Both he and Cancian served in the Marine Corps Reserve.Īt least one Reserve unit - Alpha Company, 4th Tank Battalion - has already been deactivated. ' a very appropriate strategy to manage some of the risks,' Hoffman said. Both retired officers advocated for the Marine Corps Reserve to keep some of its tanks. If Army units are going to be tasked with complementing Marine Corps missions, he said, it would require new training and doctrine.Ĭancian agreed, adding that the Marine Corps' plans could place new burdens on the Army.

Hoffman said it remains to be seen whether the Marine Corps' plans fit into a larger strategy for the joint force. 'For example, the Army, I believe, has 37 tank battalions, so we're pretty well covered on tanks.' 'There are other forces within the Department of Defense, because we're part of a joint force, who can bring. Eric Smith, the head of Marine Corps Combat Development Command, told earlier this year that, as the nation's 'fight tonight' force, Marines have to travel as lightly as possible. 'I think, if the Marine Corps wanted those assets, that a combatant commander would have to take them away from the Army, which would engender a bitter inter-service fight.' But I think that's unlikely,' Cancian said. 'I've heard the Marine Corps argue that they can get these missing capabilities from other services, particularly from the Army. And investments in long-range precision fires and smaller amphibious ships would be necessary should conflict with China break out, Cancian added.īut both say they're concerned about the decision to fully cut tanks from the Marine Corps' arsenal. Many of the changes tie into the National Defense Strategy, Hoffman said. David Berger's plan to reshape the force in preparation for future conflicts with more skilled adversaries. Frank Hoffman, distinguished research fellow at the National Defense University, both said there are things they like about Marine Commandant Gen. 'But this will be a Swiss Army knife whose owner has ripped out a couple of blades because he doesn't think he's going to need them anymore.'Ĭancian and retired Lt. Mark Cancian, a senior adviser at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. 'The Marine Corps likes to think of itself as kind of a Swiss Army knife,' said retired Marine Col.

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