The rise of special operations forces.

• Author: Erwin, Sandra I.

* The members of the force known as the "quiet professionals" have stepped out of the shadows and into the global spotlight under the Obama administration.

Special operations forces are deployed in about 80 countries, and their budget has almost quintupled since 2001. U.S. Special Operations Command is the only major component of the U.S. military that is growing in size and funding, although its 2014 budget request of $9.9 billion was 4 percent smaller than its 2013 spending of $10.4 billion.

A study by the consulting firm Deloitte in fact predicts a tectonic shift in how countries invest in their ground forces. A Cold War--era military that is highly dependent on general-purpose forces and strategic nuclear weapons will give way to "new structures" that are built around special operations capability and information technologies.

The Obama administration's "Defense Strategic Guidance" said special operations forces will increasingly be relied upon to "help address national security threats and challenges on a global scale ... given their ability to operate in a wide range of environments and undertake tactical actions that produce strategic effects."

Special operations forces are "really a model of a cost-effective defense solution," said Linda Robinson, a SOF scholar.

While Navy SEALs have captured the public's imagination since the Bin Laden raid, most of what SOF troops do day to day is more mundane. And the responsibilities are likely to grow. The head of U.S. Special Operations Command Adm. William McRaven is seeking greater authorities to deploy SOF and launch operations across the globe.

Between 2001 and 2013, U.S. special operations forces grew from fewer than 40,000 to 66,000. Planned force additions include a fifth special forces battalion, increases in soldiers for the 75th Ranger Regiment, more civil affairs units, and additional troops assigned to Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps special operations units. SOCOM officials cautioned that overly rapid growth would compromise the effectiveness of the organization.

As the United States adopts an expansionist view of special operations forces, other nations are following suit. The number of countries that are now funding special operations capabilities has increased by 40 percent from 2006 to 2012, Deloitte estimates. The largest increases appear to be in China, India, Iran and Turkey. Two-thirds of the countries adding SOF are lower-income nations, where many terrorist attacks...