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The Military of the United States, also known as the ''' United States Armed Forces ''', is structured into five branches consisting of the:
All branches are part of the United States Uniformed Services and are under Civilian control with the President Of The United States serving as Commander-in-Chief . All branches except the Coast Guard are part of the Department Of Defense , which is under the authority of the Secretary Of Defense , who is also a civilian. The Coast Guard falls under the authority of the Department Of Homeland Security . During wartime, the Coast Guard may be placed under the Department of Defense through the Department Of The Navy in times of need acting as a service to the Navy.The United States Coast Guard has both military and law enforcement functions. Title 14, United States Code, Section 1, states "The Coast Guard as established January 28, 1915, shall be a military service and a branch of the armed forces of the United States at all times." In peacetime it is part of the Department of Homeland Security, but in wartime falls under the operational command of the United States Navy. Coast Guard units, or ships of its predecessor service, the Revenue Cutter Service, have seen combat in every war of the United States since 1790, including the U.S. occupation of Iraq. Approximately 1,426,713 personnel are currently on active duty in the military with an additional 1,259,000 personnel in the seven (Coast Guard) and the Civil Air Patrol (Air Force). As it is currently a Volunteer Military , there is no Conscription . Women are not allowed to serve in some combat assignments, but they are allowed to serve in most non-combat specialties. Due to the realities of war some of these non-combat positions see combat regularly. 1 Much of U.S. military capability is involved in Logistics and transportation, which enable rapid buildup of forces as needed. The Air Force maintains a large fleet of C-5 Galaxy , C-17 Globemaster , and C-130 Hercules transportation aircraft with an equally large fleet of Aerial Refuelling tankers. The Marine Corps maintains Marine Expeditionary Unit s at sea with the Navy 's Atlantic and Pacific Fleets. The Navy's fleet of 11 active Aircraft Carrier s, combined with a Military Doctrine of power projection, enables a flexible response to potential threats. For these reasons, the United States military is near-universally considered the most powerful in the world. ORGANIZATION Under the United States Constitution , the President Of The United States is the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces. To coordinate military action with diplomatic action, the President has an advisory National Security Council headed by a National Security Advisor . Under the President is the United States Secretary Of Defense , a Cabinet Secretary responsible for the Department Of Defense . Both the President and Secretary of Defense are advised by the Joint Chiefs Of Staff composed of the service chiefs and led by the Chairman Of The Joint Chiefs Of Staff and the Vice Chairman Of The Joint Chiefs Of Staff . The Goldwater-Nichols Department Of Defense Reorganization Act Of 1986 (PL 99-433) reworked the command structure of the United States military, introducing the most sweeping changes to the United States Department Of Defense since it was established in the National Security Act Of 1947 . The Goldwater-Nichols Reorganization Act was signed into law by President Ronald Reagan on October 1 , 1986 . The Goldwater-Nichols Act streamlined the military Chain Of Command , which now runs from the President through the Secretary Of Defense directly to Unified Combat Command ers, bypassing the Joint Chiefs Of Staff , who were assigned to an advisory role. Each service is responsible for organizing, training and equipping military units for the commanders of the various Unified Commands. National Command organizational chart Joint Chiefs of Staff The four Service Chiefs together with the Chairman and Vice Chairman form the Joint Chiefs Of Staff . Unified Combatant Commands There are 10 Unified Combatant Command s: six geographic and four functional. Until 2007, five geographical commands were given responsibilities for United States military operations in various areas of the world as shown on the following map.
(USAFRICOM) showing its creation from parts of USEUCOM , USCENTCOM and USPACOM . (Click to see enlarged image.)]] Beginning in 2007, a new Geographical Command For Africa was authorized. This proposed significant changes to the areas of responsibility for other adjacent geographical commands as shown in the accompanying graphic. The United States military is Ranked Second Largest In The World , behind China , and has troops deployed around the globe. As in most militaries, members of the U.S. Armed Forces hold a Rank , either Officer or Enlisted , and can be promoted. Personnel in each service ''As of April 30, 2007 (women as of September 2006)'' Personnel deployed See Also: Deployments of the United States Military Overseas | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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