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United States Strategic Command (USSTRATCOM) is one of nine Unified Command s of the United States Department Of Defense which controls the Nuclear Weapon s assets of the United States Military . It is also a global integrator charged with the missions of Space Operations; Information Operations; Integrated Missile Defense; Global Command and Control; Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance; Global Strike; and Strategic Deterrence. It is headquartered at Offutt Air Force Base , Nebraska . The Headquarters uses four Joint Functional Component Commands (JFCCs) to complete daily planning and execution for the primary mission areas of Integrated Missile Defense , Intelligence, Surveillance And Reconnaissance , Space & Global Strike and Network Warfare . LEADERSHIP General James E. Cartwright is the commander of USSTRATCOM, and serves as the senior commander of the joint military forces from all four branches of the military assigned to the command. General Cartwright is the leader, steward and advocate of the nation's strategic capabilities. His responsibilities include integrating and coordinating the necessary command and control capability to provide support with the most accurate and timely information for the President Of The United States , the Secretary Of Defense , and to regional combatant commanders. MISSION USSTRATCOM combines the synergy of the U.S. legacy nuclear command and control mission with responsibility for space operations; global strike; Defense Department information operations; global missile defense; and global Command, Control, Communications, Computers, Intelligence, Surveillance, And Reconnaissance ( C4ISR ). This dynamic package gives the President and the Secretary of Defense a unified resource for greater understanding of specific threats around the world and the means to respond to those threats rapidly. USSTRATCOM exercises Overleadment and command authority over four joint functional component commands, also known as JFCCs. This combination of authorities, oversight, leadership and management enables a more responsive, flattened organizational construct. ORGANIZATION Primary operational units
Organizational and support units
Task Forces USSTRATCOM relies on various task forces for the execution of its global missions. These include:
INNOVATIONS General Cartwright is exploring ways to incorporate innovative collaborative tools into what has traditionally been considered a very centralized military organization. Speaking at a recent convention General Cartwright said, "Where I would like to be is well outside the comfort zone of my organization. But what we've started with is just some simple 'blogging' tools, to try to change the culture a little bit; to try to allow people to contribute." {Link without Title} HISTORY U.S. Strategic Command is part of a rich history that spans both the interrelated strategic and space communities. On June 1, 1992, with the Berlin Wall down, the Warsaw Pact a memory and the Soviet Union nonexistent, the US Air Force stood down Strategic Air Command and the JSTPS also took its place in the history books of the Cold War . That same day, President George H. Bush established a new Unified Command , U.S. Strategic Command. Its mission of deterrence would sound familiar, but its structure and role would reflect the changing international political landscape. With USSTRATCOM, for the first time in U. S. history, the planning, targeting and wartime employment of strategic forces came under the control of a single commander while the day-to-day training, equipment and maintenance responsibilities for its forces remained with the services -- the Air Force and Navy. By the turn of the century, the command was well aware that the future posed challenges both different and greater than those present in 1992 when USSTRATCOM had been established to encourage stability in the post- Cold War world. Events of Sept. 11, 2001 , vividly proved that the nation needed a new strategic direction. The emergence of transnational global threats state and non-state actors such as terrorist organizations that operate across state borders, increasingly in affiliation with others who oppose U.S. interests required a more integrated approach to U.S. defense. Sept. 11 also illustrated the need to improve the nation's national command and control architecture. At the same time, the nation's strategic nuclear posture was also under review. While nuclear weapons play an essential role in U.S. security, and submarine-launched ballistic missiles, land-based Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles and strategic bombers continue to provide the foundation of deterrence, the President and Secretary of Defense called for a broader range of military strategic options, including non-nuclear options. The nation's 2002 Nuclear Posture Review, rather than relying on a strategy grounded solely in offensive nuclear response, expanded nuclear deterrence to include non-nuclear strike options, active and passive defenses, supported by a command and control infrastructure, intelligence, and adaptive and responsive planning capabilities. Shortly after a meeting between President George W. Bush and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow in May 2002 , a summit was held during which both leaders signed a treaty promising bilateral reductions that would result in a total of 1,700 to 2,200 operationally deployed strategic Nuclear Weapons for each country by the year 2012 . On June 26 , 2002 , Secretary Donald Rumsfeld announced that U.S. Space Command would merge with USSTRATCOM as part of the ongoing initiative to transform the U.S. military into a 21st century fighting force. As part of a change to the Unified Command Plan, President Bush migrated space missions from the former USSPACECOM and subsequently nominated Admiral James Ellis to be commander of the new unified command, which would retain the U.S. Strategic Command name and would be headquartered at Offutt Air Force Base . The activation of the new USSTRATCOM took place October 1 , 2002 . The merger improved combat effectiveness and sped information collection and assessment needed for strategic decision-making. The merged command was responsible for both early warning of and defense against missile attack as well as long-range strategic attacks. President Bush signed Change Two to the Unified Command Plan on (command and control, communications, computers, intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance). This unique combination of roles, capabilities, and authorities under a single unified command brought new opportunities in the strategic arena, in addition to further refining the global opportunities to support the regional combatant commanders. The command's reorganization also allowed for a more centralized command and control of the nation's space-based assets and ensured nearly every military space asset was represented in the new USSTRATCOM, broadening the scope of personnel assigned to the command, to include more Army soldiers and Marines, in supporting the full spectrum of military operations. The new command provided a single commander, with a global perspective, to support the President. It enabled better intelligence collection, assessment and planning, thereby improving the situational awareness required for strategic decision-making by the President and Secretary of Defense. Commanders
SEE ALSO EXTERNAL LINKS BIBLIOGRAPHY Johnson, Spencer (September 2002). “ The Unified Command Plan .” Joint Forces Quarterly |
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