Embedded US trainers with the ANSF

Bouhammer's Afghan Blog on why the US National Guard is well-suited for the role (equivalent to the Canadian OMLT and POMLT), and on ETTs in action (via The Thunder Run, done daily):

So do you think you know what an ETT (embedded training team) member does? ETTs have been the true tip of the spear in Afghanistan since Task Force Phoenix [more here and at the end of the Update here] was first stood up in 2002. Task Force Phoenix and the ETT teams were initially charged with standing up, training, mentoring and assisting the Afghanistan National Army. The first mentoring was done by the active duty 10th Mountain Division. After Iraq kicked off in 2003, it was realized that the mission would need to be transitioned to the National Guard as there were not enough active duty forces to do the Phoenix mission in addition to the other ones they were being tasked.

The mission of training and empowering a country’s indigenous Army has always been a mission of the Special Forces and what they have mastered over the last 40 years. However there was not enough of them either, so National Guard was tapped. However if there were a 2nd best option to Special Forces doing the mission, then it was the National Guard...

Earlier:

Problems training and mentoring the ANA

Plus from BruceR., Canadian Army reservist and former ANA mentor, at Flit:

Posts worth reading

In response to a request, here's some posts on this blog since I returned I think sum up some of my recent thinking on Afghanistan...

One wonders how many Canadian journalists have bothered to read them.