In this June 2013 interview, LTC Charles Hemphill, US Army, V Corps, discusses his deployment to Afghanistan as the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) Joint Commands (IJC) Counter Improvised Explosive Device (IED) Deputy Chief in 2012 through 2013 in support of Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF). LTC Hemphill talks about training and the relief in place with I Corps. He describes the normalization process with regard to counter-IED. He discusses the training of Afghan explosive ordnance disposal teams (EOD) and shares some of the most successful counter-IED initiatives. LTC Hemphill closes his interview by stating, "One of the things that I think was an important initiative, really two things, one is the electronic counter-measures program and the Coalition Forces Loan Program. The Coalition Forces Loan Program, that's run through CENTCOM. What that has to do with is making sure our partners, our Coalition partners, have some of the technological things that they may not normally have available to them in that environment that they do receive as tools. For instance, Symphony, which is a jammer to defeat radio controlled IEDs (RCIEDs), so some countries don't have that capability in their military. There is a way for them to receive that equipment. To receive MRAPs so that they can, it makes them more inter-operable with our forces and provides them a level of protection that they need."

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