C10.3.1. Combatant Duties. The Arms Export Control Act (AECA), section 21(c) (22 U.S.C 2761(a)(1)(C)), prohibits personnel providing defense services (including training) from performing duties of a combatant nature. Training and advising activities that may engage U.S. personnel in combat activities outside of the United States are prohibited.

C10.3.2. Potentially Sensitive or Lethal Training Provided Under IMET and FMS. New or first time requests for potentially sensitive or lethal training under IMET and FMS programs must be staffed through the Security Cooperation Organization (SCO), the Combatant Command (CCMD), and the military department (MILDEP) to the Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) (Operations Directorate) for coordination and approval by the Under Secretary of Defense for Policy (USD(P)) and the Department of State-Bureau of Political and Military Affairs Office (DoS(PM)). The request should include a description of the training requested, identification of the partner nation unit to be trained, rationale and justification for the training to include how this supports the CCMD Theater Campaign Plan, Country Team’s Mission Resource Strategic Plan (MSRP), and verification of Chief of Mission concurrence. A review and approval is required for each partner nation unit requesting this training, even if such training was provided to another unit in the requesting partner nation.

C10.3.3. Transfer of Training. Foreign governments acquiring training from the United States may not transfer training related to the use of U.S. defense articles or services to other countries or organizations, or to anyone not an officer, employee or agent of the purchasing government without the consent of the U.S. Government (USG), nor can they use such training for purposes other than those for which it is furnished without the consent of the USG. The recipient country cannot use technical skills and information acquired through training programs to train personnel from a third country unless approved in advance by the USG. Requests to transfer training to third parties are submitted via diplomatic note to the Department of State-Bureau of Political and Military Affairs/Office of Regional Security and Arms Transfer Policy DoS(PM/RSAT)) for action, with an information copy to the Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) (Operations Directorate). Training transfer requests received by an Implementing Agency (IA) should be provided to DSCA (Operations Directorate) for forwarding to the DoS.

C10.3.4. Attendance in Classified Courses. Classified information may be released to foreign nationals only when authorized under the provisions of the National Disclosure Policy (NDP) and DoD Directive 5230.11, Disclosure of Classified Military Information to Foreign Governments and International Organizations. Release of classified material must be in accordance with the policy in Chapter 3. When classified instruction is requested, the IA determines the classification of the material to be released during training based on the need-to-know, and disclosure agreements with the requesting country. The foreign government must affirm via written statement to the SCO the following: the government sponsors the international military student (IMS) to attend the classified courses; the IMS has been subjected to a security screening; the IMS is in possession of a valid security clearance at the appropriate level granted by the sponsoring government; the IMS does not constitute a security risk to the USG; the information obtained during the training will not be released to another nation without the specific authority of the USG; the classified information will be provided the same degree of security afforded it by the USG; and any involved proprietary information must be protected. When this certification is obtained, the applicable statement is checked in Block 11 of the Invitational Travel Order (ITO), see sample of ITO in Figure C10.F2. In general, an IMS is a U.S. citizen or citizen of the foreign government, with military or civilian status of that government, who is receiving education or training or is visiting USG activities under the sponsorship of the security assistance training program (SATP).

C10.3.5. Cross-Service Training, Sequence, or Prerequisite Training. A course of instruction may be preceded by prerequisite courses and/or followed by additional courses without the student returning to their home country between courses. When a student from a foreign purchaser is selected for training exclusively within the schools of a military department (MILDEP), such training is requested in the program of, and administered by, the MILDEP providing the training. When a student is selected for training involving courses of more than one MILDEP, the MILDEP that provides the majority of the training serves as the Implementing Agency (IA). To determine the IA, count the number of weeks of training, and not the number of courses. English Language Training should be excluded because this training establishes the capacity of the IMS to accommodate all follow-on technical training and the IA is always the same.

C10.3.6. Security Cooperation Education and Training Program Evaluations. Schools training IMS under security cooperation (SC) programs may be directed to participate in student evaluations of these programs. The Defense Institute of Security Assistance Management (DISAM) is the DSCA activity that administers these evaluations. DISAM coordinates directly with military schools and the respective MILDEP SC Training Activities, notifying them of students selected to complete the evaluation forms.