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Iakopo bolsters 9th MSC’s support of CNMI
Office of Veterans Affairs executive officer Stanley Iakopo, right, shakes hands with Brig. Gen. Timothy Connelly, commanding general of the 9th Mission Support Command, after their meeting earlier this month at Fort Shafter in Honolulu, Hawaii. (CONTRIBUTED PHOTO)
CNMI Office of Veterans Affairs executive officer Stanley Iakopo met with Brig. Gen. Timothy D. Connelly earlier this month at the 9th Mission Support Command Headquarters in Fort Shafter in Honolulu, Hawaii to discuss the 9th Mission Support Command’s role, commitment, and support of the CNMI during disaster relief through the Defense Support of Civil Authorities.
Iakopo shared that his meeting with Connelly was “a great opportunity to share information” and was a great help in further strengthening the relationship between Saipan’s Army Reserve and the rest of the 9th MSC.
“As the commanding general of the 9th Mission Support Command, I am proud to represent all of the soldiers of America’s Army Reserve, particularly those 9th MSC soldiers assigned to our Army Reserve units in [the] CNMI, in partnership with local CNMI community leaders and members. …I want to thank the governor of CNMI and mayor of Saipan for all the support over the years to the great soldiers and units of 9th Mission Support Command,” said Connelly.
According to the 9th MSC website, the 9th Mission Support Command is a U.S. Army Reserve Command under the operational control of U.S. Army Pacific with a command composed of approximately 3,500 Army Reserve soldiers and 160 civilians throughout the Pacific to include Hawaii, Alaska, American Samoa, Japan, Korea, Guam, and Saipan.
The Defense Support of Civil Authorities, or DSCA, is a process where the United States allocates military assets and personnel to assist in missions that would normally be carried out by civilians/ civilian leadership. For the CNMI, DSCA was used to mobilize 9th MSC personnel to provide disaster relief after Super Typhoon Yutu in 2018.
