West Coast units U.S. military units on the West Coast will remain under the Hawaii-based Pacific Command for now, despite the creation of a new Northern Command to protect the U.S. mainland and Alaska, Pentagon officials said today.
to remain with
Pacific Command
Hawaii and Alaska senators
had objected to placing the units
under the new Northern CommandBy David Briscoe
Associated Press WriterU.S. senators from Hawaii and Alaska had criticized proposals to move Navy and Marine forces in Washington and California to the new Northern Command announced by Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld. The new homeland command is to cover the continental United States and Alaska but not Hawaii.
Asked about West Coast units today at the Pentagon, Army Lt. Gen. George Casey said, "They remain with U.S. PaCom," referring to the Pacific Command. Casey briefed reporters after Rumsfeld announced the broader changes. Rumsfeld did not mention Hawaii in his announcement.
Citing forces in Alaska, Casey said, "The capabilities of those forces are not necessarily needed in support of U.S. Northern Command."
Alaska, Mexico, the Caribbean and Cuba -- but not Hawaii -- were included in maps of the new homeland command's area of responsibility.
U.S. Rep. Neil Abercrombie, D-Hawaii, called for a congressional hearing before the Pentagon creates the new combatant command for North America, saying "congressional notification from the Department of Defense has not fully explained the rationale underlying this fundamental shift in U.S. defense organization."
Sen. Daniel Akaka, D-Hawaii, cautioned against shortchanging the Pacific and Hawaii in homeland defense plans.
"It is imperative that the U.S. military sustain its forward commitment to our allies and partners in the Pacific, Akaka said.
"Many issues and challenges" remain as the new command revises U.S. defenses, Akaka said. The Pacific Command, "which retains responsibility for the homeland security of the State of Hawaii and the Pacific Territories, must work closely with Northcom as homeland security priorities for the United States are developed," Akaka said in a statement.
A Pentagon spokesman, Maj. Mike Halbig, said a decision would likely would be made on command assignments for forces on the West Coast around October, either just before or after setup of the new Northern Command which Rumsfeld said would begin operation Oct. 1, likely out of Peterson Air Force Base in Colorado.
One plan, Halbig said, would be for West Coast forces to be placed under the Joint Forces Command in Norfolk, Va., which currently provides Army, Navy, Air Force and Marine forces for Atlantic security as well as other missions.
That option would make the new homeland military operation in Colorado "an austere type command" that could call on forces from joint commands to protect any part of the country, Halbig said.
Sens. Daniel Inouye, D-Hawaii, and Ted Stevens, R-Alaska, had joined Pacific Command chief Adm. Dennis Blair in opposing plans to move the California and Washington units out of the Pacific Command.
Inouye said such a change would be viewed as a reduction of U.S. interest in the Pacific region and Blair said it could reduce relations the units had established with Asian allies.
The new plan calls for the Pacific Command to add Antarctica to its geographic area of responsibility, although that is not likely to involve military operations. The Pacific Command also will manage military-to-military relations with the Far East military districts of Russia.
Under the existing command arrangement set up after World War II, responsibility for U.S. territory was shared to by numerous commands.
In the new plan, the Northern Command will have overall responsibility within the military for homeland defense. On the civilian side, it will coordinate with the White House's Office of Homeland Defense.