148 Part I.Tony Vacha on Civil Affairs in Europe and Africa

Brain Hancock hosts Colonel Tony Vacha

They discuss his experiences as the Civil Affairs planning chief for the US Army Europe and Africa, 

as well as his thoughts on the new Civil Affairs 38-Golf program and discussions about the new transitional governance doctrine. 

This is part one of a two-part episode, so stay tuned. 

Special thanks to LC38 for celebrating our People's Choice Awards nomination by offering listeners 10 percent off anything at the site. Check them out at https://lc38brand.com/

10% promo code: oneca10

One Podcast aims to inspire people interested in working on-ground to forward U.S. foreign policy. 

We bring in people who are current or former military, diplomats, development officers, and field agents to discuss their experiences and recommendations for working the "last three feet" of foreign relations.

​Have a story to tell? Email us to either speak or guest-host at: [e-mail]

One CA Podcast is a product of the Civil Affairs Association: https://www.civilaffairsassoc.org/ 

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Transcript

00:00:03    Introduction

Welcome to the 1CA podcast. This is your host, Jack Gaines. 1CA is a product of the Civil Affairs Association and brings in people who are current or former military, diplomats, development officers, and field agents to discuss their experiences on ground with the partner nation's people and leadership. Our goal is to inspire anyone interested in working the last three feet of foreign relations. To contact the show, email us at capodcasting at gmail .com or look us up on the Civil Affairs Association website at www .civilaffairsassos .org. I'll have those in the show notes. A quick shout out to LC38 Brand. They're offering 10 % off for 1CA Podcast fans. The promo code is 1CA10. LC38 Brand has a little bit of everything for the international adventurer. So check out their website at lc38brand .com. I'll have the promo code and the address in the show notes.

 

00:01:00    BRIAN HANCOCK

Welcome to One Civil Affairs Podcast. I'm Lieutenant Crump Brian Hancock, and I will be your host for this session.

 

00:01:07    Introduction

Today, Brian Hancock hosts Colonel Tony Vaja. They discuss his experiences as the Civil Affairs Planning Chief for U .S. Army Europe and Africa, as well as his thoughts on the new Civil Affairs 38 Golf Program and discussions about the new Transitional Governance Doctrine. This is part one of a two -part episode, so stay tuned.

 

00:01:27    BRIAN HANCOCK

I have with me in the studio, Colonel Tony Vaja. Colonel Vaja, welcome to the show. Thank you. Thanks for having me. Outstanding. Let's give you a little bit of background. Colonel Vaja is currently the civil affairs planning chief for the U .S. Army Europe and Africa. He has previously served for two years as the deputy commander of the 353rd Civil Affairs Command in Staten Island, New York. He has had a range of assignments in both civil affairs and force management. He served as the lead concept developer for the 38 Gulf career field and the development of the Institute for Military Support to Governance. Quick reminder for the audience that all remarks by myself and Colonel Vaja are ours solely, and they do not represent the views of the U .S. Army or Department of Defense. Well, Colonel Vaja, you have done so many things in your 31 years of military service that I'm not sure where to begin. Okay, all right. Your assignment as Deputy Commander of the 353 Civil Affairs Command, KCOM. Many of us will not have that opportunity to be a DCG of a KCOM, and the KCOMs are growing. What is that experience like? What is it like to be at that pinnacle position in civil affairs, be the deputy commander of a formation that is very nearly the size of division?

 

00:02:57    TONY VACHA

Yeah, it's a fun and exciting assignment. I always joke if you're going to come serve at a KCOM, whether DCO or in the G3, you need to make sure you come with your running shoes on. As DCO, I was blessed to work for two really strong civil affairs generals, General Tim Brennan and later General Dean Thompson, and watch them and get their thoughts on civil affairs and how to support a theater. I appreciate that commentary.

 

00:03:25    BRIAN HANCOCK

that commentary. As you're well aware from your work in Proponency and your lengthy service, the bulk of civil affairs originally came out of Special Operations Commander and the USASOC. And as a result, we are very tactically focused. And when you look at what we do in war games and exercises, I've never seen an operational or strategic civil affairs war game or exercise. So that work that you were doing at the strat