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Multinational operations are carried out to achieve military and diplomatic objectives in various regions. Such operations derive a great deal of benefits from sharing budgets, political legitimacy, sharing each national experience and technological resources, and so forth. However, a coalition, one structure of multinational operations, often involves serious challenges in such areas as command and control, logistic support, communication and language, training, and intelligence and information due to its ad hoc characteristics. This research reviews general problems in a coalition operation, and develops the Coalition Operation Planning Model to assist coalition commanders or staff in producing an efficient operational plan. In this model, goal programming is employed to formulate the coalition problems with multiple objectives. The proposed model is composed of three sub-models: the Coalition Mission-Unit Allocation Model, the Coalition Mission-Support Model, and the Coalition Mission-Unit Grouping Model. The first sub-model is designed to find an optimized resource allocation by applying the shortest path problem and effectiveness functions. The second sub-model is developed to obtain an optimized logistics support plan by using the multi-commodity network flow. Finally, the third sub-model is designed to combine small units into one workable independent unit by using the quadratic assignment problem. The models are demonstrated with a notional humanitarian assistance operation.

This article examines how India understands and negotiates norms for the provision of humanitarian assistance and R2P in political emergencies. Looking at these two related but distinct spheres of action together helps illuminate India's understanding of international order, and the nature and scope of domestic and international responsibility in protecting populations from harm and deprivation. The article argues that while R2P and humanitarian assistance have both pluralist and solidarist underpinnings, India attempts to contain the meaning and practice of these spheres of action in a manner that is consistent with a pluralist view of international order.