A Framework for Foreign Humanitarian Assistance Operations

The United States military has been a critical component in past foreign humanitarian assistance operations and will continue to be so in the future. There are several examples, particularly during the 2010 relief effort in Haiti, that demonstrate how the U.S. could better translate its political objective into a synchronized operational response. An analysis of command and control and logistics operational functions during the relief effort shows that prior operational planning is required to achieve unity of effort. A national framework for collaboration during foreign humanitarian assistance operations that emphasizes prior planning instead of ad hoc efforts during actual crises does not currently exist. Unity of effort, while conducting foreign humanitarian assistance, requires the creation of a common framework informed by the domestic National Response Framework and lessons learned from past operations.