Strategy: Pacific Command (PACOM)

U.S. Pacific Command Modifies Strategy (Honolulu Advertiser)…Richard Halloran

The U.S. Pacific Command, which controls American forces from the west coast of North America to the east coast of Africa, has fashioned a subtle revision in its strategy of reassuring friends and deterring potential enemies, notably China and North Korea.

*Officers of the Army, Navy, Marine Corps and Air Force in the Asia-Pacific region, some of whom apparently believe that conflict with China is likely, maybe inevitable. “The command wants to make sure that everyone understands that it is not inevitable,” said one officer.

“Deterring conflict on the Korean Peninsula continues to be a priority,” the strategy says. It points to a “maturing U.S.-China military-to-military relationship” while acknowledging that “tension remains across the Taiwan Strait.”

The revised strategy calls for a “whole of government approach,” asserting that security in the Asia-Pacific region “demands a high degree of coordination, integration, and unity of effort” within the Pentagon and across other departments and agencies.