mr. motsek. said sinn e of the law requires that the secretary of defense shall designate the areas constituting an area of combat for the sections. iraq and afghanistan are included in the areas designated as an area of combat designation. has the secretary of defense designated an area of combat operations? >> the answer to my knowledge is no. the reason is because the executive authority of even the secretary presides -- roadsides in the executive branch, and the president has done this. it is redundant and a requirement. >> so the secretary has not designated an area of combat operations, that is simply correct? >> i have never seen a document in response to section 22. >> the rule that was published in the federal register says among other things that the secretary of defense may designate such areas of combat operations for the limited purposes of this part. maybe that was just an oversight or a type of typo -- or a typo. state and usaid, are they bound to follow the requirements of section

mr. motsek. said sinn e of the law requires that the secretary of defense shall designate the areas constituting an area of combat for the sections. iraq and afghanistan are included in the areas designated as an area of combat designation. has the secretary of defense designated an area of combat operations? >> the answer to my knowledge is no. the reason is because the executive authority of even the secretary presides -- roadsides in the executive branch, and the president has done this. it is redundant and a requirement. >> so the secretary has not designated an area of combat operations, that is simply correct? >> i have never seen a document in response to section 22. >> the rule that was published in the federal register says among other things that the secretary of defense may designate such areas of combat operations for the limited purposes of this part. maybe that was just an oversight or a type of typo -- or a typo. state and usaid, are they bound to follow the requirements of section

mr. motsek received a b.s.from syracuse university, an ms in management from george strait university, and a level 3 accreditation from another university. john nicholson is responsible synchronizing the military action since of the services and combatant and demand for the region. is served in afghanistan at the deputy commanding general for regional command south, as part of the national a sergey -- security force for the national military command center. john nicholson has of degree from the united states military academy and georgetown university, a master's in military arts and sciences in the school for advanced military studies, and an m.a. from national defense university. on the back all of you for making yourself available today and for sharing your substantial expertise. it the policy of this committee to share it -- swear in the witnesses before you testified. i ask you to stand and raise your right hand. we solemnly swear or affirm to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth? the

mr. motsek, can

mr. motsek? >> i just wanted to make one point. the fact of the matter is that records indicate that request was sought for authorization carry armor. in the back, there is a fifth to tell -- there is a 50 caliber rifle. >> do contractors receive any level of tactical support, air support, this sort of thing? can you explain what a contractor truck convoy looks like compared to a military convoy? >> with the exception of medevac, generally speaking, there is no additional support provided. a private or commercial shipment does not have the capability to call in air support. depending on where you are in the country, if there is an issue, you can request support, but it is not normally part of the package. part of our challenging part of our responsibilities as the u.s. forces are to make an assessment each and every time that you are going to authorize a convoy to go out. the commander has to weigh whether the risk assessment is such that he will permit movement or not permit the movement and that is generally the process that they

mr. mos -- motsek, what you meant in your statement that the roles of the private security contractors providing convoy 3 security combat forces, not combat forces?" >> i can't comment on the numbers by c.r.s. but four point times more quickly, based upon what i know of casualties, it doesn't track that notwithstanding. first off, it goes back to my initial comment, the force protection mission is that of the commander. the commander makes the is responsible for the risk d %- assessment. the guards that guard both movement and static missions in afghanistan are just that. they are guards. they have no authority to execute any sort of combat role. a great many of the nnts today -- not a military enemy in a traditional sense. we are talking about warlords attacking -- these are criminal elements that are engaged. they are not -- >> again, i don't have your experience and i don't have your knowledge but i do appreciate that if we don't get those suppliis to our troops or troops are going to be in peril. and i would think it's a of our troops, the ones that want to do them harm, that they would freq