ABSTRACT
This chapter reviews and addresses the origins of the command, the reasons for its creation, United States (US) Africa Command (AFRICOM) actions, and offers an assessment of the command. During the Cold War, US foreign policy towards Africa was frequently viewed through a lens of Soviet containment and the use of proxies. From a Department of Defence (DOD) perspective, most activity was in support of friendly regimes that offered to counter Soviet expansion and seldom involved many US troops. A “Combatant Command” is a US DOD term that applies to multi- service geographic military commands responsible for existing or potential defence plans and operations. Prior to the creation of AFRICOM, the US military had a very small presence on the continent, limited largely to a handful of military personnel employed in attache or security cooperation tasks in diplomatic missions around Africa. The one exception was the Combined Joint Task Force-Horn of Africa based in Djibouti.
