Dissertation
Adapting to improve: the Odyssey of the operational mentoring and liaison teams of the United Kingdom, the Netherlands and Belgium
How have the armed forces of the United Kingdom, the Netherlands and Belgium adapted to the OMLT task in Afghanistan, and what institutional changes have materialised as a consequence of this adaptation?
- Author
- Ivor Wiltenburg
- Date
- 18 September 2024
- Links
- Full text in Scholarly Publications Leiden University
Security Force Assistance (SFA), enhancing the capability and capacity of foreign securityforces, is increasingly considered a valuable tool in of Western States’ international policy.To be sure, equipping, training and mentoring local troops is not a novel phenomenon.Yet, accompanying and mentoring the recipient forces in combat arguably remains oneof the most challenging aspects of SFA. During the war in Afghanistan, allied OperationalMentoring and Liaison Teams (OMLTs) operated shoulder to shoulder with AfghanNational Army units in austere conditions. Although enhancing Afghan security forceswas regarded a central tenet in the allied campaign, the OMLTs were initially grantedlimited attention by the various troop contributing nations. This research examines theBritish, Dutch and Belgian OMLTs and their efforts to adapt to their challenging tasks.Furthermore, it sheds light on the relationship between Western troops and Afghanforces with occasional diverging professional views. As a theoretical lens this study utilises Military Innovation theory to analyse the adaptation processes within each case study. Finally, the research breaks new empirical ground by examining a vast range of sources. The three case studies are based on archivalrecords, official evaluations, regimental histories, surveys and over 220 semistructuredinterviews.