2019 AUSA Annual Meeting & Exposition, October 14-16, 2019

By Dr. Joshua Sinai

On October 14-16, 2019, the Army USA (AUSA) held its annual meeting and exposition at the Washington Convention Center, Washington, DC. Because of my interest in how the U.S. military approaches counter-terrorism (CT) and counter-insurgency (CI), and the military-related technologies produced by private sector industry to counter these threats, I spent most of my time at the meeting’s large exhibit hall.

As listed in the AUSA’s Institute of Land Warfare’s publication, “Profile of the United States Army” (2018), which was distributed at the conference, the U.S. Army is extensively involved in CT and CI. Army service component commands (ASCCs) involved in these missions include the U.S. Army Africa/Southern European Task Force (USARAF)/SETAF), headquartered in Vicenza, Italy; the U.S. Army Central (USARCENT), headquartered at Shaw Air Force Base, SC; the U.S. Army Europe (UAAREUR), headquartered in Wiebaden, Germany; the U.S. Army Pacific (USARPAC), headquartered in fort Shafter, Hawaii; the U.S. Army South/Sixth Army (USARSOUTH), headquartered at Joint Base San Antonio, TX; and the U.S. Army Special Operations Command (USASOC), headquartered at Fort Bragg, NC, which is a component of the U.S. Special Operations Command (US SOCOM). USASOC’s more than 28,000 personnel conduct special operations across a range of military missions worldwide. Other military commands involved in CT and CI include the U.S. Army Cyber Command (ARCYBER), headquartered ...