Harry B. Harris Jr.

Harry B. Harris, Jr.
Admiral Harry B. Harris, Jr., USN Commander, United States Pacific Fleet
Born	1956 (age 58–59) Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan
Allegiance	United States of America
Service/branch	United States Navy
Years of service	1978 - present
Rank	Admiral
Commands held	United States Pacific Fleet U.S. Sixth Fleet -- Naval Striking and Support Forces NATO JTF Guantanamo Patrol & Reconnaissance Wing 1 VP-46
Battles/wars	Operation Attain Document III Operation Desert Shield Operation Desert Storm Operation Earnest Will Operation Southern Watch Operation Enduring Freedom Operation Iraqi Freedom Operation Odyssey Dawn
Awards	Defense Distinguished Service Medal Navy Distinguished Service Medal (2) Defense Superior Service Medal (3) Legion of Merit (3) Bronze Star (2) Air Medal (1 strike/flight) Department of State Distinguished Honor Award

Harry Binkley Harris, Jr.^[1] is an admiral in the United States Navy who currently serves as Commander of the United States Pacific Fleet. He is the first Asian-American to achieve the rank of admiral. He assuemed command of the U.S. Pacific Fleet in Hawaii in 2013.^[2] His prior position as vice admiral was serving as the Assistant to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.^[3] Harris' prior operational command was in 2011 when he was commander of the U.S. Sixth Fleet and Naval Striking and Support Forces NATO.

Biography

Early life

Harris was born in Yokosuka, Japan in 1956. His father was an American Navy Chief Petty Officer and his mother Japanese.^[4] After his family's return to the United States, Harris grew up in Tennessee and Florida, where he attended local public schools.^[5]

Military service

Harris graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1978. He majored in General Engineering and was a varsity fencer.

After flight training, he was designated as a Naval Flight Officer and assigned to Patrol Squadron FORTY FOUR (VP-44), homeported at Naval Air Station Brunswick, Maine where he flew the P-3C Orion, deploying throughout the Atlantic and Mediterranean. His subsequent operational tours include assignment as a Tactical Action Officer on board USS Saratoga (CV-60), to include participation in the Achille Lauro incident and strikes against Libya (Operation Attain Document III^[6]); Operations Officer in Patrol Squadron 4 (VP-4) at Naval Air Station Barbers Point, Hawaii, deploying to Southwest Asia during Operations Desert Shield/Desert Storm; and three tours with Patrol and Reconnaissance Wing 1/Task Force 57/Task Force 72, the latter tour as the wing's Commodore, homeported in Kami Seya, Japan and forward deployed to Manama, Bahrain for Operation Enduring Freedom. During his earlier tours with Patrol and Reconnaissance Wing 1, he participated in Operations Earnest Will and Southern Watch.

In 2002, he reported to Commander, U.S. Naval Forces Central Command/U.S. Fifth Fleet in Manama, Bahrain, serving as Assistant Chief of Staff for Operations, Plans, and Pol-Mil Affairs (N3/N5). He was responsible for the planning and execution of the Naval component’s portion of Operation Iraqi Freedom, which began on March 19, 2003.

His aviation command assignments include Patrol Squadron 46 (VP-46) at Naval Air Station Whidbey Island, Washington, and Patrol and Reconnaissance Wing 1/CTF 57/CTF 72 at Kami Seya, Japan. Task Force 57, the U.S. 5th Fleet maritime patrol and reconnaissance aircraft force, was heavily involved in Operation Enduring Freedom as squadrons and aircrews under his command flew nearly 1,000 P-3 and EP-3 surveillance and reconnaissance sorties over Afghanistan. Additional Flag Officer command assignments included Joint Task Force Guantanamo in Cuba, U.S. Sixth Fleet /Naval Striking and Support Forces NATO in Italy. While commanding Sixth Fleet, he was designated as the Joint Force Maritime Component Commander for Operation Odyssey Dawn, the U.S.-led coalition operation against Libya.

Harris’ shore assignments include Aide and Flag Lieutenant to the Commander, U.S. Naval Forces Japan in Yokosuka, Japan; three tours on the staff of the Chief of Naval Operations to include two flag officer tours and a tour as a strategist in the Strategy and Concepts Branch; and Special Assistant/Chief Speechwriter to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. His Flag assignments are described below.

Adm. Harris receives the Korean Tong-il national defense medal in 2014.

His educational assignments include selection for the Navy’s Harvard/Tufts Program, where he graduated with a Master's of Public Administration from Harvard’s John F. Kennedy School of Government in 1992. Subsequently selected as an Arthur S. Moreau Scholar, he studied international relations and ethics of war at Oxford and Georgetown University, earning a Master of Arts in National Security Studies from the latter in 1994. While at Georgetown, he was a Fellow in the School of Foreign Service. He was also a MIT Seminar 21 fellow for the 1999-2000 class.

Harris has logged 4400 flight hours, including over 400 combat hours, in U.S. and foreign maritime patrol and reconnaissance aircraft, and is the first officer from the U.S. Navy's P-3 maritime patrol aviation community to achieve 4-star rank. He is the United States Navy's highest-ranking Japanese American.^[7] He is a recipient of the Navy League’s Stephen Decatur Award for Operational Competence. For his work in diversity and leadership, he has also received the NECO Ellis Island Honor Award, the APAICS Lifetime Achievement Award, and the WWAAC Community Spirit Award.

Adm. Harris thanks a 442nd Regimental Combat Team veteran for his contributions in World War II during a 2014 ceremony.

Director, Current Operations and Anti-Terrorism/Force Protection Division (OPNAV N31/34)

In August 2004, in his first Flag assignment, he reported to the staff of the Chief of Naval Operations and was responsible for Navy current operations, the Navy Command Center, and anti-terrorism/force protection policy.

Commander, Joint Task Force Guantanamo

In March 2006, he assumed command of Joint Task Force Guantanamo in Cuba. His service was notable as he was in charge when three prisoners, Mani Shaman Turki al-Habardi Al-Utaybi, Salah Ali Abdullah Ahmed al-Salami and Yasser Talal Al Zahrani, died in the custody of US forces. Defense reported the deaths as suicides. Harris said at the time,

“

"I believe this was not an act of desperation, but an act of asymmetrical warfare waged against us."^[8]

”

Harris ordered a full investigation by the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS), which published its report in a heavily redacted version in August 2008.

Main article: Guantanamo Bay homicide accusations

Main article: Guantanamo Bay detention camp suicide attempts

A report, Death in Camp Delta, was published in December 2009 by the Center for Policy & Research of Seton Hall University School of Law, under the supervision of its director, Professor Mark Denbeaux, attorney for two Guantanamo detainees, criticizing numerous inconsistencies in the official accounts of these deaths.^[9]^[10]^[11] The report suggested there had either been gross negligence or an attempt to cover up homicides, perhaps due to torture.

On 18 January 2010, Scott Horton of Harper’s Magazine published a story suggesting that al-Salami, Al-Utaybi and Al-Zahrani had died as a result of accidental manslaughter during a torture session, and that the official account was a cover-up.^[8] Horton had undertaken a joint investigation with NBC News, based on an account by four former guards at Guantanamo Bay detention camp. They suggested that the men had died at a black site, informally called "Camp No," used for interrogation including torture. I was located about a mile outside the regular camp boundaries.^[8]

Director of Operations, U.S. Southern Command

From June 2007 to April 2008, Harris served as Director of Operations (J3) for U.S. Southern Command in Miami, Florida. He was involved in planning for Operation Willing Spirit^[12] (the rescue of American hostages held hostage in Colombia).

Deputy Chief of Naval Operations (OPNAV N6)

Admiral Harris wears Google Glass during a presentation at AFCEA West in February 2014.

He returned to the Pentagon to serve as the Deputy Chief of Naval Operations for Communication Networks (OPNAV N6) and the Deputy Department of the Navy Chief Information Officer (Navy) until November 2009. He was responsible for early resource sponsor decisions for the Consolidated Afloat Networks and Enterprise Services (CANES), Next Generation Enterprise Network (NGEN), Mobile User Objective System (MUOS) and Maritime Domain Awareness (MDA).

Commander, U.S. Sixth Fleet

In November 2009, Harris assumed command of the U.S. 6th Fleet and the Striking and Support Forces NATO, both headquartered in Naples, Italy. He concurrently served as the Joint Force Maritime Component commander, Naples; deputy commander, U.S. Naval Forces Europe; and deputy commander, U.S. Naval Forces Africa. In 2011, he was designated as the Joint Force Maritime Component Commander for Operation Odyssey Dawn, the U.S.-led coalition operation against Libya.

Assistant to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff

In October 2011, he assumed the position of Assistant to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. In this capacity, he served as the Chairman's direct representative to the Secretary of State. He was also the designated U.S. Roadmap Monitor for the Middle East Peace Process.

Commander, U.S. Pacific Fleet

Harris was promoted to admiral and assumed command of the United States Pacific Fleet on October 16, 2013.^[13]

U.S. Pacific Command

Harris was nominated on September 22, 2014, by President Barack Obama to command the United States Pacific Command. ^[14]^[15] His appointment was confirmed by the Senate on December 11, 2014. ^[16]^[17] Harris regards North Korea as the biggest threat to security in Asia.^[18]

Awards and decorations

Naval Flight Officer insignia

Office of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Identification Badge

	Defense Distinguished Service Medal
	Navy Distinguished Service Medal with 1 gold award star
	Defense Superior Service Medal with two bronze oak leaf clusters
	Legion of Merit with 2 award stars
	Bronze Star with 1 award star
	Meritorious Service Medal with 3 award stars
	Air Medal with Strike/Flight numeral 1
	Joint Service Commendation Medal
	Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal with 4 award stars
	Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal
	Joint Meritorious Unit Award
	Navy Unit Commendation with 3 bronze service stars
	Navy Meritorious Unit Commendation with 1 service star
	Navy "E" Ribbon with 3 Battle "E" devices
	Department of State Distinguished Honor Award
	Navy Expeditionary Medal with 1 service star
	National Defense Service Medal with 2 service stars
	Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal
	Southwest Asia Service Medal with 3 service stars
	Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal
	Afghanistan Campaign Medal with 1 service star
	Global War on Terrorism Service Medal
	Military Outstanding Volunteer Service Medal
	Navy Sea Service Deployment Ribbon with 4 service stars
	Navy & Marine Corps Overseas Service Ribbon with 2 silver and 2 bronze service stars
	Order of National Security Merit, Tong-il Medal (Republic of Korea)^[19]
	Philippine Presidential Unit Citation
	Kuwait Liberation Medal (Saudi Arabia)
	Kuwait Liberation Medal (Kuwait)
	Navy Expert Rifleman Medal
	Navy Expert Pistol Shot Medal