Text: Chief of Naval Operations Remarks at Naval War College
(Admiral Vern Clark speaks to mid-rank Navy officers) (3010)
Newport, Rhode Island - The Chief of U.S. Naval Operations, Admiral
Vern Clark, in remarks at the Naval War College October 29, said the
naval response to the terrorist acts on September 11 was done
"swiftly, professionally, and purposefully."
The Navy responded to the events of September 11 by positioning Aegis
destroyers and cruisers to protect U.S. shores and moving the USS
Kitty Hawk from Japan to the Arabian Sea.
"Change that is ahead of us," said Clark, "will be built upon proven
naval strengths: agility, mobility, persistent firepower, and
innovation - to name but a few."
The Chief of Naval Operations asked many questions of the students
during his remarks concerning the future of naval warfare techniques
and admitted "I haven't provided you with the answers."
Clark invited students at the college to "climb into the ring and
engage the enemy intellectually," calling for "bold and innovative
thinking" to combat a "trans-national organization dedicated to
indiscriminate killing and terror."
He described the campaign as political, economic, diplomatic and
military and ended his remarks with a question. "The question is: how
do we use the military piece of this to win this war?"
Following is the as-delivered text:
(begin text)
ADM Vern Clark Remarks
Naval War College Symposium "Setting Our Course in the Terror War"
Naval War College, Newport, Rhode Island
Monday, October 29, 2001
Good morning ladies and gentlemen. Thank you, Rear Admiral Rempt for
your kind introduction and for hosting this important conference.
Over the next few days, you will examine a very timely and important
topic, "Setting Our Course in the War on Terror." This effort is
timely because our nation is at war. It is important because, in times
of conflict, our Navy and our nation depend on the intellectual
capital invested in the Naval War College. We need the product that
will come from this conference. This superb institution is composed of
our best and brightest -- officers and civilians who are not just
doers but also thinkers. This conference is about the challenge to
think through the issues that we face today. And this conference is
about the challenge to examine every assumption that we have made in
the past, and to make sure that they fit the circumstances that we're
facing today.
I thought in my remarks this morning that I will briefly describe what
has changed and what has not changed since the 11th of September. I
ask you to examine all of our assumptions and I'm appreciative that
Admiral Rempt made reference to the fact that this theme "to challenge
assumptions" is not a theme
that was born on September the 11th. It is a theme that I've been
trying to teach since July 21st last year. I believe in this approach
to living and I ask all of you to examine of the assumptions that we
collectively have previously used and that have served us in the
foundation of our naval operations. I believe that now is the time for
bold and innovative thinking - thinking that will be vital for us to
achieve victory.
Now, let me start by discussing what has changed since a peaceful
America was attacked on a sunny morning almost seven weeks ago.
Most fundamentally, we are at war -- a war unlike any this nation has
been upon to fight. Our enemy is a non-state actor. His weapon is a
trans-national organization dedicated to indiscriminate killing and
terror. He has proven that the constraints observed by civilized
people during war will not be observed by his forces. As a result, we
have commenced upon a war that promises to be sustained and difficult
against an enemy that hates the freedoms and liberties we in uniform
have sworn to protect.
But what has not changed is even more important. Events since the 11
of September have validated the unity of our people, the strength of
our democracy, and the common purpose of states around the world
banded together to eliminate terrorism.
For our Navy, the on-going campaign had underlined the timeless
importance of sea power in defending our nation. I did not come here
to market naval forces and the reasons we have them. But I can't pass
this opportunity to say that the events of the last few have certainly
validated points that I have made to this student body before: the
21st century will require us to possess capabilities that are able to
operate independently from the international domain, and, by that, I'm
talking about space and the seas. The timeless importance of sea
power, the wisdom in sustaining combat power forward to seize the
initiative, and, most importantly, the incredible skill and dedication
of our Sailors and Marines has been validated again.
Such strengths will be the key to our victory.
The attacks that propelled us to war were not random. Our enemy struck
centers of American national strength -- financial, political, and
military -- killing thousands of innocent men, women, and children,
including uniformed personnel in peacetime.
Additionally, someone is now using biological weapons against the
American media, another source of our global reach and influence. We
cannot underestimate this enemy. They are dedicated to a total and
prolonged conflict.
It is estimated that the World Trade Center attack alone left 10,000
orphans. And only hate-filled people would consider such an outcome to
be honorable and just.
They used our openness, diversity, and freedom against us. That was
their plan. But in doing so, they forced Americans to reassess our
commitment to liberty and renew our dedication to the principals upon
which this nation was founded. This, I do not believe, was in their
plans.
In short, while they succeeded in inflicting pain upon two great
cities, they also unified a nation and groups of nations. As at Pearl
Harbor, our enemy miscalculated and, in doing so, guaranteed their
eventual destruction.
How did our Navy respond to this bloody attack? As we have always
done: swiftly, professionally, and purposefully.
Within hours, carriers steamed to station off either coast. Aegis
destroyers and cruisers assumed guard over the air approaches to our
shores. Active duty and Reserve personnel swiftly manned USNS Comfort
to provide assistance to New York City. The operational concept for
this type of asset was certainly validated. Comfort is maintained in a
five-day ready-to-sail status in Baltimore. She was ready for sea in
less than 24 hours, due to the superb response of the Military Sealift
Command crew.
I read a letter that I intercepted from a commander of one of the
aircraft squadrons on the abroad the United States Ship Enterprise. He
tells the story to his family about they were headed south for a port
call. They were watching on television and they saw the second plane
go into the World Trade Center.
They did not receive an order but they knew instinctively what they
needed to do. The rudder went over and ship reversed course 180
degrees. They knew they would be called. They knew their time would
come. They were Sailors on the point that knew instinctively what to
do. And they readied themselves for their response.
The Kitty Hawk surged from Japan to take station in the Arabian Sea,
where our force has grown to four carriers wielding the kind of
striking power that we've all come to expect from carrier battle
groups.
In Washington - very much on the front lines of this new type of war -
I was in my office when the attack occurred. Our civilian and military
professionals quickly reestablished command and control, and began
planning America's strategy, even as smoking wreckage was being
removed only a hundred yards away.
And all around the world, ashore and afloat, we shifted to a wartime
footing, ramped up force protection, redoubled training, and prepared
for the sustained conflict that lay ahead.
In taking these actions, our Navy combined efforts with the other
services and agents of national power -- diplomatic, economic,
political -- to fulfill the President's challenge to root out and
destroy terrorism.
Let's talk about our missions. Naval missions and capabilities
inevitably evolve in response to the wars we fight. This one will be
no different. Change is occurring as we speak. But such change that is
ahead of us will be built upon proven naval strengths: agility,
mobility, persistent firepower, and innovation - to name but a few.
In executing our missions in this global campaign, we will operate in
concert with joint and allied forces across the full spectrum of
conflict.
Today, multiple carrier battle groups are operating together to
conduct heavy strike missions against enemy assets. Aircraft from the
carriers working in concert with surface combatants and submarines
have proven our strategic reach by attacking enemies in a land-locked
nation hundreds of miles from the sea.
Additionally, naval forces are positioned off our coasts in a return
to the traditional Navy role of homeland defense, working hand-in-hand
with the United States Coast Guard. These forces patrol coastal waters
and airspace, stand watch over critical infrastructure, collect
intelligence, and intercept threats to our national security.
We updated the basis for such operations just a few months ago, before
September 11, when the Commandant of the Coast Guard Admiral Loy and I
renewed our Memorandum of Agreement committing ourselves to a
complimentary and interoperable national fleet. I will tell you before
September 11, this primarily about research, development and
procurement, but now it's also about operations. I spoke to the
headquarters at the Coast Guard three weeks ago. I told them that it
was unique that in times past this memorandum of understanding was
more about the Coast Guard support of the United States Navy in time
of war, but this time it truly did include the United States Navy
supporting the Coast Guard in time of war. Navy units at sea are
supporting the Coast Guard efforts, as we speak, to strengthen port
security. Additionally, Navy and Coast Guard officers are serving
side-by-side in Office of Naval Intelligence Command Center and U.S.
Coast Guard Intelligence Coordination Center building the best
possible maritime awareness.
Yet other naval forces - Navy and Marine - this time are dedicated to
engagement and deterrence efforts, like exercise Bright Star, which
just concluded off Egypt. These same units stand ready to respond to
emergent events such as humanitarian disaster relief or contingency
operations. This ability to sustain credible combat power in theaters
beyond the immediate conflict is vital to international stability at
this time. It is requires a Navy of robust numbers as well as
capabilities. I will come back to that in a moment. We must have a
robust capability to deal with the threat in the future.
Finally, we will take the fight to the enemy in other ways, using our
national advantages in sea and air power, intelligence,
communications, training, joint operations, responsiveness, and
precision engagement.
Our nation will especially rely on our freedom to maneuver in the
international domain of the sea, hitting our enemies at the time and
place of our choosing. Some of these operations will be publicized. As
you have heard the president and our secretary of defense say, some
will not.
But as the president has made very clear: We will give no respite to
those who sponsored the murders of 11 September. We will seek out and
we will destroy our enemies however long it takes.
So, now let's get to the challenge for the Naval War College. As I
have noted, the attacks on America have put us all, every one of us on
the front lines. I'm depending upon each of you to do some hard
thinking about this new form of warfare. I invite you to "climb into
the ring" and engage the enemy intellectually. Again, examine all of
the assumptions and ask the tough questions. The President has said we
are going to find all of the terrorists, root them out and destroy
them.
What does that means to us? How can we best do that? How do we
minimize the enemy's advantage and maximize the enemy's
vulnerabilities?
How can we sever our enemies from the failed states in which they
hide? Admiral Rempt made the point well and the president has made the
policy clear regarding the harboring of terrorists. How do we sever
our enemies from the states that support them? We're going to think
about some near-term, some mid-term and some long-term objectives.
What kind of sensors, what kind of platforms, what kind of networks
and what kind of concepts will our future operations entail? How
should we package our forces for the future? Should it be done
differently? Should they deploy differently? Should we be looking at
different crewing concepts? Should we leave assets on station? Should
we deploy them the way we deploy them today? We must answer these
questions.
How much capability should we keep forward? How much should be
dedicated to homeland defense? How should we train for these new
missions? What technology will provide the training efficiencies that
we need? How do we realize the fullest potential of every Sailor, of
every Marine?
And what about the collection and the development of intelligence?
What do we not know that we must know? What must capabilities must we
invest in? How do enhance knowledge and awareness without flooding
units with meaningless data?
And what about command and control? Will our existing structures work?
I read with interest one of the Newport papers that addressed this
subject. We must continue to pursue answers. Should we invest in new
or parallel capabilities? And how do we connect with the
nongovernmental organizations that valuable situational awareness on
cultural sensitivity? How do we do that?
Should operating relationships with other services change? We need to
put ourselves on the other side of the podium in dealing with the
other services and ask them: Do you need something different from us?
If it's to change, how? How do we make it happen? And how do we
identify emergent areas requiring research and development? What
investments will allow us to learn more about our enemy? And how do we
employ information operations to support our military and political
goals? And what about public diplomacy and what is our role? What
should we disclose? And when is silence justified? How do we counter
this transnational threat while meeting traditional concerns and
conducting on-going operations that we have tasked around the world
today, like the peacekeeping operations in Bosnia and Kosovo. These
questions are not just academic; they are strategically and
operationally vital.
So my message this morning is straightforward. It's really quite
simple. I've given you a lot of questions. I've haven't provided you
with the answers. This is a time for boldness and it is a time for
innovation. I'm convinced and I'm appreciative of the Naval War
College and Admiral Rempt and the leadership that is taking in this
endeavor. I am convinced that working together we will meet the
challenges of this new threat and we will build upon our strengths and
we will ensure victory.
Let me close with this story. I remember the day of the attack very
vividly. I was in the office having a budget meeting. People came in
and said you've got to evacuate. We started collecting our things and
just before we left and stopped and said, "What do we need to do when
we leave here?" Then the vice chief and I collected in the parking lot
outside the River Entrance. I said, "Bill, you go to Annex and I'll go
to the Navy Yard. Whichever one establishes the Command Center first
and capability to command will be in touch with the National Command
Center and we'll press ahead."
The next afternoon the President came over and he sat down with all of
the service secretaries, Secretary of Defense, Deputy Secretary of
Defense and each of the service chiefs. He began to outline what our
policy is going to be and those of us who had been listening to this
for awhile for knew that we were not just going to defeat terrorists,
but all of those who harbor terrorists. That immediately jumped off
the table. Then he looked around the room and he said to each one of
us. He held his finger out and said, "Don't ever forget this day!
Don't ever forget this day!" Then he pledged to us, "I pledge to you
I will never forget this day!"
We have a great challenge in front of us, but we are able collectively
among the joint services and the group of nations to find them, root
them out and destroy the people who are committed to destroying us.
This is a war - and this about defending ourselves. So I'm asking you
- I can't be more straightforward about this - to challenge every
assumption. I've asked you a long series of questions. I'm looking for
people who have to the courage to challenge the assumptions we've made
about the way we package, the way we deploy, the way we structure, the
way we do command and control, the way we structure - every piece of
it. I want that kind of challenge to the way we do business.
The President has said, "We're going to keep them on the run." I've
read a number of your papers and I think they are a good start. It's
not the statement of the objective that we have to answer. The thing
we answer is how we use the military piece of this campaign. Because
the campaign is political, it's economic, it's diplomatic, and it's
military. The question is: how do we use the military piece of this to
win this war?
(end as-delivered text)
