Military Officers: DOD Can Enhance Promotion and Education Guidance for Addressing Indo-Pacific Region Needs
Fast Facts
The U.S. Indo-Pacific Command—which covers China and 35 other nations—serves an important role in national security. Deterring aggression from China in the region is a national defense priority.
To help build expertise in the region, DOD has instructed the military services to consider Indo-Pacific experience when promoting officers. However, DOD doesn't know whether it has met this objective.
DOD has also started to add content related to security challenges posed by China to officer education courses, but it hasn't established timelines to complete this work.
Our recommendations address these and other issues.
Highlights
What GAO Found
In 2020, the Department of Defense (DOD) directed the military departments to revise officer promotion board instructions to emphasize the importance of Indo-Pacific region experience. Each military service has since developed promotion board instruction language to address this requirement. However, DOD has not assessed the results of taking these actions, in part because it has not established guidance that clearly identifies its objective or methods for measuring the results. By doing so, DOD could enhance its ability to assess its effectiveness at developing an officer corps that meets the department's needs in the Indo-Pacific region (shown in figure).
Indo-Pacific Command Area of Responsibility
Note: Gray shaded areas are outside of the Indo-Pacific Command area of responsibility.
DOD and the military services have taken steps to revise professional military education (PME) curricula to address security challenges posed by the People's Republic of China (China), such as by updating topics covered in core PME courses. In 2022, DOD issued China-focused learning outcomes—concepts to be understood by graduates—to be implemented in PME curricula.
However, the PME programs have experienced challenges with the implementation of the learning outcomes, because DOD has not issued expected timeframes for implementation or associated reporting requirements. By taking these actions, DOD would be better positioned to effectively oversee PME programs' efforts to focus curricula on China.
Why GAO Did This Study
According to DOD, China represents the United States' most consequential strategic competitor. Given the importance of the Indo-Pacific region to national security, DOD has taken steps to build regional experience and expertise among military personnel.
Senate Report 117-39, accompanying a bill for the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2022, includes a provision for GAO to review DOD's efforts to ensure military personnel have adequate education, exposure, and expertise in the Indo-Pacific region. GAO assessed the extent to which DOD and the military services have (1) considered Indo-Pacific region experience as part of the officer promotion process and (2) revised officer PME curricula to address security challenges posed by China.
GAO analyzed relevant laws and DOD and military service guidance and documentation related to officer promotion boards and PME programs. GAO also interviewed DOD and military service personnel.
Recommendations
GAO is making four recommendations to DOD to identify and measure the objective of considering Indo-Pacific region experience in promotion decisions, and develop updated timeframes and reporting requirements for the implementation of China-focused learning outcomes. DOD concurred with one recommendation, partially concurred with the other three, and described implementation actions planned or underway. GAO believes the recommendations remain warranted, as discussed in the report.
Recommendations for Executive Action
| Agency Affected | Recommendation | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Department of Defense | The Secretary of Defense should ensure that ASD(M&RA) issues guidance that clearly identifies the objective of considering Indo-Pacific region experience in promotion board decisions. (Recommendation 1) |
DOD partially concurred with this recommendation and stated it will explore options to communicate existing guidance with the appropriate Service promotion boards. In October 2023, DOD stated that existing guidance emphasizes the importance of having senior leaders with Indo-Pacific region experiences, and the Office of the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Military Personnel Policy will explore options to communicate this guidance to appropriate Service promotion boards and to highlight the amplification of the guidance as articulated in the National Defense Strategy. When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
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| Department of Defense | The Secretary of Defense should ensure that ASD(M&RA) establishes a method to measure the results of including Indo-Pacific region experience in promotion board instructions. (Recommendation 2) |
DOD partially concurred with this recommendation and stated it will explore options to request that the military services incorporate questions about the instructions into their required promotion board exit interviews. In October 2023, DOD stated that to provide a quantifiable measurement that promotion boards have effectively articulated the value of Indo-Pacific region experience, the Office of the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Military Personnel Policy will request that the Services incorporate questions about the instructions into their required promotion board exit interviews and that the results of such interview questions will be analyzed to assess their effectiveness. When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
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| Department of Defense | The Secretary of Defense should ensure that the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Force Education and Training issues updated timeframes for implementing the China-focused learning outcomes. (Recommendation 3) |
DOD concurred with this recommendation, and in November 2023 provided us with documentation that the National Defense University (NDU) and military service professional military education (PME) programs were notified that the China-focused learning outcomes are required to be implemented in the core courses of PME programs beginning in the July 2024-May 2025 academic year. By taking this action, the Office of the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Force Education and Training will be better positioned to effectively exercise its oversight of NDU and the military service PME programs. As of December 2023, this recommendation has been closed as implemented.
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| Department of Defense | The Secretary of Defense should ensure that the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Force Education and Training develops and issues reporting requirements for assessing implementation of the China-focused learning outcomes. (Recommendation 4) |
DOD partially concurred with this recommendation and stated it will explore options to issue any updated reporting requirements for assessing the implementation of the China-focused learning outcomes. In November 2023, DOD provided us with documentation that the National Defense University and military service professional military education programs have been notified that a report demonstrating the implementation of the China-focused learning outcomes will be required by July 2025. According to the documentation, more specific guidance regarding the reporting requirement will be issued by July 2024. In October 2024, DOD told us that actions to address this recommendation will be completed by December 2024. We will continue to monitor DOD's efforts to address this recommendation and will update its status as more information becomes available.
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