Unified combatant command
The current system of unified commands in the U.S. military emerged during World War II with the establishment of geographic theaters of operation composed of forces from multiple service branches that reported to a single commander who was supported by a joint staff.
A truly unified command for the Pacific War proved more difficult to organize, as neither General of the Army Douglas MacArthur nor Fleet Admiral Chester W. Nimitz was willing to be subordinate to the other, for reasons of interservice rivalry.
[15] The Joint Chiefs of Staff continued to advocate in favor of establishing permanent unified commands, and President Harry S. Truman approved the first plan on 14 December 1946.
[19] This arrangement was formalized on 21 April 1948 as part of a policy paper titled the "Function of the Armed Forces and the Joint Chiefs of Staff" (informally known as the "Key West Agreement").
Although not part of the original plan, the Joint Chiefs of Staff also created specified commands that had broad and continuing missions but were composed of forces from only one service.
The relevant section of federal law, however, remains unchanged, and the President retains the power to establish a new specified command.
[25] The Goldwater–Nichols Defense Reorganization Act of 1986 clarified and codified responsibilities that commanders-in-chief (CINCs) undertook, and which were first given legal status in 1947.
Then-Secretary of Defense Dick Cheney announced in 1993 that the strategic command system should continue to evolve toward a joint global structure.
[27] The 1997 UCP assigned the former Soviet European republics and the whole of Russia to EUCOM which thus stretched from the Atlantic to the Pacific.
In 2009, it focused on synchronizing hundreds of activities inherited from three regional commands that previously coordinated U.S. military relations in Africa.
Each combatant command (CCMD) is headed by a four-star general or admiral (the CCDR) recommended by the Secretary of Defense, nominated for appointment by the President of the United States, confirmed by the Senate and commissioned, at the President's order, by the Secretary of Defense.
Although slowly changing, the JPME requirement still continues to be frequently waived in the case of senior admirals nominated for these positions.
Under Goldwater–Nichols, the service chiefs (also four stars in rank) are charged with the responsibility of the strategic direction; unified operation of combatant commands; and the integration of all land, naval, and air forces in an efficient "unified combatant command" force.
[42] They are created to conduct a portion of the mission or tasking of their parent geographic or functional command.
