WMD counter proliferation

Countering WMDs cannot be on SOCOM alone, experts contend

Coordinating the counter proliferation of weapons of mass destruction is now in the hands of U.S. Special Operations Command, but it shouldn’t be on them alone, members of a panel at a National Defense Industrial Association symposium argued Wednesday.
"Culturally, SOCOM, they are the solution people. They solve problems. They fill gaps," said Michael Lumpkin, a retired Navy SEAL and the Pentagon's former assistant defense secretary for special operations and low-intensity conflict.
“But they may fill gaps that aren't theirs to fill,” he added. “The other agencies have to do their part. ... If those departments don't have skin in the game, they're less likely to support it."
Since 2005, the counter proliferation mission was owned by U.S. Strategic Command, but the mission began moving over to SOCOM’s purview in 2016, hoping to capitalize on the counterterrorism model the command had become so adept at conducting.
The decision to give SOCOM yet another leading role is said to be in response to long-standing complaints that STRATCOM had not devoted enough personnel and emphasis to counter WMDs, according to a Congressional Research Service report from January 2017.