Madrid

Should deterrence fail, forward-stationed military forces are well placed to facilitate a collective response. As the recent nato operation in Libya showed, responding tothreats requires guaranteed access to supply routes and bases, diplomatic support, and, ideally, the help of allies in the field. Quickly assembling a posse to get thebad guys might have worked in old Westerns, but it does not work in complex, hightech military operations. For those, common command-and-control protocols, interoperabletechnologies, doctrines, and planning processes should be developed well in advance. And more than any other forces, forward-stationed forces can spearhead thosepreparations. They can conduct regular training exercises with allies to identify and correct shortfalls, build trust among U.S. and allied service members, and develop the sharedpractices that make the militaries work together more eaectively in the field.
Another good reason for forces to remain engaged abroad, even in peacetime, is to serve as aninvestment in burden sharing. Training and conducting real-world missions with allies and partners, such as the United States' multilateral antipiracy operations oa theHorn of Africa and its freedom-of-navigation exercises in the Persian Gulf, helps build up their capacities. Such engagement also promotes a shared vision of the world, inwhich the rule of law dominates, disputes can be resolved without the use of force, and commerce flows freely. In turn, such partners are more able to address problems athome without the need for U.S. forces. Such relatively small investments in peacetime activities can mean not having to put American men and women in harm's way later.