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The "front line" of Partner Nation Engagement
The Marine attache (MARA) is a strategic enabler who plays a crucial role in overseas operations but whose role is not widely known or understood by those who have not served as or worked with Embassy country teams. The typical MAGTF officer may not know of, or have had much engagement with, attachés or the program itself. HQMC Intelligence Department is actively working to remedy that lack of understanding in order to advertise the program to officers of all MOSs who may be interested in working with the Defense Attaché System (DAS). The purpose of this article is to provide background on the attaché program, specify where Marines can serve as attachés, and explain the roles that MARAs fill and the responsibilities that attachés have as they fill these diplomatic billets working with the Department of State (DOS), other elements of the DOD, the interagency, and foreign partner nations.
The Marine Corps participates in the DAS by filling 33 major or lieutenant colonel overseas billets. The Corps also fills 14 enlisted billets, known as operations coordinators (OpsCos) or operations NCOs (Ops NCOs), which are staff sergeant or gunnery sergeant assignments. The majority of the billets are 2- or 3-year accompanied assignments, although several are as short as 12 months and unaccompanied (e.g., Iraq or Pakistan for officers, and Tunisia for enlisted Marines). For locations of MARA and OpsCo/NCO billets, see Figure 1.
MARAs stationed at embassies around the globe have four main responsibilities:
1. Represent the Secretary of Defense (SECDEF) and the Armed Forces of the United States generally, and the Secretary of the Navy (SECNAV) and the Commandant of the Marine Corps (CMC) specifically.
2. Serve as military advisors to the U.S. Ambassador, other U.S. government officials, and host-nation officials.
3. Report on in-country and regional political-military activities.
4. Support U.S. military theater security cooperation and security assistance programs in the assigned country, as well as coordinate access to host-nation leaders and facilities.1
Specific duties and responsibilities depend on the structure of the Defense Attaché Office (DAO) in the MARAs assigned country as well as guidance from the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA), DOD and DOS, and the situation in the country in which the MARAs are...