Gutting U.S. Government Humanitarianism Makes the Defense Department’s Job Harder

Recent cuts to U.S. government humanitarian agencies have severely weakened the nation's ability to provide aid, placing a greater burden on the Department of Defense. The conflicts in Ukraine and Gaza illustrate how mass displacement and humanitarian crises can disrupt military logistics and operations. A potential conflict in densely populated areas like Taiwan or the Korean peninsula would present even more daunting challenges that adversaries could exploit. The author proposes that the Department of Defense should embed humanitarian advisors in combatant commands and establish a dedicated civil-military coordination team to mitigate these risks.