Marines, SOCOM board held meeting on pre-deployment training integration

ANNAPOLIS, MD -- The Marine Corps and U.S. Special Operations Command Board met last week to discuss how to better train together before deployment in the same theater, according to a Marine Corps official.

Lt. Gen. Brian Beaudreault, deputy commandant for plans, policies and operations, told reporters at an expeditionary warfare conference here today that Marines and SOCOM personnel benefit from an established relationship before they deploy.

The board also dicussed the future of the SOF liaison element that is part of an Amphibious Ready Group/Marine Expeditionary Unit. The SOF LE is funded by SOCOM and includes an eight-person detachment with representation through the broader SOF network.

Other items on the agenda included integration of intelligence surveillance and reconnaissance, rapid capabilities development and command, control, communications, computers and intelligence, Beaudreault said.

Inside the Navy reported earlier this month the Marine Corps and SOCOM are developing a joint concept on how to function across the range of military operations. Lt. Gen. Robert Walsh, deputy commandant for combat development and integration, said the new concept will help define each organization's role and how they can best support one another.