(NewsWorthy.news) – Special operations leaders in the United States military are considering ways to increase the number of tech experts in the field while maintaining its plan to reduce the number of soldiers by 5,000 during the next five years.
Within the context of the February 2022 Russian invasion and subsequent war with Ukraine, American special operations—frequently used for high-risk missions such as counterterrorism efforts—is facing pressure to both bring in more specialized members and lower its overall troops.
Specifically, the Army Special Operations Command is looking to grow its Green Beret teams, which generally only consist of 12 people, to add others who have greater technical skills. Computer software specialists could be included in this upgrade as they would be able to quickly reprogram drones. Special operations within the Army would be the most impacted by the downsize in soldiers, although similar changes are expected within other departments.
According to Special Operations Command leader Gen. Bryan Fenton, the 12-person “detachment” group is facing the need for other specialists due to the ongoing technological advancements of war. Specifically, he noted that a Navy ship operator, Air Force pilot, cyber expert, or cryptologist could be critical for the missions.
Fenton added that the American military is learning “a lot of lessons” from the situation in Ukraine, though it has no active soldiers in the region. The personnel cuts are part of an Army measure to decrease its members by roughly 24,000, aiming to adjust from its counterterrorism focus to address large-scale armed conflicts. The reduction coincides with a serious lack of recruitment success in recent years.
The general also said that 2,000 special operations personnel were dismissed from the chapter roughly a year and a half earlier. This cut included 750 Army soldiers and preceded a 3,000 Army special operations cut. Fenton explained that, with the cuts expected to be distributed throughout a total of five years, the Army is losing nearly 4,000 members, with the last 1,000 cuts impacting “other Army units” as well as the Navy SEALs and Marine raiders.
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