The CGSC Foundation’s Simons Center hosted an Arter-Rowland National Security Forum luncheon event on Oct. 16, 2025, at the Carriage Club in Kansas City. The event featured a presentation by retired Lt. Gen. Robert L. Caslen, Jr., the former chief of the Office of Security Cooperation in Iraq, on his recently published book The Impossible Mission.
ARNSF program leader Bob Ulin kicked off the Forum welcoming the ARNSF members and their guests. After lunch, he introduced Caslen.
This was the third presentation Caslen made during his two day trip to Fort Leavenworth and the Kansas City area. On Oct. 15, he made the same presentation to a gathered audience of U.S. Army Command and General Staff College students, faculty and staff at Fort Leavenworth. Later that evening, he presented to an audience in downtown Leavenworth, Kansas, for the Foundation’s Distinguished Speaker Series program.
As with the previous presentations, Caslen began his ARNSF presentation by stating how the U.S. decision to go to war in Iraq was controversial, but the decision to terminate the Iraq war should have been even more controversial. He stressed that after eight-and-a half years of war, and the sacrifice of 4,614 Americans, it is critical that we as a nation understand how this war terminated, and study the lessons learned so that we do not have to re-learn it all over again in the next war.
Caslen covered all the challenges he faced in the beginning of his mission in late 2011 and the confusion between the U.S. Departments of State and Defense of whether he was supposed to lead a division-sized residual force of 10-15,000 troops, or as it ultimately happened, lead a group of 157 troops as the director of the Office of Security Cooperation – Iraq (OSC-I). He recounted how over the next two years OSC-I was stuck in the middle of changing policies, new strategies, absence of U.S. government agencies and the cancellation of authorities inside the newly independent country of Iraq.
As Caslen states in his book – and as many reviewers have echoed – The Impossible Mission is essential reading for elected officials, military professionals, interagency partners and national security leaders seeking to understand the interagency collaboration required to transition U.S. government departments from war, to war termination. The book’s epilogue includes 12 strategic lessons learned that Caslen believes are key to the study of this kind of mission should it be attempted again in the future.
After the presentation and a question and answer period, Ulin presented Caslen with a small gift in appreciation for his time with the Forum. Ulin also provided information about future ARNSF gatherings. Caslen remained on-hand to sign copies of his book for attendees.
For more photos see the CGSC Foundation Flickr album
Lieutenant General Robert L. Caslen, Jr., was commissioned as an infantry officer in the United States Military Academy class of 1975. He served in the U.S. Army for 43 years retiring in 2018 as the 59th Superintendent of the United States Military Academy at West Point. Before becoming the West Point Superintendent, Lt. Gen. Caslen served as the chief of the Office of Security Cooperation in Iraq, and was commander of the Combined Arms Center and Fort Leavenworth and commandant of the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College. Caslen also commanded the 25th Infantry Division during Operation Iraqi Freedom and was chief of staff of both the 101st Airborne and the 10th Mountain Divisions, where he also served as chief of staff of Task Force Mountain during Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan. He also served in combat and overseas deployments in Operation Desert Shield/Desert Storm, Honduras, and Operation Uphold Democracy and the United Nations Mission in Haiti. After his military retirement he served as the 29th president of the University of South Carolina and currently serves as a trustee of the CGSC Foundation and Alumni Association.
Caslen holds a Master of Business Administration degree from Long Island University and a Master of Science degree in Industrial Engineering from Kansas State University. In addition to his many military awards and accomplishments, Caslen is a Distinguished Graduate of the United States Military Academy, a member of the Kansas State Engineering College Hall of Fame and co-authored the book, The Character Edge Leading and Winning with Integrity. He was born in Connecticut, and grew up in Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Vermont. He has been married to the former Michele Pastin, from Highland Falls, New York, for 45 years and has three adult sons and five grandchildren.
The Arter-Rowland National Security Forum is an exclusive professional information sharing and networking event exclusively for members of the forum and select invitees of the CGSC Foundation and its Simons Center .
Members of the Forum and their guests meet periodically at guest speaker events in downtown Kansas City. National and regional guest speakers representing all elements of national power (Diplomatic, Informational, Military and Economic) highlight the meetings. The Forum is nonpartisan, but elected government officials may present from time to time.
The Forum is named after Lt. Gen. (Ret.) Robert Arter, Founding Chairman of the CGSC Foundation, and Mr. Landon Rowland, the Foundation’s first major donor who was well-known in Kansas City for his keen interest in national security issues and his leadership in business and philanthropy.
ARNSF events are only open to ARNSF members and their guests. If you are not a member but are interested in joining, contact Bob Ulin at rulin@cgscf.org.
The 2025 Arter-Rowland National Security Forum is sponsored by:
