WAR FORCES

10. ASIS – Australia

  

Formed	13 May 1952
Headquarters	Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia
Annual budget	$162.5m AUD (2007)
Minister responsible	The Hon. Stephen Smith MP, Minister for Foreign Affairs
Agency executive	Nick Warner, Director-General

Australian Secret Intelligence Service is the Australian government intelligence agency responsible for collecting foreign intelligence, undertaking counter-intelligence activities and cooperation with other intelligence agencies overseas. For more than twenty years, the existence of the agency was a secret even from its own government. Its primary responsibility is gathering intelligence from mainly Asian and Pacific interests using agents stationed in a wide variety of areas. Its main purpose, as with most agencies, is to protect the country’s political and economic interests while ensuring safety for the people of Australia against national threats.

9. RAW – India

 

Formed	21 September 1968
Headquarters	New Delhi, India
Agency executive	K. C. Verma, Secretary (R)
Parent agency	Prime Minister’s Office, GoI

Research and Analysis Wing is India’s external intelligence agency. It was formed in September 1968, after the newly independent Republic of India was faced with 2 consecutive wars, the Sino-Indian war of 1962 and the India-Pakistani war of 1965, as it was evident that a credible intelligence gathering setup was lacking. Its primary function is collection of external intelligence, counter-terrorism and covert operations. In addition, it is responsible for obtaining and analyzing information about foreign governments, corporations, and persons, in order to advise Indian foreign policymakers. Until the creation of R&AW, the Intelligence Bureau handled both internal and external intelligence.

After basic Army training, voluntary enlistment into the 75th Ranger Regiment will train the recruit for the HALO parachute jump, SERE, languages, elite combatives expert, mountain warfare, combat diving, in addition to all the weapons qualification training.
After nine weeks of this, they enroll in Advanced Individual Training, to become masters of their chosen fields, then immediately enroll in the Army Airborne School, then in Ranger Indoctrination or Orientation Programs.
By the time they’ve graduated, they’re so well trained that members have reported waking up screaming from nightmares about Ranger school to be relieved that they are only in Vietnam.
But then, they lose a few points for an incident a Ranger told me about: he was the captain of a tank regiment on maneuvers in the Amazon jungle. Just an exercise, but because of the sweltering heat, they had to open their tank hatches. This captain, who shall remain nameless, heard a thump behind him, and turned to see a Goliath Bird-eating Spider crawling toward him, raising its front legs and hissing.
He admits to screaming like a girl, knifing the tarantula, jumping out of the tank and running off into the jungle for a mile and a half. His buddies still rib him about it.

Currently, only men are allowed to try out for the U. S. Marine Corps Forces Special Operations Command. It’s primary missions are typically special reconnaissance, direct action, and internal defense within foreign nations.
Their training regimen is comprised of 4 phases, increasing in strenuousness. Phase 1 is SERE training, survival, evasion, resistance, escape. They are trained to make fire by friction, fire by mirrors, even fire by ice, depending on the location to which they are deployed. You mold the ice with the heat of your hands into the shape of a lens, which works just like a magnifying glass.
Of course, they take matches and Zippos with them. After this, they begin physical fitness training, and hand-to-hand combat, practicing a hybrid of the most functional martial arts: Jeet Kune Do, Wing Chun, Karate, Jiu-Jitsu, even Pankration. Then, Sayoc Kali, which is Filipino knife fighting.
This is just phase 1. Phase 2 is marksmanship, amphibious demolitions, reconnaissance. Phase 3 is a contrinuation of 2, but with the addition of field radioes and satellite data-uplink systems. Phase 4 is “irregular warfare” instruction, which is a euphemism for “anything goes.” This phase consists primarily of the Derna Bridge operation, which forces the recruits to use all skills acquired during the course.