Talk:Unified Combatant Command

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This article seems to link if you type in combatant commanders, however if you type in combatant commander (singular, not plural) you get directed to this page: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Combatant_commander

Someone might want to fix/clarify this. I'm not sure how to do it.

[edit] AFRICOM approval

The proposed unified medical command seems to have been shot down [1]. On the other hand, Africa Command appears to be a done deal [2]. Morinao 01:21, 21 December 2006 (UTC)

Still not announced as of 16 January (searched high and low) and only found this most recent dialogue [3]; even if announced, it will not be a reality until UCP establishes it. See this report which seems to sum up status best[4] HJ 11:14, 16 January 2007 (UTC)

[edit] clarifications / corrections

Corrections: <Unified Combatant Command (COCOM) formerly known as a regional "Commander-in Chief">

CINC was the term or the head of the combatant command, not the command itself. CINCPACOM, for example, was head of USPACOM.

<The Goldwater-Nichols Defense Reorganization Act of 1986 added a new level of commander-in-chief (CINC) to the U.S. military's chain of command. >

Regional Unified Commands (USPACOM, USEUCOM, etc.) and their CINCs existed well before the 1986 Goldwater-Nichols Act. They have existed since about 1947, and some date to World War II. I'll use USPACOM as an example. 17:10, 24 June 2007 (UTC)17:10, 24 June 2007 (UTC)17:10, 24 June 2007 (UTC)~~ http://www.pacom.mil/about/history.shtml HISTORY OF U.S. PACIFIC COMMAND

The U.S. Pacific Command was established as a unified command on 1 January 1947, and it is the oldest and largest of the United States' unified commands.

The present U.S. Pacific Command (USPACOM) includes areas originally assigned to two other unified commanders. Responsibilities of the Far East Command were assumed on 1 July 1957. That same day the command assumed some of the responsibilities of the Alaskan Command, and individual Army and Air Force component commands for the Pacific were established in Hawaii.

In October 1957, the then Commander in Chief, Pacific Command (CINCPAC) headquarters was moved from Makalapa to Camp H.M. Smith, which is also the headquarters of the Commander, Marine Forces Pacific. CINCPAC also served concurrently as Commander in Chief, U.S. Pacific Fleet until January 1958, when the U.S. Pacific Fleet became a separate component with its own commander.

Added responsibilities were assigned to CINCPAC on 1 January 1972 for military forces and elements in the Indian Ocean, Southern Asia, and the Arctic. The area of responsibility was further expanded on 1 May 1976 to the east coast of Africa. This enlarged the Pacific Command to more than 50 percent of the earth's surface, an area of over 100 million square miles.

Another enlargement of the USPACOM area took place in October 1983 when CINCPAC was assigned responsibility for the People's Republic of China, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, Mongolia, and the Republic of Madagascar. CINCPAC was also redesignated U.S. Commander in Chief, Pacific Command (USCINCPAC).

In 1986, the Goldwater-Nichols Reorganization Act expanded, as well as codified, the authority of the commanders of the unified commands to carry out their assigned missions and to employ combatant forces provided by the individual Services. 17:10, 24 June 2007 (UTC)17:10, 24 June 2007 (UTC)17:10, 24 June 2007 (UTC)17:10, 24 June 2007 (UTC)~~

<Regional CINCs were created in order to have a local supreme commander who could exercise unified command and control across service boundaries, ideally eliminating or diminishing interservice rivalries. >

Yes, and this practice started in World War II. The Pacific, for example, consisted of different area commands that were unified. General MacArthur was in charge of South West Pacific Area, while Admiral Nimitz was in charge of the Central Pacific. Each commanded assigned forces from other US (and sometimes Allied) sevices.

The rest of the article looks good.