AFRICOM to choose headquarters by next fall

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AFRICOM to choose headquarters by next fall
By Leo Shane III, Stars and Stripes
Mideast edition, Friday, November 16, 2007

WASHINGTON — U.S. Africa Command officials will decide on the location for a new on-continent headquarters by next fall, but cautioned that they don’t want to rush the process.

“The key is, how does the command operate, and not where it is,” Ryan Henry, principal deputy undersecretary of defense for policy, told members of the House Armed Services Committee on Wednesday.

“The worst thing we could do is rush into a bricks-and-mortar solution that has a lot of (military construction) associated with it but lacks adaptability.”

Henry said Secretary of Defense Robert Gates has set the end of fiscal 2008 as the deadline for a decision on the command’s first African presence, although he cautioned the initial location may not be the long-term continental base.

Both he and AFRICOM Commander Gen. William “Kip” Ward said they are not concerned about finding a willing partner for the headquarters.

“There are a number of countries that have come forward, one publicly and several privately, that have asked us to consider them,” Henry said. “We don’t feel we want for places for a headquarters.”


Rest of article at: http://stripes.com/article.asp?section=104&article=50301