NSOCC-A and SOJTF-A

The special operations units in Afghanistan are numerous and varied in their mission and roles. Below you will find a brief description of the various components and their focus areas. The NATO Special Operations Component Command - Afghanistan / Special Operations Joint Task Force - Afghanistan (NSOCC-A/SOJTF-A) conducts Security Force Assistance and targeted Counter-Terrorism in Afghanistan to ensure the enduring relevance, capability, and sustainability of the Afghan Special Security Force, and to deny safe haven to Al Qaeda and its affiliates and adherents. NSOCC-A is the NATO component of the two-star organization (composed of various SOF units from Europe and elsewhere) and SOJTF-A is the United States component of the organization. The commander of NSOCC-A/SOJTF-A is dual-hatted.

There are several components of NSOCC-A/SOJTF-A:

Special Operations Task Force - Afghanistan (SOTF-A) conducts Foreign Internal Defense (FID) throughout Afghanistan to improve partnered unit capacity, capability, and self-sustainability.

Combined Joint Special Operations Aviation Component - Afghanistan (CJSOAC-A) conducts special and conventional aviation operations to include assault, fires, mobility and aerial Intelligence Surveillance and Reconnaissance within Afghanistan in support of SOJTF-A.

General Command Police Special Units Special Operations Advisory Group (GCPSUSOAG) builds enduring tactical Ministry of Interior capabilities with specialized units in order to neutralize insurgent networks, protect the population, and create a stable environment for the populace.

Other special operations task forces conduct offensive operations in Afghanistan to degrade the Taliban, Al Qaeda, and the Haqqani Networks in order to prevent them from establishing operationally significant safe havens which threaten the stability and sovereignty of the Government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan and the United States.

Focus Areas for NSOCC-A and SOJTF-A:

Afghan National Army Special Operations Command (ANASOC) is composed of two elements: the Afghan Commandos and the Afghan Special Forces. Commandos conduct specialized light infantry operations in support of regional corps counterinsurgency operations, and provide a strategic response capability for the Government of Afghanistan. The Afghan National Army Special Forces (ANASF) specializes in internal defense by putting an Afghan soldier into the local populace.

Special Mission Wing (SMW) works in close partnership with members of ANASOC, as well as other Afghan National Security Force partners to provide lift and aerial ISR capabilities with Mi-17s and PC-12 aircraft.

Afghan Local Police (ALP) is an Afghan Ministry of Interior sponsored, village-focused security program, which complements counterinsurgency efforts by assisting and supporting rural areas with limited or no ANSF presence in order to enable conditions for improved security, governance, and development.

National Mission Units (NMUs) are Afghan Ministry of the Interior units which conduct special police law enforcement in high threat environments in order to uphold the laws of GIRoA.


(Source of above information is the USSOCOM Fact Book 2015, page 42, published November 14, 2014 on the DVIDS portal. www.dvidshub.net/publication/issues/23684)