Adam Schwarze is a US Navy SEALs commander who guides tactical teams in missions worldwide. With a background in the US Marines and deployments in the Middle East behind him, Adam Schwarze also follows developments in that elite fighting force.
A National Interest article focused on a pivot in the US Marines as extended land warfare campaigns and related counter-insurgency operations diminish. As highlighted by General David H. Berger in a message on the Marine Corps’ 246th anniversary, the focus now is on stand-in forces (SIF) that are small, mobile, low signature, and focused on marine defense.
SIF units may incorporate coast guard and navy elements and coordinate with partners, allies, and host nations. With SIF units moving frequently and unpredictably, they are challenging for adversaries to track and counter. Their primary mission is to gain on-site intel on the adversary that enables them to guide the joint force and fleet elements as they deploy on the attack. Ideally, this denies the enemy opportunities to attack and places its forces on the defensive.
As General Berger envisions it, this approach draws deeply from Marines history and the success of small teams in entering contested areas and fighting “from the inside.” It can be critical to have boots on the ground before the shooting starts and even help prevent a wider conflict from spreading. One example of this amphibious approach among Marines centers on foraging activities in the Pacific on islands claimed by Japan during World War Two.
