text: Civil Affairs Branch Overview
  1-36. A transitional military authority may draw assistance from experienced civilian agencies and
  organizations. These agencies and organizations have the expertise to establish a system of government that
  fosters the gradual transition to a legitimate host-nation authority.
  1-37. CA forces enable transitional military authority as early as possible in consolidation areas by applying
  civilian sector expertise to those functions normally executed by a civil government. CAO planners prepare
  for operations requiring transitional military authority well in advance—in coordination with DOS—to
  transfer those responsibilities to another authority as soon as security and political conditions allow.
  Note: Transitional military authority is described further in Chapter 2.
  BRANCH CHARACTERISTICS
  1-38. CA branch characteristics are complementary to Army and joint capabilities. Some branches may
  possess similar characteristics, but CA branch characteristics collectively allow for accomplishing the role
  of the branch. While the following branch characteristics apply to the branch as a whole, individual units
  may possess additional characteristics due to unique mission requirements. The CA Branch is—
  * Governance Oriented. CA forces execute the functions of civil administration throughout CAO.
  * Civil Component Focused. CA forces are the primary capability of the commander for the
  analysis and evaluation of civil considerations during military operations. They enhance the
  commander’s situational understanding of the civil component.
  * Civil Network Engagement Focused. CA forces engage IPI and unified action partners to
  establish and maintain relationships, civil networks, and communication channels in order to—
  Gain access to civilian resources and information.
  
  Develop comprehensive situational understanding.
  
  Integrate civil capabilities and information.
  
  Enable unity of effort.
  
  * Civil Knowledge Integration Focused. CA forces collect, collate, process, analyze, and evaluate
  civil information to produce valuable and timely civil knowledge for integration and
  dissemination.
  * Culturally Attuned. Through extensive predeployment study, network engagement, and, when
  possible, theater engagement, CA forces are aware of population demographics, cultural nuances,
  divergent world views, biases, prejudices, and stereotypes that affect both the civil component and
  military operations.
  * Diplomatically Astute. CA forces understand the sensitive political aspects of military
  operations. They establish relationships with formal and informal influencers and carefully
  manage those relationships to achieve positive outcomes during diplomatically sensitive
  interactions.
  BRANCH PRINCIPLES
  1-39. CA principles provide comprehensive and fundamental rules—or assumptions of central importance—
  that guide how CA approaches and thinks about the conduct of operations and captures the broad and
  enduring guidelines for the employment of CA forces. CA forces are the critical capability that the
  commander uses to influence, synchronize, and deconflict military operations with regards to the IPI, unified
  action partners, and the interagency. CA branch principles are outlined below.
  STABILITY IS A FRAMEWORK FOR CIVIL AFFAIRS OPERATIONS
  1-40. CAO play an important role in supporting all Army operations—offense, defense, stability, and
  defense support of civil authorities (DSCA). The CA core competencies describe capabilities that support
  the six primary stability operations tasks, which are—
  * Establish civil security.
  * Establish civil control.