Source:
New York TimesLibya Crisis Thrusts U.S. Africa Command Into Leadership RoleBy ERIC SCHMITT
Published: March 22, 2011
WASHINGTON —
When the United States Africa Command was created four years ago, it was the military’s first “smart power” command. It has no assigned troops and no headquarters in Africa itself, and one of its two top deputies is a seasoned American diplomat. Indeed, the command, known as Africom, is intended largely to train and assist the armed forces of 53 African nations and to work with the State Department and other American agencies to strengthen social, political and economic programs in the region, including improving H.I.V. awareness in African militaries and removing land mines.
Now the young, untested command and its new boss, Gen. Carter F. Ham, find themselves at their headquarters in Stuttgart, Germany,
setting aside public diplomacy talks and other civilian-military duties to lead the initial phase of a complex, multinational shooting war with Libya. “Are they up to the task?” said Kenneth J. Menkhaus, an Africa specialist at Davidson College in North Carolina. “So far, I’d say yes. Down the road, though, if it gets messier, it’ll test the capacity of Africom.
This is certainly a baptism by fire.”
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http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/23/world/africa/23command.html