized the 12th MLR’s deployment to Okinawa as a landmark shift in the US-Japan security posture, reflecting shared threat perceptions and Japan’s support for enhanced capabilities. MLRs, purpose-built Marine Air-Ground Task Forces (MAGTFs), are designed for light, lethal, and austere operations within the weapons engagement zone. They represent a tailored solution to the evolving demands of maritime security and stand-in force concepts, providing critical sensing, long-range fires, and sea denial capabilities in contested environments, particularly in the Pacific.
Reaching Further: The Future of Long-Range Fires
Long-range fires are unequivocally a priority for the Marine Corps under General Smith’s command. He acknowledged the proliferation of long-range fire capabilities among both state and non-state actors, necessitating a shift towards extended reach. However, he emphasized the unique Marine Corps challenge: maintaining mobility and lightness. The focus is on developing and fielding lightweight, mobile long-range fire systems, such as the Naval Strike Missile and Precision Strike Missile, capable of carrying a significant magazine depth. This commitment aims to equip Marines with the ability to engage adversaries at greater distances while retaining the agility and expeditionary nature of the force.
Organic Mobility: Projecting Power in a Distributed Environment
Organic mobility, as defined by General Smith, is multifaceted, starting with amphibious warships. He reiterated the legal requirement and the shared commitment with the Chief of Naval Operations to maintain a minimum of 31 amphibious warships. He also highlighted the importance of Landing Ship Mediums (LSMs) for littoral regiment operations. Beyond amphibious shipping, organic mobility encompasses Marine Corps aviation assets like KC-130s, MV-22s, and CH-53s, as well as unmanned systems. These unmanned systems are envisioned to provide logistics, fires, and communications support, enhancing distributed operations and reducing reliance on traditional logistical footprints. This holistic view of organic mobility underscores the Marine Corps’s commitment to self-sufficiency and rapid deployment in dispersed and contested environments.
Offensive by Nature: Maintaining the Marine Corps’s Edge
Addressing the perception of stand-in forces as defensive, General Smith firmly asserted their offensive nature. He described stand-in forces as critical for “sense and make sense” operations, actively seeking and understanding adversary intentions to enable offensive action. He emphasized that all Marine Corps actions are driven by an offensive mindset, aiming to impose their will on the adversary. This offensive approach is integrated into a “kill web” concept, where every element, from sensing to firing, contributes to a unified effort. Despite the focus on long-range fires and technology, General Smith reaffirmed the commitment to traditional combat skills, including close combat and bayonet fighting, ensuring Marines remain prepared for the full spectrum of conflict.
The Evolving Infantry Battalion: Lethality and Size
The size of the infantry battalion, a topic of debate during Force Design implementation, was addressed by General Smith. He clarified the current size at 811 Marines, a reduction from the previous 896, but noted historical understaffing meant actual sizes were often smaller. Infantry Battalion Experimentation (IBX) continues to validate this size, with data informing potential adjustments. While smaller, the modern infantry battalion is significantly more lethal, with enhanced range, communications, and capabilities compared to its predecessors. General Smith pointed out that even at 811, the Marine infantry battalion remains considerably larger than those of most other military services globally, emphasizing its continued combat power.
Naval Expeditionary Force: Strengthening the Navy-Marine Corps Partnership
Addressing concerns about Navy support for Marine Corps Force Design, General Smith highlighted a strong working relationship with the Chief of Naval Operations. While acknowledging past disagreements, he affirmed a shared commitment to a minimum of 31 amphibious warships. However, a key area of concern is ship maintenance readiness, with current rates deemed unacceptable. Improving ship maintenance and integrating LSMs are crucial for realizing the full potential of the naval expeditionary force and supporting Marine Corps operational concepts. This focus on partnership and readiness underscores the essential interdependency of the Navy and Marine Corps in executing national security missions.
Global Response: The 26th MEU in the Mediterranean
The deployment of the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) to the Mediterranean was discussed in the context of current global events. While refraining from specific mission details, General Smith confirmed the MEU’s disaggregated deployment, with elements operating in the high north and the Gulf of Oman. He highlighted the MEU’s capabilities for strike operations and large-scale non-combatant evacuation operations, drawing on historical examples of ARG-MEUs conducting significant evacuations. The deployment demonstrates the Marine Corps’s expeditionary capabilities and its role as a globally responsive force, ready to address crises across a wide spectrum of operations.
Forward Presence: Deployments in the Indo-Pacific
Marine Rotational Force-Southeast Asia (MRF-SEA) and Marine Rotational Force-Darwin (MRF-D) deployments underscore the Marine Corps’s commitment to the Indo-Pacific region. General Smith emphasized that these deployments, along with MEU deployments to Okinawa, serve as platforms for continuous experimentation. Experimentation focuses on areas like drone integration, VBAT systems, communications, distributed operations sustainment (including 3D printing and expeditionary contracting), command and control in distributed environments, and interoperability with allies and partners. These deployments are not merely for reassurance but for active capability development and enhancing combined operations with regional partners, fostering stronger alliances and improving joint operational effectiveness.
Weathering the Strait: Strategic Considerations for Taiwan Contingency
The interview touched upon the strategic implications of weather patterns in the Taiwan Strait for potential contingencies. General Smith acknowledged the impact of seasonal weather constraints on amphibious operations, referencing analysis highlighting limited windows for such operations. He affirmed that exercise and deployment schedules are constantly evaluated in light of these factors, ensuring forces are positioned strategically during periods of heightened risk. The standing forces concept, with Marines forward-deployed within the weapons engagement zone, is particularly relevant in this context, providing persistent presence and rapid response capabilities despite environmental challenges.
Safety First: Initiatives for Risk Mitigation and Prevention
Addressing recent tragic accidents, General Smith underscored his commitment to safety and risk mitigation. He detailed safety reviews and stand-downs initiated after recent incidents, emphasizing the ongoing investigations and the pursuit of actionable improvements. While acknowledging the inherent risks of military operations, he stressed that his duty is to minimize risk as much as possible. Ongoing reviews of maintenance, ready room procedures, and operational practices aim to identify and rectify potential safety gaps, reinforcing a culture of safety and continuous improvement throughout the Marine Corps.
Lessons in Leadership: Influential Figures in General Smith’s Career
Reflecting on his career, General Smith highlighted the profound influence of his Staff Non-Commissioned Officers (SNCOs), particularly his sergeants major and platoon sergeants, citing their discipline and experience as invaluable learning resources. He also named several key officers who served as impactful bosses and mentors, including John Toolan, Larry Nicholson, and civilian leaders like Ash Carter, Bob Work, and Christine Fox. These figures, both military and civilian, represent diverse leadership styles and experiences that have shaped General Smith’s own leadership philosophy and approach.
Commandant’s Reading List: Books Shaping a Marine Leader
Finally, General Smith shared a list of influential books that have shaped his thinking and career. These ranged from classic military fiction like “Fields of Fire” and “Once an Eagle” to historical and strategic analyses like “Battle for the Falklands,” “This Kind of War,” “For Country and Corps: The Life of General Oliver P. Smith,” “Red Mike Edson,” and “Kill Chain.” These books offer diverse perspectives on leadership, warfare, resilience, and the human element of conflict, providing insights into the intellectual foundations informing General Smith’s command and vision for the Marine Corps.
In conclusion, General Smith’s interview provides a comprehensive overview of his vision for the Marine Corps, emphasizing a dynamic balance between continuity and change. His focus on Marines, lethality, and mobility, underpinned by a commitment to Force Design and continuous adaptation, signals a Marine Corps poised to navigate the complex challenges of the 21st century. Like weathering a “War On Rocks,” the Marine Corps, under General Smith’s leadership, is focused on building a strong, adaptable, and enduring force ready to meet any challenge, reinforcing its foundational strength in the ever-shifting landscape of global security.
