text: Chapter 3
  Sustainment Operations During Competition Below Armed
  Conflict
  This chapter provides an overview of sustainment operations during competition below armed
  conflict. This chapter includes an overview of Army operations during competition and
  discusses sustainment planning and describes sustainment roles and responsibilities at each
  echelon.
  SECTION I – OVERVIEW OF ARMY OPERATIONS DURING COMPETITION
  3-1. Competition below armed conflict occurs when an adversary’s national interests are incompatible with
  U.S. interests, and that adversary is willing to actively pursue them short of open armed conflict. While
  neither side desires, at least initially, to use military force as the primary method to achieve its goal, the
  adversary is willing to employ national instruments of power, including military force below the threshold
  of actual armed conflict, to achieve its aims. The resulting tension between the two sides creates potential for
  violent escalation when one side challenges the status quo. Situations during competition, in which U.S. joint
  forces take actions outside of armed conflict against an adversary, are typically nonviolent and conducted
  under greater legal or policy constraints than in armed conflict. However, these may include violent action
  by U.S. joint forces with allies and partners.
  PREPARATION FOR LARGE-SCALE COMBAT OPERATIONS
  3-2. Army forces that cannot credibly execute operations during conflict neither deter adversaries nor assure
  allies and other unified action partners. Preparation for large-scale combat operations is therefore the primary
  focus of Army conventional forces during competition. Some of the activities Army forces execute to prepare
  for armed conflict with sustainment implications include—
  • Setting the theater, resetting the theater, and conducting RSOI.
  • Building allied and partner capabilities and capacity.
  • Improving joint and multinational interoperability.
  • Preparing to transition and execute OPLANs.
  INTERAGENCY COOPERATION
  3-3. During competition, it is critical that sustainers work with other agencies to achieve integrated whole-
  of-government operations and synchronization of interagency activities such as information sharing, security
  cooperation, and foreign assistance. This requires Army sustainers to develop and share detailed time-phased
  logistics requirements/estimates with interagency partners. During competition, the Department of State will
  play a large role in maintaining or establishing a path toward greater stability, with elements from the
  intelligence community and DOD in support. Other agencies that may provide crucial logistics support during
  shaping operations are DLA, Department of Treasury, Federal Reserve Bank, and USAMC. Liaison officers
  are often the first sustainment planners on ground. Liaison officers begin sustainment preparations and
  discussions with the ASCC, TSC, State Department officials, and country teams. The liaison officers may
  assist with expediting movement of equipment and logistics planning. USTRANSCOM may also send liaison
  officers to facilitate transportation operations.
  COMPETITION ACTIVITIES
  3-4. Competition involves activities conducted under numerous programs within a CCMD. The CCDR uses
  these activities to improve security within partner nations, enhance international legitimacy, gain
  multinational cooperation, and influence adversary decision making. Competition activities include obtaining
  access for U.S. forces, maintaining sufficient forward-based presence within a theater to influence conditions
  in the strategic environment, and mitigating conditions that could lead to a crisis or armed conflict. At any
  time during competition, but especially during times of heightened tension, leaders must take great care to