Defeating Improvised Explosive Devices; Asymmetric Threats and Capability Gaps

Since our enemies are unable to defeat the U.S. Army through conventional means, they engage in sophisticated hybrid forms of warfare to exploit our vulnerabilities and threaten our national security. Because today's improvised explosive devices (IED) are not fueled by traditional military explosive materials, they avoid detection by traditional explosive detection technologies. These led to the need for military organizations and civilian agencies to research and quickly deploy new systems to counter the asymmetric IED threats. Through exploitation of IEDs, military organizations and civilian agencies can determine how they function and this knowledge will enable the Joint EOD community, and conventional troops, to defeat this threat.