The United States Army has, within it's division, an elite Special Forces unit
entitled the Green Berets. The Green Berets originated in 1952 at Fort Bragg where only
the best troops in the Army were to volunteer. These troops included Rangers, Airborne
troops, war veterans, and officers. They all spoke a minimum of two languages, were
trained in infantry and parachuting, and were of rank no lower than Sergeant. The
primary mission of the green berets was and is "to infiltrate by land, sea or air, deep into
enemy-occupied territory and organize the resistance/guerrilla potential to conduct
Special Forces operations, with emphasis on guerrilla warfare"
(http://users.aol.comm/armysofl/early_years.html P.1).
The Green Berets differ from other Army infantry units, such as the Rangers, in
that they are designed differently because of their different types of missions. Most Army
infantry units are used to "lightly" attack with ferociousness, speed, and efficiency, then
to leave and have the heavier units, such as tanks or wheeled vehicles, come in to battle.
However, the Green Berets are trained to spend months, sometimes years, to establish a
self-reliant post within hostile enemy lines. They are capable of speaking the language
and knowing the culture in that area, while using their extensive survival skills to live
long periods of time without supply from the U.S. Once their post is established the
Green Berets train militaries of that region who are in agreement with the U.S
government (Newman, Richard J. P.1).
PRO
The Green Berets are an elite Special Forces subdivision whose primary mission,
in most cases, is to train the militaries of other countries. There are many benefits that
come with this type of military intervention. Most people in the military and government
jobs will agree with the purpose of the Green Berets, and their reasoning is very
justifiable. For the pro side of the argument I interviewed a former Army Airborne
soldier, John Nicks, and I e-mailed and received a response from Darrell Hoeflin.
The Green Berets' main mission of training militaries of other countries has
proven itself to be very helpful to both the United States and the country where the Green
Berets are training the soldiers. It makes ties between the United States and the other
country stronger. John Nicks agrees that what the Green Berets do in other countries, in
assistance to their military training needs, has been a remarkable move by the U.S for
improving relations with many foreign countries (John Nicks; Interview 4-30-00).
There have been many instances in which the Green Berets training of soldiers in
foreign countries have proven effective, and helpful to the country it serves. An example
of this is in Peru, the summer of '96. The Green Berets were sent in to assist in the
training of Peruvian soldiers. While training the Peruvian soldiers, the Green Berets
primarily focused on hostage-rescue missions. Consequently, later that same year rebels
of Peru seized the house of the Japanese ambassador located in Lima, Peru. Amazingly,
71 hostages were rescued by Peruvian commandos, whom just a few months prior were
trained by the Green Berets (Newman, Richard J. P.1). That just shows how helpful the
Green Berets can be to other countries in time of need. This type of assistance to other
countries provides a good image to the United States as well.
The United States, for decades, has been supporting certain countries with
military, financial, and other forms of aid. The Green Berets is just one of the numerous
means of helping foreign countries. They provide a good image to the United States, and
it shows what America stands for, and that is fairness and care to others. The Army
Special Forces give America a nicer name, thus increasing foreign relations even further.
However, the advantages of the Green Berets aren't only superficial.
The Army Special Forces units provide a great strength in war. I e-mailed Darrell
Hoeflin, a former Green Beret who served in the Vietnam War in 1970 and 1971. His
response was obviously very positive to the purpose of the Green Berets. He said that
when he was in Vietnam, the U.S soldiers relied a lot on their South Vietnamese allies in
combat, although, Darrell specified, that in combat the South Vietnamese were not very
effective due to their lack of proper training. He and his Green Beret team were sent in to
train South Vietnamese soldiers in combat tactics, better firing techniques, camouflaging,
and survival skills: all of which are necessities in the guerrilla warfare taking place all
around them. He said that he and the Green Beret team with him had very little difficulty
getting along with the South Vietnamese. The Green Berets and South Vietnamese
understood each other well, and due to the people skills and language skills training that
Darrell received unbecoming a Green Beret, communicating served no problem (Darrell
Hoeflin; e-mail 5-1-00). Darrell mentioned that there were many other benefits to having
Green Berets in countries around the world when tensions are rising.
Another example of the Green Berets presence in foreign countries proving to be
helpful is in Bosnia. In Bosnia their mission was not to train militaries of that country, but
they were used as sort of secret agent types. Their expansive training in the cultures and
languages of the foreign country each Green Beret team is assigned to is critical to the
missions they faced in Bosnia. Throughout Bosnia, fifteen Green Beret teams of around
six members each lived in normal, civilian houses, and could freely get around town with
their culture and language training. The Green Berets were living like normal civilians of
Bosnia, while the soldiers provided by NATO lived in heavily guarded, self-sustaining
bunkers, and they only go out to patrol. The Green Berets who lived like civilians had the
mission of reporting the mood in the streets and among the actual citizens. The Green
Berets provided communication between the locals and the commanding officers of
NATO to transfer any important information having to do with citizen unrest or other
crucial facts that would be helpful to the peace-keeping NATO troops (Newman, Richard
J. P1). This was a key to neutralizing situations at an early age that could have erupted
into major problems.
The service that the Green Berets have provided to both the United States, and
foreign countries who have received training from the Green Berets has been both
imperative and beneficial to foreign relations. The Army Special Forces have a wide
range of missions that serve to the well being of the people of whatever area they may be
located in, whether their mission is to assist in the training of soldiers or to go undercover
to keep the streets calm. The Green Berets serve as an excellent form of foreign aid.