text: Chapter 1
  countries with the partner country. The combatant command country plan, the embassy’s ICS, and the CCP
  are important references in this analysis. ASCCs coordinate a process whereby combatant command planners
  and country team officials review and concur with the ASCC’s assessment of requirements and plans.
  Army SC Practitioners
  1-69. Planners within Army organizations who are tasked to conduct SC must understand and nest their plan
  with the strategic guidance they receive from both the DOD and DOS. Specifically, Army SC practitioners
  must look at both the theater army security cooperation plan and the ICS for the country they are operating
  within. Army SC practitioners can expect these plans to generally align, however different publishing
  timelines will mean that one of the two plans will always be more current. Army SC practitioners must also
  remember that, outside of a joint operational area, the DOS has primacy for all USG activities. SFA will most
  often be conducted in this context.
  KEY ORGANIZATIONS INVOLVED IN SECURITY COOPERATION
  1-70. Several agencies and organizations play a role in executing the multiple facets of SC. Roles and
  relationships among USG agencies and organizations, state, tribal, and local governments, and the U.S. chief
  of mission and country team in a U.S. embassy overseas must be clearly understood. SC organizations
  traditionally respond through two chains of command: one through the embassy country team and the other
  through the combatant command.
  U. S. AMBASSADOR
  1-71. The U.S. diplomatic mission includes representatives of all U.S. departments and agencies physically
  present in the country. The U.S. ambassador (chief of the U.S. diplomatic mission), often referred to as the
  chief of mission, is the principal officer in the embassy. This person oversees all USG programs and
  interactions with and in a host country. The ambassador derives authority and responsibilities from the
  Foreign Service Act of 1980 (Public Law 96-465), Section 207.
  1-72. The U.S. ambassador is the personal representative of the President and the Secretary of State and
  reports to the President through the Secretary of State. The U.S. ambassador leads and is part of the country
  team, ensuring all in-country activities best serve U.S. interests, as well as regional and international
  objectives. Depending on the size or economic importance of a country, the United States may maintain only
  an embassy and no consular offices. However, the United States may maintain one or more consular offices
  in some countries. Typically, Army elements conducting SC activities coordinate with embassy officials,
  even in nations with a consular office. Relationships with consular offices are determined on a case-by-case
  basis. The same basic entities and offices existing in the embassy are present or liaised at the consular offices.
  COUNTRY TEAM
  1-73. The country team is the point of coordination within the host country for the diplomatic mission. The
  members of the country team vary depending on the levels of coordination needed and the conditions within
  that country. The country team is usually led by the chief of mission, and it is made up of the senior member
  of each represented U.S. department or agency, as desired by the chief of mission. The team may include the
  senior defense official/defense attaché (SDO/DATT), the security cooperation organization (SCO), the
  political-military affairs officer, and any other embassy personnel desired by the ambassador.
  1-74. The country team informs various organizations of operations, coordinates elements, and achieves
  unity of effort. Usually, the primary military members are the SDO/DATT and the SCO. Military engagement
  with a host country is conducted through the SC organization. However, several other attachés and offices
  may be integral to SC activities, programs, and missions as well. The country team provides the foundation
  of local knowledge and interaction with the host country government and population. As permanently
  established interagency organizations, country teams represent the single point of coordination, integration,
  and synchronization of SC activities supported by combatant commands and the theater army.