The U.S. military launched its global war on terror immediately after the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, and Defense Department officials have said the services' success in capturing the followers of Osama Bin Laden and Saddam Hussein can be attributed largely to military transformation.

U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld told reporters at a press briefing in Washington, D.C., in August 2003 that the Defense Department must continue its transformation to meet such 21st-century threats as terrorism.

“Transformation efforts are evident even today,” Rumsfeld said. “Recent conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq required fewer troops and less time to assemble forces and materiel than in past wars.”

In South America, government officials in Colombia say the evolution of Colombia's military forces is equally critical in fighting the war on terrorism.

Colombian President Alvaro Uribe announced he would pursue a hard line in ending Colombia's 40-year conflict revolving around the drug trade, human-rights abuses and social inequalities. He added that President George W. Bush had “set up a very effective example of the way we need to go on to fight and defeat terrorism.”

U.S. Army, South, the Army component of U.S. Southern Command, has been helping the Colombian military transform its senior enlisted ranks. The establishment of Colombia's Command Sergeants Major Academy in Bogotá has contributed toward that goal. It's a joint effort by both militaries to institute the rank of command sergeant major in the Colombian army.

USARSO CSM Daniel R. Wood said the current wartime environment with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia prompted the commander of the Colombian armed forces to work with senior U.S. noncommissioned officers to establish criteria for the command sergeant major rank in Colombia, as well as the soldier's mission and responsibilities. Setting up the institution to train soldiers for the position followed.

The Colombian Command Sergeants Major Academy recently completed its fourth rotation, preparing roughly 40 newly promoted Colombian command sergeants major for the challenges they'll face in their war on terror.

U.S. command sergeants major provided their own experiences and lessons learned during several visits by Colombian military personnel to the Command Sergeants Major Academy at Fort Bliss, Texas, and USARSO headquarters at Fort Sam Houston, Texas.

“Historically, in Colombia and other Latin-American countries, NCOs have come from a lower socioeconomic class and, therefore, were considered inferior to the officer corps in education, experience and, in some cases, values,” said Wood. “Because NCOs were entrusted with very little authority and power, they lacked initiative.”

“Noncommissioned officers followed orders; they didn't give them. In the Colombian army, for the most part, officers are responsible for conducting all training. They perform all the duties NCOs in the U.S. Army perform,” Wood added.

Similarities between the U.S. and Colombian courses include training in CSM responsibilities as the senior enlisted advisor to the commander; interpersonal relationships with the staff; assigning and utilizing soldiers; caring for soldiers and their families; and human rights.

They also attend Colombian military training and doctrine classes while at the academy, and visit static displays presented by such special-operations units as the “Lanceros,” the Colombian equivalent of Army Rangers.

Key liaison to the academy is USARSO SGM Carlos Zayas, a Florida Army Reservist with more than 30 years' military experience, much of it working directly with the armies of other nations as a member of special forces.

Zayas recently returned from temporary duty in Colombia, on his second tour as the direct link between the Colombian and U.S. militaries. He also is an adviser to the course commandant and NCO in charge.

“My primary mission is to ensure school administrators at the CSM academy follow the format that was originally established and complete training objectives,” Zayas said. “In addition, participating in the exchange of ideas and providing support are essential to the course's success.”

“The school is similar to our CSM academy,” he said. “There are several challenges. The participants want change, and the course will certainly help their military grow. But army officials in Colombia try to squeeze nine months worth of work into eight weeks. Funding is an issue, as are time considerations to allow CSMs to deploy to a combat environment.

Designing the courses was a combined effort by Colombian leaders and SOUTHCOM and USARSO sergeants major and command sergeants major, said Wood. The program of instruction for the course will evolve based on the needs of the Colombian army.