At what step of the Military Decision-Making Process (MDMP) is the Problem Statement first developed?

The Problem Statement is first developed during the Mission Analysis step of the Military Decision-Making Process (MDMP). This step focuses on analyzing the mission's specifics and understanding the operational environment, which includes identifying gaps between the current situation and the desired end state.

During Mission Analysis, planners assess the details of the mission, evaluate relevant constraints and limitations, and analyze the enemy situation. It is in this context that the problem statement emerges, as it captures the essence of the issues that need to be addressed to effectively accomplish the mission. Formulating a clear and concise problem statement allows the planning team to remain focused on resolving the central challenges identified during this analysis, ensuring that subsequent steps in the MDMP are aligned with addressing these identified issues.

In contrast, the Receipt of Mission primarily involves initial coordination and understanding of the mission at a basic level, without in-depth analysis that leads to problem identification. COA Development occurs after the problem statement is established and focuses on creating and assessing various courses of action to solve the identified problems. Orders Production, on the other hand, pertains to the documentation of the chosen course of action and does not involve developing the problem statement at all. Thus, the correct answer highlights the stage where critical understanding and identification of operational challenges first