| United States Central Command (CENTCOM) | |
|---|---|
 Emblem of the United States Central Command | |
| Founded | January 1, 1983 (42 years, 10 months ago) |
| Country |  United States |
| Type | Unified combatant command |
| Role | Geographic combatant command |
| Part of | United States Department of Defense |
| Headquarters | MacDill Air Force Base Florida, U.S. |
| Motto | Persistent Excellence[1] |
| Engagements | Gulf War Iraq War (2003-2011) War in Afghanistan (2001–2021) Operation Inherent Resolve |
| Website | www.centcom.mil |
| Commanders | |
| Commander | AdmiralCharles B. Cooper II,USN[2] |
| Deputy Commander | MajGenSean M. Salene,USMC |
| Senior Enlisted Leader | Fleet Master Chief Lateef Compton,USN[3] |
| Insignia | |
| Shoulder Sleeve Insignia |  |
| NATO Map Symbol[4][5] |  -_AA_-_Central_Command_(FM_1-02%2c_2004_September_21).svg) |
| Unit Flag |  |
| United States Armed Forces |
|---|
 |
| Executive departments |
| Staff |
| Military departments |
| Military services |
| Command structure |
TheUnited States Central Command (USCENTCOM orCENTCOM) is one of the elevenunified combatant commands of theU.S. Department of Defense. It was established in 1983, taking over the previous responsibilities of theRapid Deployment Joint Task Force (RDJTF).
Itsarea of responsibility (AOR) includes theMiddle East (includingEgypt inAfrica),Central Asia and parts ofSouth Asia. The command has been the main American presence in many military operations, including thePersian Gulf War's Operation Desert Storm in 1991, thewar in Afghanistan, as well as theIraq War from 2003 to 2011. As of 2015[update], CENTCOM forces were deployed primarily in Afghanistan under the auspices ofOperation Freedom's Sentinel, which was itself part of NATO's Resolute Support Mission (from 2015 to 2021), and in Iraq and Syria as part ofOperation Inherent Resolve since 2014 in supporting and advise-and-assist roles.
As of 8 August 2025[update], CENTCOM's commander isAdmiralBrad Cooper,U.S. Navy.[6] Two of the last threeUnited States secretaries of defense –Lloyd Austin andJames Mattis, both of whom required congressional waivers to be confirmed – were recent CENTCOM commanders.[7]
Of all seven American regional unified combatant commands, CENTCOM is among four that are headquartered outside their area of operations (the other three beingUSAFRICOM,USSOUTHCOM, andUSSPACECOM). CENTCOM's main headquarters is located atMacDill Air Force Base, inTampa, Florida. A forward headquarters was established in 2002 atCamp As Sayliyah inDoha, Qatar, which in 2009 transitioned to a forward headquarters atAl Udeid Air Base inQatar.
In January 2021,Israel became the 21st country of the CENTCOM AOR, added to another 20 nations includingAfghanistan,Bahrain,Egypt,Iran,Iraq,Jordan,Kazakhstan,Kuwait,Kyrgyzstan,Lebanon,Oman,Pakistan, Qatar,Saudi Arabia,Syria,Tajikistan,Turkmenistan, theUnited Arab Emirates,Uzbekistan andYemen.[8][9]
The command was established on 1 January 1983.[10] As its name implies, CENTCOM covers the "central" area of the globe located between then European and Pacific Commands (PACOM). (Changes since 1983 have seen the creation of Africa Command and change of title for PACOM to Indo-Pacific Command.) When thehostage crisis in Iran and theSoviet invasion of Afghanistan underlined the need to strengthen the U.S. presence in the region, PresidentJimmy Carter established theRapid Deployment Joint Task Force (RDJTF) in March 1980. Steps were taken to transform the RDJTF into a permanent unified command over a two-year period. The first step was to make the RDJTF independent ofU.S. Readiness Command, followed by the activation of CENTCOM in January 1983.
The command was configured to fight both the Soviets if necessary, and assure other U.S. interests in the area. In 1980,Saddam Hussein ofIraq invaded Iran, beginning theIran–Iraq War. The war risked interruptions to the oil supply route out of thePersian Gulf/Arabian Gulf through theStrait of Hormuz. Developments like Iranian mining operations in the Gulf led to CENTCOM's first combat operations. On 17 May 1987,USS Stark, conducting operations in the Persian Gulf,was struck by Exocet missiles fired by an Iraqi aircraft, resulting in 37 casualties. Soon afterward, as part of what became known as the "Tanker War", theFederal government of the United States reflagged and renamed 11Kuwaiti oil tankers. InOperation Earnest Will, these tankers were escorted by USCENTCOM'sMiddle East Force through the Persian Gulf to Kuwait and back through theStrait of Hormuz.[10]
By late 1988, the regional strategy still largely focused on the potential threat of a massiveSoviet invasion of Iran.Exercise Internal Look has been one of CENTCOM's primary planning events. It had frequently been used to train CENTCOM to be ready to defend theZagros Mountains from a Soviet attack and was held annually.[11]
In autumn 1989, the main CENTCOM contingency plan, OPLAN 1002-88, assumed a Soviet attack through Iran to the Persian Gulf. The plan called for five-and-two-thirds US divisions to deploy, mostly light and heavy forces at something less than full strength (apportioned to it by the Joint Strategic Capability Plan [JSCAP]). The original plan called for these five-and-two-thirds divisions to march from the Persian Gulf to theZagros Mountains and prevent theSoviet Ground Forces (army) from seizing theIranian oil fields.[12][13]
After 1990, GeneralNorman Schwarzkopf reoriented CENTCOM's planning to fend off a threat from Iraq, and Internal Look moved to a biennial schedule. There was a notable similarity between the 1990 Internal Look exercise scripts and the real-world movement of Iraqi forces which culminated in Iraq'sinvasion of Kuwait during the final days of the exercise.[11] U.S. PresidentGeorge Bush responded quickly. A timely deployment of forces and the formation of a coalition deterred Iraq from invadingSaudi Arabia, and the command began to focus on the liberation of Kuwait. The buildup of forces continued, reinforced byUnited Nations Security Council Resolution 678, which called for Iraqi forces to leave Kuwait. On 17 January 1991, U.S. and coalition forces launchedOperation Desert Storm with a massive air interdiction campaign, which prepared the theater for a coalition ground assault. The primary coalition objective, the liberation of Kuwait, was achieved on 27 February, and the next morning a ceasefire was declared, just one hundred hours after the commencement of the ground campaign.
The end of formal hostilities did not bring the end of difficulties with Iraq.Operation Provide Comfort, implemented to provide humanitarian assistance to the Kurds and enforce a"no-fly" zone in Iraq, north of the 36th parallel, began in April 1991. In August 1992,Operation Southern Watch began in response to Saddam's noncompliance withUnited Nations Security Council Resolution 688 condemning his brutal repression of Iraqi civilians in southeastern Iraq. Under the command and control of Joint Task Force Southwest Asia, coalition forces in this operation enforced a no-fly zone south of the 32nd parallel. In January 1997,Operation Northern Watch replaced Provide Comfort, with a focus on enforcing the northern no-fly zone. Throughout the decade, CENTCOM carried out a string of operations – Vigilant Warrior,Vigilant Sentinel,Desert Strike, Desert Thunder (I and II), andDesert Fox – to try to coerce Saddam into greater compliance with U.S. wishes.
The 1990s also brought significant challenges inSomalia as well as from the growing threat of regional terrorism. To prevent widespread starvation as theSomali Civil War continued, CENTCOM beganOperation Provide Relief in 1992 to supply humanitarian assistance to Somalia and northeasternKenya. CENTCOM'sOperation Restore Hope supportedUnited Nations Security Council Resolution 794 and a multinational Unified Task Force, which provided security until the U.N. createdUNOSOM II in May 1993. In spite of some UNOSOM II success in the countryside, the situation inMogadishu worsened, and the significant casualties of theBattle of Mogadishu ultimately led PresidentBill Clinton to order the withdrawal of all U.S. troops from Somalia.
Throughout the 1990s, following the Gulf War, terrorist attacks had a major impact on CENTCOM forces. Faced with attacks such as the1996 bombing of the Khobar Towers, which killed 19 American airmen, the command launched Operation Desert Focus, designed to relocate U.S. installations to more defensible locations (such asPrince Sultan Air Base), reduce the U.S. forward "footprint" by eliminating nonessential billets, and return dependents to the United States. In 1998 terroristsattacked the U.S. embassies in Kenya andTanzania, killing 250 persons, including 12 Americans. The October 2000attack on the USSCole, resulting in the deaths of 17 U.S. sailors, was linked toOsama bin Laden'sAl Qaida organization.
From April to July 1999, CENTCOM conducted ExerciseDesert Crossing 1999, centered on the scenario ofSaddam Hussein being ousted as Iraq's dictator. It was held in the offices ofBooz Allen Hamilton inMcLean, Virginia.[14] The exercise concluded that unless measures were taken, "fragmentation and chaos" would ensue after Saddam Hussein's overthrow.
TheSeptember 11 terrorist attacks on New York and Washington DC led PresidentGeorge W. Bush to declare a war against international terrorism. CENTCOM soon launchedOperation Enduring Freedom to expel the Taliban government in Afghanistan, which was harboring Al Qaida terrorists and hosting terrorist training camps.
Exercise Internal Look has been employed for explicit war planning on at least two occasions: Internal Look '90, which dealt with a threat from Iraq, and Internal Look '03, which was used to plan what became Operation Iraqi Freedom - the 2003United States invasion of Iraq, which began on 19 March 2003. In the process, the existing operations plan, OPLAN 1003–98, aka 1003V, which had called for 500,000 troops for the invasion and control of Iraq, was radically slimmed down.[15]
Following the defeat of both the Taliban regime in Afghanistan (9 November 2001) and Saddam Hussein's government in Iraq (8 April 2003), CENTCOM remained controlling the U.S. forces deployed there. U.S. forces were withdrawn from Iraq in 2010 (but returned years later); and were withdrawn from Afghanistan in 2021.
Beginning in October 2002, CENTCOM conducted operations in theHorn of Africa.Combined Joint Task Force - Horn of Africa was established to carry these activities out. These operations involved a series ofSpecial Operations Forces raids, humanitarian assistance, consequence management, and a variety of civic action programs.
The command has also remained poised to provide disaster relief throughout the region; its most recent significant relief operations have been a response to the October 2005 earthquake inPakistan, and the large-scale evacuation of American citizens fromLebanon in 2006.
On 1 October 2008, the Department of Defense transferred responsibility forSudan,Eritrea,Ethiopia,Djibouti, Kenya, and Somalia to the newly established Africa Command.Egypt, home toExercise Bright Star, the Department of Defense's largest reoccurring military exercise, remained in the CENTCOMArea of Responsibility. On 15 January 2021, responsibility forIsrael was transferred from Europe Command to CENTCOM.[16]
In January 2015, CENTCOM's Twitter feed was reported to have been hacked on 11 January byISIS sympathizers.[17] This situation lasted for less than one hour; no classified information was posted and "none of the information posted came from CENTCOM's server or social media sites";[18] however, some of the slides came from the federally fundedLincoln Laboratory at theMassachusetts Institute of Technology.[17] In August 2015,intelligence analysts working for CENTCOM complained to the media, alleging that CENTCOM's senior leadership was altering or distorting intelligence reports on the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant. In February 2017, the Inspector General of theUnited States Department of Defense completed its investigation and cleared the senior leadership of CENTCOM, concluding that "allegations of intelligence being intentionally altered, delayed or suppressed by top CENTCOM officials from mid-2014 to mid-2015 were largely unsubstantiated."[19]
In January 2018,Turkey urged the United States to remove its troops fromSyrian city ofManbij, saying that otherwise they might come under attack from Turkish troops; however, former CENTCOM commanderJoseph Votel confirmed an American commitment to keeping troops in Manbij.[20] In 2019, the Iranian government designated Central Command a terrorist organization after theTrump administration branded Iran'sIslamic Revolutionary Guard Corps with the same label.[21]
CENTCOM's main headquarters is located atMacDill Air Force Base, inTampa, Florida. CENTCOM headquarters staff directorates include personnel, intelligence, operations, logistics, plans & policy, information systems, training & exercises, and resources, and other functions. The intelligence section is known as Joint Intelligence Center, Central Command, or JICCENT, which serves as aJoint Intelligence Center for the co-ordination ofintelligence. Under the intelligence directorate, there are several divisions including theAfghanistan-Pakistan Center of Excellence.
CENTCOM directs five "service component commands" and onesubordinate unified command:
| Emblem | Command | Acronym | Commander | Established | Headquarters | Subordinate Commands |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Special Operations Command Central[27] | SOCCENT | Major GeneralJasper Jeffers III,USA | Macdill Air Force Base,Florida |
Two major subordinate multi-service commands reporting to Central Command were responsible for Afghanistan:Combined Joint Task Force 180 and Combined Forces Command Afghanistan (CFC-A). CFC-A was disestablished in February 2007.[28] From that point onward, theInternational Security Assistance Force (ISAF) directed most U.S. forces in Afghanistan. A U.S. general (Dan K. McNeill) assumed command of ISAF that same month.[29]
Temporary task forces include the Central Command Forward – Jordan (CF-J), which was announced in April 2013.[30] CF-J's stated purpose was to work with the Jordanian armed forces to improve the latter's capabilities.[30] There was speculation, however, that another reason for its establishment was to serve as a base from which raids into Syria could be launched to seize Syrian WMD if necessary, and as a launch pad for looming American military action in Syria.[31][32][33]
On 1 October 2008Combined Joint Task Force - Horn of Africa atCamp Lemonnier in Djibouti was transferred toUnited States Africa Command (USAFRICOM).[34] TheUnited States Forces – Iraq or USF-I, was a major subordinate multi-service command during theIraq War order of battle until it was disestablished in 2011.[citation needed]
.jpg)
Elements of otherUnified Combatant Commands, especiallyUnited States Special Operations Command (USSOCOM), operate in the CENTCOM area. It appears that SOCCENT doesnot direct the secretiveTask Force 88, the ad-hoc grouping ofJoint Special Operations Command 'black' units such asDelta Force andArmy Rangers, which is tasked to pursue the most sensitive high-value targets such as Al Qaeda and the Taliban leadership since 11 September 2001. Rather, TF 77, which started out asTask Force 11 and has gone through a number of name/number changes, reports directly toJoint Special Operations Command, part of USSOCOM.[citation needed]
As of 2015[update], CENTCOM forces are deployed primarily in Iraq and Afghanistan in combat roles and have support roles at bases inKuwait,Bahrain,Qatar, theUnited Arab Emirates,Oman, andcentral Asia. CENTCOM forces have also been deployed in Jordan and Saudi Arabia.
The following war plan numbers have been made public:[35]
Others listed by Arkin's supplements include CENTCOM CONPLAN 1211-07 "Foreign Humanitarian Assistance / Disaster Response Operations." It was issued in November 2007, and required using the Request for Forces method via then-U.S. Joint Forces Command to supply any required forces.[40]
With the 1983 establishment of CENTCOM Egypt, Sudan, Kenya, Ethiopia, Somalia, and Djibouti came within thearea of responsibility (AOR). Thus CENTCOM directed the 'Natural Bond' exercises with Sudan, the 'Eastern Wind' exercises with Somalia, and the 'Jade Tiger' exercises with Oman, Somalia, and Sudan. Exercise Jade Tiger involved the31st Marine Expeditionary Unit with Oman from 29 November 1982 to 8 December 1982.[41]
On 7 February 2007, plans were announced for the creation of aUnited States Africa Command which transferred responsibility for U.S. military operations across Africa to the new USAFRICOM, except for Egypt. On 1 October 2008, the Africa Command became operational andCombined Joint Task Force-Horn of Africa, the primary CENTCOM force on the continent, started reporting to AFRICOM atStuttgart instead of CENTCOM in Tampa.
The Department of Defense uses a variable number of base locations depending on its level of operations. With ongoing warfare in Iraq and Afghanistan in 2003, theUnited States Air Force used 35 bases, while in 2006 it used 14, including four in Iraq. TheUnited States Navy maintains one major base and one smaller installation, with extensive deployments afloat and ashore by U.S. Navy,U.S. Marine Corps andU.S. Coast Guard ships, aviation units and ground units.
.jpg)
| No. | Commander | Term | Service branch | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Portrait | Name | Took office | Left office | Term length | ||
| 1 |  | Kingston, RobertGeneral Robert Kingston (1928–2007) | 1 January 1983 | 27 November 1985 | 2 years, 330 days |  U.S. Army |
| 2 |  | Crist, George B.General George B. Crist (1931–2024) | 27 November 1985 | 23 November 1988 | 2 years, 362 days |  U.S. Marine Corps |
| 3 |  | Schwarzkopf, H. Norman Jr.General Norman Schwarzkopf Jr. (1934–2012) | 23 November 1988 | 9 August 1991 | 2 years, 259 days | U.S. Army |
| 4 |  | Hoar, Joseph P.General Joseph P. Hoar (1934–2022) | 9 August 1991 | 5 August 1994 | 2 years, 361 days | U.S. Marine Corps |
| 5 |  | Peay, J. H. Binford IIIGeneral J. H. Binford Peay III (born 1940) | 5 August 1994 | 13 August 1997 | 3 years, 8 days | U.S. Army |
| 6 |  | Zinni, AnthonyGeneral Anthony Zinni (born 1943) | 13 August 1997 | 6 July 2000 | 2 years, 328 days | U.S. Marine Corps |
| 7 |  | Franks, TommyGeneral Tommy Franks (born 1945) | 6 July 2000 | 7 July 2003 | 3 years, 1 day | U.S. Army |
| 8 |  | Abizaid, JohnGeneral John Abizaid (born 1951) | 7 July 2003 | 16 March 2007 | 3 years, 252 days | U.S. Army |
| 9 |  | Fallon, William J.Admiral William J. Fallon (born 1944) | 16 March 2007 | 28 March 2008 | 1 year, 12 days |  U.S. Navy |
| – |  | Dempsey, MartinLieutenant General Martin Dempsey (born 1952) Acting | 28 March 2008 | 31 October 2008 | 217 days | U.S. Army |
| 10 |  | Petraeus, DavidGeneral David Petraeus (born 1952) | 31 October 2008 | 30 June 2010 | 1 year, 242 days | U.S. Army |
| – |  | Allen, John R.Lieutenant General John R. Allen (born 1953) Acting | 30 June 2010 | 11 August 2010 | 42 days | U.S. Marine Corps |
| 11 |  | Mattis, JimGeneral Jim Mattis (born 1950) | 11 August 2010 | 22 March 2013 | 2 years, 223 days | U.S. Marine Corps |
| 12 |  | Austin, LloydGeneral Lloyd Austin (born 1953) | 22 March 2013 | 30 March 2016 | 3 years, 8 days | U.S. Army |
| 13 | .jpg) | Votel, JosephGeneral Joseph Votel (born 1958) | 30 March 2016 | 28 March 2019 | 2 years, 363 days | U.S. Army |
| 14 | .jpg) | McKenzie, Kenneth F. Jr.General Kenneth F. McKenzie Jr. (born 1957) | 28 March 2019 | 1 April 2022 | 3 years, 4 days | U.S. Marine Corps |
| 15 | .jpg) | Kurilla, MichaelGeneral Michael Kurilla (born 1966) | 1 April 2022 | 8 August 2025 | 3 years, 129 days | U.S. Army |
| 16 |  | Cooper, BradAdmiral Brad Cooper (born 1967) | 8 August 2025 | Incumbent | 107 days | U.S. Navy |
Two of the former U.S. Central Command Commanders would later serve asUnited States Secretary of Defense: GeneralJames Mattis and GeneralLloyd Austin. Mattis served as the 26th U.S. Secretary of Defense. Austin became the 28th U.S. Secretary of Defense on January 22, 2021, serving until January 20, 2025.[42]
The unit awards depicted below are for Headquarters, U.S. Central Command at MacDill AFB. Award for unit decorations do not apply to any subordinate organization such as the service component commands or any other activities unless the orders specifically address them.
| Award streamer | Award | Dates | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
 | Joint Meritorious Unit Award | 2 August 1990 – 21 April 1991 | Department of the Army General Order (DAGO) 1991-22 & 1992-34[43] |
| Joint Meritorious Unit Award | 1 August 1992 – 4 May 1993 | DAGO 1994-12 & 1996-01 |
| Joint Meritorious Unit Award | 8 October 1994 – 16 March 1995 | DAGO 2001–25 |
| Joint Meritorious Unit Award | 1 September 1996 – 6 January 1997 | Joint Staff Permanent Order (JSPO) J-ISO-0012-97 |
| Joint Meritorious Unit Award | 1 October 1997 – 15 July 1998 | JSPO J-1SO-0241-98 |
| Joint Meritorious Unit Award | 16 July 1998 – 1 November 1999 | JSPO J-1SO-0330-99 / DAGO 2001–25 |
| Joint Meritorious Unit Award | 2 November 1999 – 15 March 2001 | |
| Joint Meritorious Unit Award | 11 September 2001 – 1 May 2003 | DAGO 2005–09 |
| Joint Meritorious Unit Award | 2 May 2003 – 31 December 2005 | |
| Joint Meritorious Unit Award | 1 January 2006 – 1 March 2008 | JSPO J-1SO-0061-08 |
| Joint Meritorious Unit Award | 2 March 2008 – 1 July 2010 | |
| Joint Meritorious Unit Award | 2 July 2010 – 31 July 2012 |
| |||||||||||||
| Leadership |
| ||||||||||||
| Components |
| ||||||||||||
| Structure | |||||||||||||
| Operations andhistory |
| ||||||||||||
| Personnel |
| ||||||||||||
| Equipment |
| ||||||||||||
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
.svg)
.svg)
.png)
