we have the time we would like to see a stronger effort against the trafficking of weapons and bulk cache to mexico. i would like to say that the merida initiative it was from the beginning not only a requirement. -- equipment. that it was the first part of the initiative but it has much more. it gives support to various areas to justice reform, police professionalization, training and anticorruption efforts, information technology, data collection, modernization of equipment, transparency. and the reduction programs and to promote a culture. and it's a very well thought program. we know the merida initiative

this multiyear 1 going forward will complement and is complementing what mexico is already doing against organized crime. and it complements mexico's comprehensive strategy against organized crime. the strategy includes several areas after a well thought analysis and basically it includes heeding criminal organizations, strengthening law enforcement institutions, recovering public spaces, or parts for the people to enjoy these areas. programs to restore social cooperation and trust and this is where the merida initiative comes in place. we think the collaboration and what we are doing has already

produced results especially, for example, in the first part heeding criminal organizations. as you know, we have heed criminal organizations, all criminal organizations from top to bottom along the structure. and also we courage the most. we have seized millions of dollars. we have seized records of drugs. not just in 2007 in that year alone we seized 50 tons of cocaine, for example. and as it was mentioned here we have -- we have apprehended top leaders all going from -- they were trying to leave us alfredo carlos who was detained and also the sambada brothers. one of them was already -- has been extradited to the u.s.

we think we have been successful in that part although we need to do more and we have to keep strengthening what we're doing. this take us now to this cooperation in the framework of the merida initiative. the president caulderon signed a new structure, a new way forward and this is what roberta talked about and ambassador talked about. and we're focusing now in forming pillars and the first dismantling criminal organizations in both mexico and the united states. strengthening an institutional support. strengthening the justice reform in mexico, for example. we approve a justice reform in 2008, which has been implemented right now.

it takes -- it takes a while to implement but it includes, for example, the oral hearings. we're going to -- this is very important because we're going from a system to another system. so the second pillar strengthens the justice sector reform. the third pillar, the 21st century borders -- it's very important. it's important for us to talk about what we are doing. and the last and one of the most important is the building resilient communities and the strong communities. as francisco mentioned we just got a reduction bilateral meeting just a few weeks back and we know it's a bilateral issue of interest. it should be a priority.

reducing the demand. and just in sum, i would like to say that the merida initiative representatives a change in the bilateral cooperation against the drug trafficking and organized crime. and by recognizing shared responsibility. the merida initiative represents a unique and -- a unique opportunity to build off these unprecedented levels of corporations that we are seeing current. these resources that the merida initiative includes will of surely help our agencies to increase their capacities to combat crime, which is key for us. and more importantly we think that the merida initiative sends a very clear message first to

friendship but also of political commitment of what we should be doing fighting together drugs. not being a shared responsibility. and finally as ambassador sarukhan mentioned during his speech, there's no alternative for us. there is a clear commitment but president calderon, by the mexican government of mexico to continue forward this fight against organized crime. thank you very much. [applause] >> thank you. i think it's particularly important and thank you for pointing out how much the mexicans are doing across the border which comp. the u.s. programs. that's a wonderful perspective to bring this otherwise u.s.-centric group and speaking of the nonintrusive inspection we have with us john who is from as & e. he's the vice president for north america and i'd like to turn it over to him to make some

comments on private sector interaction with mexico security issues. >> thank you. i'd like to thank the panel for speaking today. i come from a different area. i come from the private sector. and we -- my company develops equipment that is fighting the battle at the border. and as spoken today by many of the people from the ambassador sarukhan to francisco, the issue

we have is -- the merida initiative is focusing on improving the border, 21st century border. and technology companies like mine -- we recognize that to do this, both the u.s. and mexican organizations need to continue to improve the quality and quantity of inspections, improve the efficiency of detection and do all of that without compromising the flow of commerce. and so this is a challenge. we take it very seriously. we work very closely with our counterparts to understand what their application requirements are. we're an engineering company and a technology company and we try to design products that clearly fit into that application. pictures are worth a thousand words.

these are some of the seizures. we know that drugs, stow-aways and now increased threat of vbieds entering the u.s. and cache and weapons flowing into mexico. so it's very important that the equipment that we're using today is able to detect these. and these are all different -- different types of materials. we're dealing with organic materials. we're dealing with metallics. and so it's a challenge for the technology companies. but we are moving forward quite well. initially in our screening methods we began with the visual inspections so mirrors, under-vehicle cameras and k9s. that migrated to more

sophisticated trace sampling, vapor trace sampling. and now we're into nonintrusive inspection imaging systems. and there are different types from -- different types of x-ray systems. we can combine these types. and as this migration has gone, we're getting an increased level in detection. we're finding more things. it's remarkable how installing equipment in certain applications will instantly turn up a very large amount of drugs or stow-aways. so it's quite gratifying it is moving in the right direction. one of the issues that we deal with there are a number of different parameters that we must focus on. ultimately without affecting through-put are hopefully

improving through-put. so as the u.s. or mexican agencies have to decide -- make decisions on these types of technologies, they need to look at what level of detection. some equipment gives a much higher level of detection. some equipment will look for different things. also what's the flexibility of the site that it's going into? many of these border crossings were designed and developed prior to any thought putting into this. they're very tight. and it's very difficult to fit equipment in and get that equipment in without affecting the flow of traffic. costs obviously is a big important. it's not just the cost of the systems itself. it's the maintenance involved. it's the manpower requirements. it's the facilitation. so there are many, many issues that go into that. and so finally, you know, what type of footprint? how big is the systems? we have systems that are quite large that can look deep into a

cargo container. it can penetrate 300 millimeters of steel and find a contraband deeply within a freight container. two systems that are very light penetration. so all these -- all these factors in deciding on what types of equipment to go to have to be considered but with the ultimate thought of how do we do this without affecting through-put and improving through-put? one of the -- what technology companies like myself and others do in this industry is we develop a layered approach. and we offer the layered approach dependent on what the specific application is. so that could go from a stationary, very large gantry type system to a drive-thru system.

so if i'm interested in a high through-put scenario where i need to pull 150 trucks through the port, a very busy port, i need a system that can look deep into the vehicles and from there get through in a very fast period of time. also mobile. mobile is very important in dealing with mexico. we find that many of the mexican agencies prefer mobile systems. they're high energy systems. they can penetrate deep within vehicles. or we have as the center system, a system that can quickly find drugs and stow-aways. so again, it's our job aztec -- as technologists of finding the task of many different types of things. these are some actual seizures.

and as i mentioned earlier, seizure rates have increased. you can see the top left. that was a false wall that was built into a vehicle and they had filled it with drugs. this would not have been found visually or with any type of cameras or anything like that. this is a backscatter system which sees organic materials. we have a tremendous success rate -- you know, people are organic and, therefore, we see an image quite clear. it's almost like a photo-like quality. and as far as smuggling drugs, they're becoming very creative on how they do this. recently there was a pickup truck that they had welded in a false bed. that false bed was lined with lead knowing that our x-ray cannot go through lead. but what they didn't realize is that when we looked at the x-ray scan, it would just be a black

surface. we would see nothing and instantly they found it was loaded with drugs underneath the false bed. so, you know, drugs and these types with the -- as companies like mine are continually developing new technologies and we're pushing the develop every day we have scientists who are looking at how we can do a better job at this. and also obviously we're concerned with weapons. and weapons entering into mexico from the u.s. and we're very aggressive in developing a system such as what you're looking at here which can see -- look through a vehicle and actually see if they're carrying weapons. so we're covering kind of all of these areas. and it's not just my company. it's many companies are doing this and we're pushing each other along quite well in doing that. thank you. so in summary, i think one thing that we've noticed is that there's a higher level of

sophistication in the understanding of technology both in the u.s. and mexican side. we've worked very close with cbp. we've been very successful. cbp is using our equipment quite successfully. our seizure rates are up. we're very pleased with that. in dealing with the different mexican agencies now, the level of sophistication has grown. the understanding has grown. they now are able to look at a layered approach. they target what they need and they go after specific types of equipment. and in closing, my company and others in our industry -- we're committed to this mission. we work very hard at this and we're very proud at thet that we're contributing. thank you very much. [applause] >> thank you, john. and to wrap up our panel, i will turn it over to someone who needs no introduction. that's alan bersin.

he's at the department of homeland security and nominee to be ahead of cbp with a distinguished background coming from california and also i wanted to thank deputy secretary roberta jackson you have a hard stop at 4:00. >> i want to make sure alan is walking away out on him? >> she's done that before. >> we do thank you very much. we know you may have to scoot and with that secretary bersin. >> well, i will thank you. and thank you again to the general and to the u.s.-mexico chamber for the opportunity. this was also an honor for me to be here at the request of chairman reyes. and i had the opportunity to discuss the -- in the context of ambassador sarukhan's discourse the change in the u.s.-mexican border and why i believe we are at a turning point. and the good things about

turning point is that it's always exciting for any particular generation to be living at the point out on the far edge where history is being made. it's also a risky place because history is unforgiving to those who come to a turning point don't turn. and i think in many ways we are in the u.s.-mexican relationship at this magnificent intersection of what the chinese call a crisis, which is the intersection of danger and opportunity. we can take advantage of this time together and change the way in which our two nations have interacted or we can miss an opportunity and come to regret it as we fail to reap the benefits ofgwr u.s.-mexican partnership that this chamber has been calling for. if we project out 50 years, it seems clear that in order to have a competitive economic

position in the world, given what's developing in east asia and on the subcontinent, that north america will need to have a very -- much more efficient series of arrangements than currently obtained. so, for example, the nafta 16 years ago has created a huge benefit in terms of north america with trade before the current recession which too will pass. amounting to just under a billion dollars a day. when you put that level of commercial interaction between our countries in the context of the border which we expect to support that, the infrastructure, we begin to see that we have a mismatch between the development of our two countries relationships and the fiscal infrastructure that exists on the u.s.-mexican border.

42 ports of entry in a situation in which it was opened up this year and was it the first port that had been opened up in 10 years. notwithstanding the fact that nafta has so dramatically impacted cross-border trade. so one of the challenges we face is taking this moment of opportunity that merida has presented and reconceiving, reinventing bilateral relations in a whole variety of ways and you've heard about the extent to which we are starting down that path in security cooperation. we're starting down that path in terms of assisting movement of mexico toward the rule of law. among all the courageous decisions of this contemporary generation of mexican leadership.

a very important departure and acknowledgement of the importance of having an authentic and honest law enforcement and judiciary. in the area of resilient communities, the fact that all of government and society rests on the need for a resilient series of communities that supports families and particularly young people as they take their journey through life. so the fourth pillar that's been mentioned that i want to touch on and then help wrap up within the time frame set on the agenda is the 21st century border. this notion that we have to build a border that's capable of supporting what exists. and one of the subjects that i know will be taken up in mexico next week deals with that. and it's a discussion i don't want to pre-judge or jump to conclusions.

but there is a dramatic change in the way in which in the 21st century we need to look at borders. between which the united states and mexico has typically been a line. a political boundary between the mexico and the united states and given the fact of our histories, it's been a line that represents the one place in an otherwise asymmetrical relationship in terms of power of relations where the united states and mexico have been equal. and because of the history of our two countries, it's also a place in which sovereignty -- mexican sovereignty has been asserted with great pride and great termination and great admiration. which is we are a sovereign nation and our rights and prerogatives must be respected. and that's where it was asserted with greatest force at the border. it's part of the courage and

part of the extraordinary opportunities is the recognition in an area of coresponsibility for dealing with organized crime and the causes of it. we have to recognize that the border is not a place where relations should stop but respecting sovereignty -- it's a place that looks at further relationships north and south of the border in terms of security cooperation. in the economic sphere, i suggest to you that we have to stop looking at the border as a place of lines or legal boundaries but rather the secure flows of people and passengers and cargo and goods. in a digital global world in which tens and tens of millions of people are traveling and in which billions and billions of dollars of trade take place, it's a little bit old fashion tongue of sovereign lines not to

look at borders as flows of people. to borders and across borders legally and illegal and the flow of goods legally and illegally across -- across the world again. the notion of borders as flows not as lines. it seems to me that in that context of looking at borders that way, we begin to define the bilateral relationship as -- it is in the interest of both countries to keep dangerous people and dangerous things as far away from the physical borders as we can. and to identify dangerous people and dangerous things as far away in terms of time and space as we can. and when we do that, we create numerous opportunities for bilateral cooperation. both in the securities sphere and in the commercial facilitation sphere.

and i want to say and particularly to this group and a conference of the u.s.-mexico chamber of commerce, we have tended to look at security and commercial facilitation as mutually exclusive items. that is as the need to balance security with commercial facilitation. and when we have more security, it means necessarily that we have to have longer waits at the border. i submit to you that the paradigm and part of the change in the way we look at borders is that they are not mutually exclusive but need to be looked at as part of the same phenomenon. part -- two sides of the same coin. and that's not just a rhetorical device or something to say well, it'd be nice if that were true. but those of us and i've lived and worked at the border for a quarter of century, it's nice to say that but the fact is that if you search every trunk, you're going to slow traffic at the border. if you x-ray every train, you're going to slow down the passage

of train as they go from laredo. ladies and gentlemen, i ask if we look at this, if we look at borders as flows and we take the burden of inspection from the line and we think about the possibilities of clearing those people and those cargos about which we know something and we do that away from the border, it changes entirely the way we look at the infrastructure that we need at the border. if we say that at the border we're going to be inspecting those people and those things about which we know less than we'd like, and let everyone else move quickly through, then, in fact, i think we begin to have a border that works much more effectively from the standpoint of the 21st century. if we're to accomplish that, if we're to accomplish that, it seems to me that we have to recognize the interagency

relationships that it will take to create that 21st century border. adios. and what that means is creating new relationships of the kind that have started to blossom between agencies in the u.s. working with cbp to build out new ways of protecting borders and introducing the kind of inspection equipment that john spoke about so that we can mutually protect la linia and doing inspections within and far back from the line within each other's countries. it means creating relationships of the kind that i mentioned at lunch between ssp and the u.s. border patrol in which between the ports of entry we begin to see collaboration to prevent lawlessness.

it means relationships between omami and cbp to make sure we can use trusted traveller programs to move people from the border about whom we know something about. and who are trusted travelers and spend our time on those about whom we know nothing. it means new relationships within each government. i must say that one of the remarkable accomplishments of merida was that it forced the united states government for the first time -- and i have been involved 10 years ago to create an interagency policy coordination mechanism that has never truly existed before. so if i said to you, would it strike you as strange if there had never before under the leadership of the state department been created at the national security staff an infrastructure policy coordination committee that actually has sitting around the table every agency involved in the building of infrastructure in our land ports of entry?

gsa, state, the department of homeland security, commerce, the environmental protection agency, the department of transportation. everyone who has something to say is now sitting around on the same table having to do with infrastructure in the united states. what we begin to see happening in mexico is the development of a similar interagency. so that for the first time in u.s.-mexican history we can actually seriously coordinate on prioritizing bridges and water-crossing projects and actually have schedules and capital commitments that will be met together. that is the opportunity that merida 2.0 in the context of new borders offers. and just lastly i'd like to say the obligation is on border communities, local border communities and the federal governments to also develop a new means of coordination.

the fact is that the central governments in mexico and washington for most of u.s.-mexican history basically ignored the el pasos, the brownvilles, the matamoras and the diegos of the border. we need to see new relationships, new federal relationships develop between the federal governments of both countries and their local communities and then, frankly, we need to provide a lot more flexibility for local communities to solve local problems across border. the good news is that all of this is underway. the bad news is that i must -- [speaking spanish] >> there's more to do than we have time for. but it is a turning point on the u.s.-mexican border and i want to again commend the u.s.-mexico

chamber of commerce for being at that point out on the pointy spear where history is being made and always to honor my friend and a great american leader chairman reyes for having been president at the creation and having stuck with it to this turning point. thank you very much. [applause] >> at this time i'd like to thank suzanne petrie for taking a whole on a fluid situation as usual. thank you again, suzanne. and thank our panel. i have some certificates of appreciation i'll present. i wanted to do one thing before our chairman closes the conference. i know some of you have questions. he's got to leave. ...

his chief of staff staff, lisa, alexander, and luis comment jennifer, jennifer, sam, of my staff , martha, paulina, for insurance from the four sponsors. ibc think you as always. >> suzanne petrie, thank you for always being here and a special on the security panel. and, of course, rudy from coca-cola. and food by capital host. mr. chairman, i now turn to you

so you can go to the white hou house. >> well, thank you, al. and i know that mike mccaul had to leave, but i wanted to express my appreciation to both of them. we couldn't do this if we didn't have a willingness from someone like mike mccaul who has got a real interest in making sure that border issues get addressed, and making sure that we work to make life better on the border. and, of course, without the partnership of the u.s.-mexico chamber, and in particular my good friend al zapanta. this is our 14th year, and i think these conferences get better and better. and i hope you have the same sense, having gone through a full day where we covered a number of topics, but most of

all i hope you lead with a sense of optimism that there is a lot going on. and we have some challenges, and we are facing them. but in the context of the future, i think it looks bright because we've never seen the kind of go operation we are seeing today. we've never had the kind of commitment on both sides that we have today. and we have an opportunity to ensure that, for the united states and for mexico, and also for canada, because a lot of this really got initiated when we passed the north american free trade agreement. here we are, let's see, that passed in 1984, so here we are 14 years later or so. 16 years later.

he did say do the math. [laughter] >> but 16 years later, and we really haven't followed through as was the vision to the north american free trade agreement. it's long overdue. we're at a point, as commissioner burson mentioned. were at a point where we need to move forward and we need to move forward together. those of us that were born and live and eventually will die on the border want to make a significant contribution, because our children and our grandchildren will have a better life if we focus on -- and focus our energies on the priorities that we've set up with this,

with this conference and with the panels. i want to also thank my colleagues, not only do they take their time away from the very busy schedules that they have to participate on the panels, but they also walk the walk. they are there. they testify. they take the votes that are necessary, and help with making sure that the leadership, both on the administration side, and the congressional side understand the importance of the border region. and the fact that, while we all want a secure border, we want a border that works. in the 21st century, that makes sense. and the kind of technology that you saw, got a brief glimpse here this afternoon, is just a small glimpse of the

capabilities that we should be pursuing, that we should be working collectively. so that as the commissioner said, we can ferret out the ones that need to be screened from those that go back and forth, independent on the transparency of that secure border to get business done to make sure that the relationship that we've enjoyed for centuries continues. so again, i hope that you leave here with a sense of optimism. i hope that you know that if any portion of what you heard in this conference here, if you want additional information, if something wasn't clear, or you have need of additional information, our recommendations, please contact either myself or owls staff.

and finally, to our panelists, thank you so very much, suzanne. again, i appreciate the leadership that you provided to this panel, and also thank you and the panelists before you for making this conference successful. i want to you, once we wrap this up, we can start looking at what we will do for the 15th conference. so it takes, it takes a lot of work to put this on, but i think it's worth it. and i hope your attendance here is a testament that you agree. and today, we used the internet to pipe the conference to anyone that wanted to tune in. and i think this has been a successful effort, and i think we will continue it. so once more, thank you, al.

thank panelists again. and thank you, most of all, for coming and your interest, that we all share mutually, that we need come expecting should work towards a 21st century border region. thank you all very much, and have a good day. [applause] >> [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations]

>> mr. speaker, a message from the president of the united states. >> mr. speaker, i am directed by the president of the united states >> now efforts to protect u.s. troops from mines and improvised

explosive devices in afghanistan and iraq. pentagon officials testified about new technology to improve body armor and military vehicles. this house armed and subcommittee meeting is about an hour and 45 minutes. >> the subcommittee will come to order. joins aaron and forces committee in open session to receive testimony for the operation of iraqi freedom, operation. with particular focus on armored vehicles, personal body armor and encountered ied initiative. we welcome our witnesses for today. representing the army to discuss army force protection systems are major general thomas spoehr, director of forest about them, army g-8. brigadier general peter fuller, program executive officer.

representing the marine corps, to discuss marine corps force protection's and mrap vehicle program is brigadier general michael brogan, commander of marine corps systems command and the program executive officer or the mrap joint program office. representing the joint ied defeat organization is the new director, lieutenant general michael oates. represent the government accountability office is the director defense capabilities of managed. based on afghanistan and iraq, prepare for the committee. today's joint hearing continues the committee's ongoing oversight activities regarding the full spectrum matters in iraq and afghanistan. i will ask for my cutie regarding force protection with a classified briefing in the

summer 2009. we meet today to receive updates on these critical life-saving programs to provide an opportunity for families, for the fighting men and women to do with the army, marine corps and the d.o.d. leadership are doing to protect the loved ones against the threats of they face abroad. today's hearing is expected to provide a wide range of programs to include vehicles, to include the lighter and smaller mrap all-terrain vehicle, individual protective equipment such as lightweight body armor, the army's new battle dress uniform, equipping used to detect snipers, counter radio controlled ied electronic, the continued challenge of getting adequate intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance assets and improvements in weapons and tactics for operational forces. at this time last year, the mrap all-terrain vehicle was still under selection. no vehicles had been produced beyond small numbers of test assets, no vehicles had been

sent to afghanistan. and just one year, over 4780 these have been produced in over 1400 have been delivered to afghanistan. over 900 have been sent to operational units. the current producers averaging 1000 vehicles per month. i want to thank general brogan and his entire team for the service they provide to our nation. it is a public image before, i don't think there's been an ever acquisition program in history of our nation that has sealed as fast and with such a meet and dramatic results. your team's efforts have saved lives, general and i want to thank you on behalf of the american people. there are young people alive today because of what you have done, what you and your team have done. there are still major challenges ahead for us with respect to long-term sustained in the vehicles both in the field, here and overseas. as well as improving these vehicles, capability and

surgeons. i'm aware that mrap joint program offers currently pursuing and vehicle modifications to include installing independent suspensions on legacy vehicles, heavier and more capable door hinges on matv speak and expect to receive updates on these today. micro component to force protection is adequately. that means having the ability to realistically train on the equipment to war fighters were actually use. for example, more than half of the accidents involved in mrap since november 2007 have been rollovers. i realize some of these rollovers were attributed to poor roads and infrastructure, but i do believe some of the rollovers might have been prevented through better training. general brogan, you stated in formal response to the subcommittees that i'm quoting, the better trained driver the less likely they are to conduct a maneuver that would hazard that the of the. understand that one of the

lessons learned from the original legacy, mrap program, was to concurrently fueled vehicles to address both operational and training requirements. and that we are applying the lesson to the matv program. i'm still concerned over the limited number of legacy and wrapped vehicles available to the army for training, and hope to gain a better understanding of the army's plan for addressing these vehicle shortfalls. clearly the matv is a good news story today mr. we're capable on applying lessons learned. however, we cannot become complacent. in the last year afghanistan's experience a near doubling of ied events. u.s. casualties have continued to increase. general is in your testimony you state and i'm going, over the past three years and afghanistan, rates have increased by over 50%. this concerns me. i look for tuning fun you on how your organization is addressing this trend. before going to witness opening remarks i would like to recognize my friend, -- okay, i

want to recognizing my friend from washington state. i will however recognize my ranking member, my friend from missouri, mr. aiken, for any comments he has. >> thank you, mr. chairman. and also thank you for scheduling this important hearing today, and because you get a lot of the highlights i'm going to be briefed. i also like to thank our gao and army witnesses for being here today. and, of course, general brogan, you are not stranger to this committee. and we're delighted to have you back. thank you for being here, and also general outcome i believe this is your first time testifying. in front of this committee. welcome. this is an important subject. the testimony you're about to provide will assist us in determining how best to proceed with providing the necessary congressional oversight of these programs. together, or to thank all of you to our country in thank you for being here and thank you, mr. chairman. the. >> thank you. the now -- chernow recognizes

the honorable congressman. >> thank you very much for your service to your country. thank you for being here today. look forward to your testimony. thank you, mr. chairman. >> thank you, mr. bartlett. the chair now recognizes the new chair of the subcommittee, the honorable adam smith. >> thank you, mr. chairman. i apologize for running a little bit behind schedule. welcome to you all. if there's no objection i would ask that my full statement be included in the record. and then i will follow mr. bartlett's lead. and i look forward to your testimony, and will ask a question at the appropriate time, and appreciate the very important issues that we're here to discuss today and the work that you all are doing on them. without i will yield back. thank you, mr. chairman. >> without objection all the witnesses prepared testimony will be included the record. general outcome of thank you for your service and taking the time to be with us today. please proceed with your remarks. >> thank you, mr. chairman. i appreciate the opportunity to be here today, and testify.

the ied remains the single greatest threat to our forces in iraq and afghanistan to include the civilian employees that are present, and so the protection of those forces is a priority for the organization i now lead, joint ied defeat organization. i have provided written statement and i will stand by and am anxious to answer your question. thank you, sir. [inaudible] >> chairman cannon, chairman smith, ranking member aiken, ranking member bartlett. and other distinction was of the committee. on behalf of the army, brigadier general beautiful and i are honored to be here today to provide updates on army force protection efforts. let me preface my remarks by thanking the members of both committees for their leadership and continue to sport of the army. we share a common purpose a commitment to develop and field the best equipment available to

our soldiers, army civilians, and contractors serving in operation enduring freedom and iraqi freedom. the brave men and women serving today represent the best of our society, and they continue to perform magnificently against a determined enemy and a complex and dangerous operational environment. after more than eight years of continuous combat, we recognized the importance of keeping our forces at the highest level of readiness and providing them the best capabilities available. protection of our soldiers and critical war fighting assets remain the army's highest priority. in response to the continued threat of improvised explosive devices, suicide bombers, other nontraditional threats as well as the more conventional threats such as small arms fire, the army has pursued numerous initiatives to enhance its ability, and survivability of our soldiers and the formation in which they serve. these initiatives are captured and complement and reinforce and

layers of protection, which include continuous improvements to individual soldier protection, new and enhanced armored and we'll tracked vehicles, new active and passive face defense capabilities, improved battlefield situational awareness with better intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance platforms, as well as advances in biometrics and robotics. in addition, the army has taken steps to lighten the soldier's load by fielding play carries, lightweight machine guns and tripods. while we have made significant improvements in our force protection posture, we know we must continue to provide improved solutions for two significant reasons. first, technology is always changing. advancements are always being made, and we owe it to our soldiers to continue to invest in promising technologies that will give them a decisive edge in combat. second, the weapons, tactics and

motivation of our adversaries continues to adapt, and we must be more versatile, adaptable, and unpredictable than the enemies we face. therefore, the army's ongoing commitment to provide our soldiers with the best equipment in the world is just that, ongoing. we are always mindful that the soldiers in the field are the ones that bear the burden of battle. the army remains fully committed to provide unwavering support for our soldiers, by giving them the best protective equipment and capabilities available to successfully confront current and emerging threats. again, thank you for this opportunity to testify before your subcommittees today on this important issue. thank you for your steadfast support of the american soldier, general fuller and i look forward to answering any questions you may have. thank you. >> the chair thanks the german. the chair now recognizes brigadier general fuller. >> thank you, sir. i have no prepared remarks and am prepared to answer any questions you may have.

>> i hope you guys don't think you're getting off this light. [laughter] >> the chair right now recognized -- your all to american heroes, but another true american hero, brigadier general brogan. >> chairman cannon, ranking member taken in bartlett, members of the subcommittees, thank you for the opportunity be with you this afternoon and to answer questions concerning marine corps force protection program and a joint mine resistant ambush protected vehicle program. i appreciate sir that you're going to enter the written statement for the record. your support these last many years and providing necessary funding to equip our marines and a joint force to meet the challenges of regular warfare has been tremendous. we work together on a daily basis with our counterparts in the various program executive offices in the army, the field just a type of equipment.

throughout this conflict, we have fielded numerous generations of gear, and had had the opportunity to improve it. that goes for individual body armor plates, from the small arms protective insert, to enhance small arms protective inserts and the side plates. in flame resistant gear, from no mix suits, and only one i combat crewman to now having fire retardant uniforms that include antimicrobial, antibacterial, antiviral properties. i very much appreciate your kind remarks regarding the mrap program. the program and your frequent lee states it is a team sport. under the leadership of the congress and providing funding for the support of the secretary of defense, the services, the defense agencies, and our industrial partners at all levels, rhyme, sub, vendors and

suppliers, have made that program possible. because of that we been able to rapidly field these eagles and have a market impact on the survivability of our joint fighters. i would only ask that we recognize this is an open hearing and of the topic is very important, some of the matters in force protection would go into classified areas, we don't want to broach that, we also serve, sir, would not like to discuss specific it builds or limitation of the equipment in an open session. this nation has fielded the best equipped, best protected forest in its history. largely due to the support of the congress. and finally, sir, and a personal note, this is likely my last appearance in front of these committees as the commander of marine corps systems command. i very much appreciate the access that you provided me and the patience you have afforded me, and i look forward to your questions. >> the chair thanks the german.

-- gentlemen. >> thank you. chairman cannon, chairman smith, memos of the subcommittees, thank you for having me here today to discuss gao's januar january 2010 report on d.o.d.'s intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, or isr come a processing, exportation and dissemination, or sharing. capabilities. there's been a dramatic increase, as you know and demand for isr systems to collect intelligence in iraq and afghanistan to a point where d.o.d. now has more than 6800 i meant aircraft systems alone. isr is also seen as the first line of defense for u.s. and allied forces against insurgent attacks, and roadside bombs. but to be useful to the war fighter, after intelligence is collected, it must be analyzed and shared with all those who need it in a timely manner. the presentation board beside me

shows the intelligence data processing cycle, and you should have a sheet in your briefing book that shows that, too, up close. this processing cycle is commonly described in five interconnected faces that at the front and you have, first, planning and direction. and second, collection. at the back end you have third, processing and exploitation. fourth, dissemination, and fifth, evaluation and feedback. my testimony today focuses on faces three and four of the cycle, or the backend of the cycle that transforms the collected data into usable intelligence for the force. today i will discuss first the challenges d.o.d. faces and processing exploiting and disseminating the information, collected by isr systems. and the extent to which d.o.d. has develop the capabilities needed to share the information. we have reported