1.
United States
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Forty-eight of the fifty states and the federal district are contiguous and located in North America between Canada and Mexico. The state of Alaska is in the northwest corner of North America, bordered by Canada to the east, the state of Hawaii is an archipelago in the mid-Pacific Ocean. The U. S. territories are scattered about the Pacific Ocean, the geography, climate and wildlife of the country are extremely diverse. At 3.8 million square miles and with over 324 million people, the United States is the worlds third- or fourth-largest country by area, third-largest by land area. It is one of the worlds most ethnically diverse and multicultural nations, paleo-Indians migrated from Asia to the North American mainland at least 15,000 years ago. European colonization began in the 16th century, the United States emerged from 13 British colonies along the East Coast. Numerous disputes between Great Britain and the following the Seven Years War led to the American Revolution. On July 4,1776, during the course of the American Revolutionary War, the war ended in 1783 with recognition of the independence of the United States by Great Britain, representing the first successful war of independence against a European power. The current constitution was adopted in 1788, after the Articles of Confederation, the first ten amendments, collectively named the Bill of Rights, were ratified in 1791 and designed to guarantee many fundamental civil liberties. During the second half of the 19th century, the American Civil War led to the end of slavery in the country. By the end of century, the United States extended into the Pacific Ocean. The Spanish–American War and World War I confirmed the status as a global military power. The end of the Cold War and the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991 left the United States as the sole superpower. The U. S. is a member of the United Nations, World Bank, International Monetary Fund, Organization of American States. The United States is a developed country, with the worlds largest economy by nominal GDP. It ranks highly in several measures of performance, including average wage, human development, per capita GDP. While the U. S. economy is considered post-industrial, characterized by the dominance of services and knowledge economy, the United States is a prominent political and cultural force internationally, and a leader in scientific research and technological innovations. In 1507, the German cartographer Martin Waldseemüller produced a map on which he named the lands of the Western Hemisphere America after the Italian explorer and cartographer Amerigo Vespucci
2.
United States Army
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The United States Armed Forces are the federal armed forces of the United States. They consist of the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, from the time of its inception, the military played a decisive role in the history of the United States. A sense of unity and identity was forged as a result of victory in the First Barbary War. Even so, the Founders were suspicious of a permanent military force and it played an important role in the American Civil War, where leading generals on both sides were picked from members of the United States military. Not until the outbreak of World War II did a standing army become officially established. The National Security Act of 1947, adopted following World War II and during the Cold Wars onset, the U. S. military is one of the largest militaries in terms of number of personnel. It draws its personnel from a pool of paid volunteers. As of 2016, the United States spends about $580.3 billion annually to fund its military forces, put together, the United States constitutes roughly 40 percent of the worlds military expenditures. For the period 2010–14, the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute found that the United States was the worlds largest exporter of major arms, the United States was also the worlds eighth largest importer of major weapons for the same period. The history of the U. S. military dates to 1775 and these forces demobilized in 1784 after the Treaty of Paris ended the War for Independence. All three services trace their origins to the founding of the Continental Army, the Continental Navy, the United States President is the U. S. militarys commander-in-chief. Rising tensions at various times with Britain and France and the ensuing Quasi-War and War of 1812 quickened the development of the U. S. Navy, the reserve branches formed a military strategic reserve during the Cold War, to be called into service in case of war. Time magazines Mark Thompson has suggested that with the War on Terror, Command over the armed forces is established in the United States Constitution. The sole power of command is vested in the President by Article II as Commander-in-Chief, the Constitution also allows for the creation of executive Departments headed principal officers whose opinion the President can require. This allowance in the Constitution formed the basis for creation of the Department of Defense in 1947 by the National Security Act, the Defense Department is headed by the Secretary of Defense, who is a civilian and member of the Cabinet. The Defense Secretary is second in the chain of command, just below the President. Together, the President and the Secretary of Defense comprise the National Command Authority, to coordinate military strategy with political affairs, the President has a National Security Council headed by the National Security Advisor. The collective body has only power to the President
3.
World War II
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World War II, also known as the Second World War, was a global war that lasted from 1939 to 1945, although related conflicts began earlier. It involved the vast majority of the worlds countries—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing alliances, the Allies and the Axis. It was the most widespread war in history, and directly involved more than 100 million people from over 30 countries. Marked by mass deaths of civilians, including the Holocaust and the bombing of industrial and population centres. These made World War II the deadliest conflict in human history, from late 1939 to early 1941, in a series of campaigns and treaties, Germany conquered or controlled much of continental Europe, and formed the Axis alliance with Italy and Japan. Under the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact of August 1939, Germany and the Soviet Union partitioned and annexed territories of their European neighbours, Poland, Finland, Romania and the Baltic states. In December 1941, Japan attacked the United States and European colonies in the Pacific Ocean, and quickly conquered much of the Western Pacific. The Axis advance halted in 1942 when Japan lost the critical Battle of Midway, near Hawaii, in 1944, the Western Allies invaded German-occupied France, while the Soviet Union regained all of its territorial losses and invaded Germany and its allies. During 1944 and 1945 the Japanese suffered major reverses in mainland Asia in South Central China and Burma, while the Allies crippled the Japanese Navy, thus ended the war in Asia, cementing the total victory of the Allies. World War II altered the political alignment and social structure of the world, the United Nations was established to foster international co-operation and prevent future conflicts. The victorious great powers—the United States, the Soviet Union, China, the United Kingdom, the Soviet Union and the United States emerged as rival superpowers, setting the stage for the Cold War, which lasted for the next 46 years. Meanwhile, the influence of European great powers waned, while the decolonisation of Asia, most countries whose industries had been damaged moved towards economic recovery. Political integration, especially in Europe, emerged as an effort to end pre-war enmities, the start of the war in Europe is generally held to be 1 September 1939, beginning with the German invasion of Poland, Britain and France declared war on Germany two days later. The dates for the beginning of war in the Pacific include the start of the Second Sino-Japanese War on 7 July 1937, or even the Japanese invasion of Manchuria on 19 September 1931. Others follow the British historian A. J. P. Taylor, who held that the Sino-Japanese War and war in Europe and its colonies occurred simultaneously and this article uses the conventional dating. Other starting dates sometimes used for World War II include the Italian invasion of Abyssinia on 3 October 1935. The British historian Antony Beevor views the beginning of World War II as the Battles of Khalkhin Gol fought between Japan and the forces of Mongolia and the Soviet Union from May to September 1939, the exact date of the wars end is also not universally agreed upon. It was generally accepted at the time that the war ended with the armistice of 14 August 1945, rather than the formal surrender of Japan
4.
Battle of Okinawa
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The 82-day-long battle lasted from 1 April until 22 June 1945. The Tenth was unique in that it had its own air force. The battle has been referred to as the typhoon of steel in English, the nicknames refer to the ferocity of the fighting, the intensity of Japanese kamikaze attacks, and the sheer numbers of Allied ships and armored vehicles that assaulted the island. The battle was one of the bloodiest in the Pacific, with an total of over 82,000 direct casualties on both sides,14,009 Allied deaths and 77,417 Japanese soldiers. Allied grave registration forces counted 110,071 dead bodies of Japanese soldiers,149,425 Okinawans were killed, committed suicide or went missing, a significant proportion of the estimated pre-war 300,000 local population. As part of the operations surrounding the battle, the Japanese battleship Yamato was sunk. After the battle, Okinawa provided an anchorage, troop staging areas. Expeditionary Troops under Lieutenant General Simon Bolivar Buckner, Jr. with Tenth Army, TF56 was the largest force within TF50 and was built around the 10th Army. The army had two corps under its command, III Amphibious Corps, consisting of 1st and 6th Marine Divisions, the 2nd Marine Division was an afloat reserve, and Tenth Army also controlled the 27th Infantry Division, earmarked as a garrison, and 77th Infantry Divisions. In all, the Army had over 102,000 soldiers, at the start of Battle of Okinawa 10th Army had 182,821 men under its command. It was planned that General Buckner would report to Turner until the phase was completed. Although Allied land forces were composed of U. S. units. Although all the carriers were provided by Britain, the carrier group was a combined British Commonwealth fleet with British, Canadian, New Zealand and Australian ships. Their mission was to neutralize Japanese airfields in the Sakishima Islands, most of the air-to-air fighters and the small dive bombers and strike aircraft were U. S. Navy carrier-based airplanes. The Japanese land campaign was conducted by the 67, 000-strong regular 32nd Army and some 9,000 Imperial Japanese Navy troops at Oroku naval base, supported by 39,000 drafted local Ryukyuan people. The Japanese had used kamikaze tactics since the Battle of Leyte Gulf, between the American landing on 1 April and 25 May, seven major kamikaze attacks were attempted, involving more than 1,500 planes. The 32nd Army initially consisted of the 9th, 24th, and 62nd Divisions, the 9th Division was moved to Taiwan prior to the invasion, resulting in shuffling of Japanese defensive plans. Primary resistance was to be led in the south by Lt. General Mitsuru Ushijima, his chief of staff, Lieutenant General Isamu Chō and his chief of operations, Yahara advocated a defensive strategy, whilst Chō advocated an offensive one
5.
Battle of Leyte
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Japan had conquered the Philippines in 1942. Controlling it was vital for Japans survival in World War II because it commanded sea routes to Borneo and Sumatra by which rubber, for the US, capturing the Philippines was a key strategic step in isolating Imperial Japans military holdings in China and the Pacific theater. It was also a matter of pride for MacArthur. Those relief forces were non-existent, Roosevelts true intentions in ordering MacArthur to flee the Philippines had been to prevent his capture by the Japanese, still, MacArthur had vowed that he would return to the Philippines. He repeatedly stated that it was an obligation of the US to liberate the Philippines as soon as possible. In March 1944, the Joint Chiefs of Staff ordered MacArthur to plan an attack on the southern Philippines by the end of the year, halsey then recommended a direct strike on Leyte, canceling other planned operations, and the Leyte invasion date moved forward to October. Leyte, one of the islands of the Philippines, has numerous deep-water approaches and sandy beaches which offered opportunities for amphibious assaults. American air forces based on Leyte could strike at enemy bases, a heavily forested north-south mountain range dominates the interior and separates two sizable valleys, or coastal plains. The larger Leyte Valley extends from the northern coast to the eastern shore and contains most of the towns. This continued south to the port of Ormoc City, then along the shore to Baybay town. The road then turned east to cross the mountainous waist of the island, below these towns, the mountainous southern third of Leyte was mostly undeveloped. High mountain peaks over 4,400 ft, as well as the jagged outcroppings, ravines, the timing late in the year of the assault would force combat troops and supporting pilots, as well as logistical units, to contend with monsoon rains. Japanese troop strength on Leyte was estimated by US intelligence at 20,000, preliminary operations for the Leyte invasion began at dawn on 17 October with minesweeping tasks and the movement of the 6th Rangers toward three small islands in Leyte Gulf. Although delayed by a storm, the Rangers were on Suluan, on Suluan, they dispersed a small group of Japanese defenders and destroyed a radio station, while they found Dinagat unoccupied. The next day, the third island Homonhon, was taken without any opposition, on Dinagat and Homonhom, the Rangers proceeded to erect navigation lights for the amphibious transports to follow. Meanwhile, reconnaissance by underwater demolition teams revealed clear landing beaches for assault troops on Leyte, independently, the 21st Infantry Regiment on 20 Oct. landed on Panaon Strait to control the entrance to Sogod Bay. Following four hours of naval gunfire on A-day,20 October. X Corps pushed across a 4 mi stretch of beach between Tacloban airfield and the Palo River,15 mi to the south, XXIV Corps units came ashore across a 3 mi strand between San José and the Daguitan River
6.
NATO intervention in Bosnia and Herzegovina
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The NATO intervention in Bosnia and Herzegovina comprised a series of actions undertaken by NATO to establish, and then preserve, peace during and after the Bosnian War. While primarily symbolic, this statement paved the way for later NATO actions, on October 9,1992, the Security Council passed Resolution 781, establishing a no-fly zone over Bosnia-Herzegovina. In response, on October 16, NATO expanded its mission in the area to include Operation Sky Monitor, unlike Sky Monitor and Maritime Monitor, this was a true enforcement mission, not just a monitoring one. NATOs air mission also switched from monitoring to enforcement, the Security Council issued Resolution 816, which authorized states to use measures to ensure compliance with the no-fly zone over Bosnia. In response, on April 12,1993, NATO initiated Operation Deny Flight which was tasked with enforcing the no-fly zone, throughout 1993, the role of NATO forces in Bosnia gradually grew. On June 10,1993, NATO and the UN agreed that aircraft acting under Deny Flight would provide air support to UNPROFOR at the request of the UN. On June 15, NATO integrated Operation Maritime Guard and Western European Union naval activities in the region into Operation Sharp Guard, on February 28,1994, the scope of NATO involvement in Bosnia increased dramatically. In an incident near Banja Luka, NATO fighters operating under Deny Flight shot down four Serb jets and this was the first combat operation in the history of NATO and opened the door for a steadily growing NATO role in Bosnia. In April, the role of NATO airpower continued to grow during a Serb attack on Goražde, in response, NATO launched its first close air support mission on April 10,1994, bombing several Serb targets at the request of UN commanders. NATO launched several other limited air strikes throughout the year, acting in coordination with the United Nations, NATO continued its air operations over Bosnia in the first half of 1995. During this period, American pilot Scott OGrady was shot down over Bosnia by a missile fired by Bosnian Serb soldiers. In July 1995, the Bosnian Serbs launched an attack on the Bosnian town of Srebrenica, after the horrifying events at Srebrenica,16 nations met at the London Conference, beginning on July 21,1995, to consider new options for Bosnia. As a result of the conference, the North Atlantic Council, the participants at the conference also agreed in principle to the use of large-scale NATO air strikes in response to future acts of Serb aggression. After the London Conference, NATO planned a new air campaign against the Bosnian Serbs. On August 28,1995, Serb forces launched a mortar shell at the Sarajevo marketplace killing 37 people, admiral Leighton Smith, the NATO commander recommended that NATO launch retaliatory air strikes under Operation Deliberate Force. On August 30,1995, NATO officially launched Operation Deliberate Force with large-scale bombing of Serb targets, the bombing lasted until September 20,1995 and involved attacks on 338 individual targets. As part of the accords, NATO agreed to provide 60,000 peacekeepers for the region, in December 1995, under Operation Joint Endeavor, NATO deployed these forces. These forces remained deployed until December 1996, when those remaining in the region were transferred to the Stabilization Force, SFOR peacekeepers remained in Bosnia until 2004
7.
Stabilisation Force in Bosnia and Herzegovina
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The Stabilisation Force in Bosnia and Herzegovina was a NATO-led multinational peacekeeping force deployed to Bosnia and Herzegovina after the Bosnian war. Although SFOR was led by NATO, several non-NATO countries contributed troops and it was replaced by EUFOR Althea in December 2004. SFOR was established in Security Council Resolution 1088 on December 12,1996 and it succeeded the much larger Implementation Force IFOR which was deployed to Bosnia and Herzegovina on 20 December 1995 with a one-year mandate. During NATOs 2004 Istanbul Summit the end of the SFOR mission was announced and it was replaced by the European Unions EUFOR Althea, on 2 December 2004 at NATO HQ, Camp Butmir, Sarajevo, B-H. SFOR was divided into three zones of operation, Mostar MNB - Italian, Franco-German, Spanish Banja Luka MND - British, Canadian, the British code name for their activities in IFOR was Operation Resolute and SFOR was Operation Lodestar. Tuzla MND - American, Turkish, Polish, Russian, Norwegian, the three AOs were known collectively as Multi-National Divisions until the end of 2002 where they were reduced in scope to Multi-National Brigades. SFOR operated under peace enforcement, not peacekeeping, rules of engagement, for example, it was cleared, in 1997, to neutralize Serb radio-television facilities. During its mandate, SFOR arrested 29 individuals who were charged with war crimes and those arrested were transferred to the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia in the Netherlands. US service members serving in SFOR were awarded the Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal, SFOR operated as part of Operation Joint Guard and Operation Joint Forge. As time progressed, the numbers of troops allotted to SFOR declined, on December 2,2004, SFOR disbanded and its functions were assumed by military units from the European Union. SFOR operated under the code names Operation Joint Guard and Operation Joint Forge, NATO nations providing troops included, Non-NATO nations providing troops included, Phillips, R. Cody. Bosnia-Herzegovina, The U. S. Armys Role in Peace Enforcement Operations 1995-2004, united States Army Center of Military History. Measuring the success of the NATO operation in Bosnia and Herzegovina 1995–2000, official website US Air Force News article on Operation Joint Forge
8.
Kosovo Force
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The Kosovo Force is a North Atlantic Treaty Organisation-led international peacekeeping force which was responsible for establishing a secure environment in Kosovo. KFOR entered Kosovo on 12 June 1999, two days after the adoption of UN Security Council Resolution 1244, at the time, Kosovo was facing a grave humanitarian crisis, with military forces from the FRY and the KLA in daily engagement. According to NATO, Serb forces had committed ethnic cleansing of Kosovo Albanians, nearly one million people had fled Kosovo as refugees. KFOR has gradually transferred responsibilities to the Kosovo Police and other local authorities, as of 23 May 2016, KFOR consisted of 4,600 troops. The Contact Group countries have said publicly that KFOR will remain in Kosovo to provide the security necessary to support the provisions of a settlement of Kosovos status. KFOR contingents were originally grouped into 4 regionally based multinational brigades, the brigades were responsible for a specific area of operations, but under a single chain of command under the authority of Commander KFOR. At its height, KFOR troops numbered 50,000 and came from 39 different NATO and non-NATO nations, the official KFOR website indicated that in 2008 a total 14,000 soldiers from 34 countries were participating in KFOR. The following is a list of the number of troops which have participated in the KFOR mission. According to Amnesty International, most women trafficked into Kosovo from abroad are from Moldova, Romania, Bulgaria, since the KFOR entered Kosovo in June 1999,168 NATO soldiers have been killed, mostly in accidents. On 19 October 2004, it was confirmed that 115 NATO soldiers had killed during the operation. After that 50 more NATO soldiers were confirmed to have died, eight UNMIK police officers have been killed in Kosovo since 1999, in addition to the KFOR fatalities. The fatalities by country are,3 American,1 Indian,1 Jordanian,1 Nigerian,1 Ghanaian and 1 Ukrainian police officer, in July 2011, following the Kosovo Polices attempts to seize two border outposts and consequent clashes that followed, KFOR troops intervened. In 2013, KFOR was involved in an operation of the last restaurant bears in Kosovo. The bears are now kept at the Bear Sanctuary Prishtina, KFOR Placemap KFOR official site K-For, The task ahead First deaths in K-For operation Memorial honors soldiers sacrifices June 2002,68 soldiers have died since KFOR entered Kosovo. Nato force feeds Kosovo sex trade Radio KFOR
9.
War on Terror
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The War on Terror, also known as the Global War on Terrorism, is a metaphor of war referring to the international military campaign that started after the September 11th attacks on the United States. U. S. President George W. Bush first used the term War on Terror on 20 September 2001 and it was originally used with a particular focus on countries associated with Islamic terrorist organizations including al-Qaeda and like-minded organizations. In 2013, President Barack Obama announced that the United States was no longer pursuing a War on Terror, in 2017 Donald Trump assumed presidency of the United States and vowed that the fight against ISIL is his number one priority. Trump has also agreed to work together and carry joint operations with Russian President Vladimir Putin in the war on terror. The phrase War on Terror has been used to refer to the ongoing military campaign led by the U. S. The conflict has also referred to by names other than the War on Terror. Author Shane Harris asserts this was a reaction to the 1983 Beirut barracks bombing, Bush later apologized for this remark due to the negative connotations the term crusade has to people, e. g. of the Muslim faith. The word crusade was not used again, on 20 September 2001, during a televised address to a joint session of Congress, Bush stated that ur war on terror begins with al-Qaeda, but it does not end there. It will not end until every terrorist group of global reach has been found, stopped, in April 2007, the British government announced publicly that it was abandoning the use of the phrase War on Terror as they found it to be less than helpful. This was explained more recently by Lady Eliza Manningham-Buller, in her 2011 Reith lecture, the former head of MI5 said that the 9/11 attacks were a crime, not an act of war. So I never felt it helpful to refer to a war on terror. U. S. President Barack Obama has rarely used the term, in March 2009 the Defense Department officially changed the name of operations from Global War on Terror to Overseas Contingency Operation. In March 2009, the Obama administration requested that Pentagon staff members avoid the use of the term, basic objectives of the Bush administration war on terror, such as targeting al Qaeda and building international counterterrorism alliances, remain in place. Because the actions involved in the war on terrorism are diffuse, jackson cites among many examples a statement by John Ashcroft that the attacks of September 11 drew a bright line of demarcation between the civil and the savage. Administration officials also described terrorists as hateful, treacherous, barbarous, mad, twisted, perverted, without faith, parasitical, inhuman, Americans, in contrast, were described as brave, loving, generous, strong, resourceful, heroic, and respectful of human rights. The origins of al-Qaeda can be traced to the Soviet war in Afghanistan, a small number of Afghan Arab volunteers joined the fight against the Soviets, including Osama bin Laden, but there is no evidence they received any external assistance. On 7 August 1998, al-Qaeda struck the U. S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania, killing 224 people, the plant produced much of the regions antimalarial drugs and around 50% of Sudans pharmaceutical needs. The strikes failed to kill any leaders of WIFJAJC or the Taliban, next came the 2000 millennium attack plots, which included an attempted bombing of Los Angeles International Airport
10.
Operation Enduring Freedom
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Operation Enduring Freedom comprises several subordinate operations, Operation Enduring Freedom – Afghanistan, lasted from October 2001 to 31 December 2014. Government used the term Operation Enduring Freedom – Afghanistan to officially describe the War in Afghanistan, continued operations in Afghanistan by the United States military forces, both non-combat and combat, now occur under the name Operation Freedoms Sentinel. In September 2001, U. S. President George W, the term OEF-A typically refers to the phase of the War in Afghanistan from 2001 to 2014. Other operations, such as the Georgia Train and Equip Program, are loosely or nominally connected. All the operations, however, have a focus on counterterrorism activities, Operation Enduring Freedom – Afghanistan, which was a joint U. S. U. K. and Afghan operation, was separate from the International Security Assistance Force, which was an operation of North Atlantic Treaty Organization nations including the U. S. and the U. K. The two operations ran in parallel, although it had suggested that they merge. S. and British ships. The initial military objectives of OEF-A, as articulated by President George W, of those groups included are Abu Sayyaf Group, al-Qaeda and Jemaah Islamiyah. The operation consisted of training the AFP in counter-terrorist operations as well as supporting the people with humanitarian aid in Operation Smiles. In October 2002, the Combined Task Force 150 and United States military Special Forces established themselves in Djibouti at Camp Lemonnier, the stated goals of the operation were to provide humanitarian aid and patrol the Horn of Africa to reduce the abilities of terrorist organizations in the region. The military aspect involves coalition forces searching and boarding ships entering the region for illegal cargo as well as providing training, the humanitarian aspect involves building schools, clinics and water wells to enforce the confidence of the local people. Since 2001, the expenditure by the U. S. government on Operation Enduring Freedom has exceeded $150 billion. The operation continues, with military direction mostly coming from United States Central Command, seizing upon a power vacuum after the Soviets withdrew from Afghanistan after their invasion, the Taliban assumed the role of government from 1996–2001. Their extreme interpretation of Islamic law prompted them to ban music, television, sports, and dancing, amputation was an accepted form of punishment for stealing, and public executions could often be seen at the Kabul football stadium. Womens rights groups around the world were frequently critical as the Taliban banned women from appearing in public or holding many jobs outside the home and they drew further criticism when they destroyed the Buddhas of Bamyan, historical statues nearly 1500 years old, because the Buddhas were considered idols. In 1996, Saudi dissident Osama bin Laden moved to Afghanistan upon the invitation of the Northern Alliance leader Abdur Rabb ur Rasool Sayyaf, when the Taliban came to power, bin Laden was able to forge an alliance between the Taliban and his al-Qaeda organization. It is understood that al-Qaeda-trained fighters known as the 055 Brigade were integrated with the Taliban army between 1997 and 2001 and it has been suggested that the Taliban and bin Laden had very close connections. On 20 September 2001, the U. S. stated that Osama bin Laden was behind the 11 September attacks in 2001, the US made a five-point ultimatum to the Taliban, Deliver to the U. S
11.
Iraq War
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The Iraq War was a protracted armed conflict that began in 2003 with the invasion of Iraq by a United States-led coalition that toppled the government of Saddam Hussein. The conflict continued for much of the decade as an insurgency emerged to oppose the occupying forces. An estimated 151,000 to 600,000 or more Iraqis were killed in the first 3–4 years of conflict and it became re-involved in 2014 at the head of a new coalition, the insurgency and many dimensions of the civil armed conflict continue. The invasion began on 20 March 2003, with the U. S. joined by the United Kingdom and several allies, launching a shock. Iraqi forces were overwhelmed as U. S. forces swept through the country. The invasion led to the collapse of the Baathist government, President Hussein was captured during Operation Red Dawn in December of that same year, the United States responded with a troop surge in 2007. The winding down of U. S. involvement in Iraq accelerated under President Barack Obama, the U. S. formally withdrew all combat troops from Iraq by December 2011. Select U. S. officials accused Saddam of harboring and supporting al-Qaeda, while others cited the desire to end a repressive dictatorship, after the invasion, no substantial evidence was found to verify the initial claims about WMDs. The rationale and misrepresentation of pre-war intelligence faced heavy criticism within the U. S. in the aftermath of the invasion, Iraq held multi-party elections in 2005. Nouri al-Maliki became Prime Minister in 2006 and remained in office until 2014, the al-Maliki government enacted policies that were widely seen as having the effect of alienating the countrys Sunni minority and worsening sectarian tensions. The Iraq War caused hundreds of thousands of civilian, and thousands of military casualties, the majority of casualties occurred as a result of the insurgency and civil conflicts between 2004 and 2007. A1990 Frontline report on The arming of Iraq said, Officially, most Western nations participated in an arms embargo against Iraq during the 1980s. Western companies, primarily in Germany and Great Britain, but also in the United States, sold Iraq the key technology for its chemical, missile, any Western governments seemed remarkably indifferent, if not enthusiastic, about those deals. N Washington, the government consistently followed a policy which allowed and perhaps encouraged the growth of Saddam Husseins arsenal. The Western arming of Iraq took place in the context of the Iran-Iraq War, prior to September 2002, the CIA was the George W. Bush administrations main provider of intelligence on Iraq. The agency was out to disprove linkage between Iraq and terrorism the Pentagon adviser told me, the U. N. had prohibited Iraq from developing or possessing such weapons after the Gulf War and required Iraq to permit inspections confirming compliance. This was confirmed by The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal, during 2002, Bush repeatedly warned of military action against Iraq unless inspections were allowed to progress unfettered. In accordance with U. N. Security Council Resolution 1441, Iraq agreed to new inspections under United Nations Monitoring, as part of its weapons inspection obligations, Iraq was required to supply a full declaration of its current weapons capabilities and manufacturing
12.
Presidential Unit Citation (United States)
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The unit with the most Presidential Unit Citations is the USS Parche with 9 citations. The Army citation was established by Executive Order 9075 on 26 February 1942, superseded by Executive Order 9396 on Dec.2,1943, as with other Army unit citations, the PUC is in a larger frame than other ribbons, and is worn above the right pocket. All members of the unit may wear the decoration, whether or not they participated in the acts for which the unit was cited. Only those assigned to the unit at the time of the action cited may wear the decoration as a permanent award, for both the Army and Air Force, the emblem is a solid blue ribbon enclosed in a gold frame. The Air Force PUC was adopted from the Army Distinguished Unit Citation after the Air Force became a military branch in 1947. By Executive Order 10694, dated Jan,10,1957 the Air Force redesignated the Distinguished Unit Citation as the Presidential Unit Citation. The Air Force PUC is the color and design as the Army PUC but slightly smaller. The Citation is carried on the units colors in the form of a blue streamer,4 ft long and 2.75 in wide. For the Army, only on rare occasions will a larger than battalion qualify for award of this decoration. The Navy citation was established by Executive Order 9050 on 6 February 1942, the Navy version has blue, yellow, and red horizontal stripes, and is the only Navy ribbon having horizontal stripes. These are only worn by persons who meet the criteria at the time it is awarded to the unit, unlike the Army, those who later join the unit do not wear it on a temporary basis. The current decoration is known as the Department of Homeland Security Presidential Unit Citation. A Coast Guard version of the award was awarded to all U. S. Coast Guard and Coast Guard Auxiliary personnel responding to Hurricane Katrina by President George W. Bush for rescue, the United States Public Health Service Presidential Citation was established in 2015. The design was finalized by the Army Institute of Heraldry on 17 August 2015, two units of the Free French Forces were awarded Presidential Unit Citations during World War II. On April 22,1986, the 1st Fighter Group Força Aérea Brasileira was awarded the Presidential Unit Citation for its actions in the Po Valley region of Italy in World War II. The Brazilians, operating in Italy in support of Allied forces, destroyed in one day over 45 vehicles, strafed pontoon bridges on the River Po, eleven missions of 44 sorties were flown destroying nine motor transports and damaging 17. One Belgian-Luxembourgian battalion of the Belgian United Nations Command was awarded the Presidential Unit Citation once for actions during the Battle of the Imjin River, the Colombia Battalion received the citation while attached to the American 21st Infantry Regiment in 1951. One Dutch unit, the Netherlands Detachment United Nations, part of the Regiment Van Heutsz, was awarded the Presidential Unit Citation twice for actions during the Korean War, the first citation was awarded after the battle near Wonju and Hoengson in February 1951
13.
Claudius Miller Easley
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Brigadier General Claudius Miller Easley was a decorated United States Army officer who was killed in action by the Japanese during the Battle of Okinawa. Claudius Miller Easley was born on July 11,1891 in the village of Thorp Spring, Hood County, Texas as the eldest son of Alexander Campbell Easley. His family later moved with to Waco, Texas when Easley was at a young age. He subsequently attended local Waco High School, where he graduated in 1911, during his time at high school, Easley enlisted in the Texas National Guard and participated in Rifle-marksmanship competition at Camp Perry, Ohio. He was later commissioned as an officer, with the rank of lieutenant in the Infantry Branch on July 11,1912. He later attended the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Texas and graduated in 1916 with a Bachelor of Science in Architectural Engineering Degree, with the graduation from college, Easley decided for active service in the United States Army. Easley was then sent to the U. S. Army Infantry School at Fort Benning, Georgia, in 1921, Easley was transferred to the Philippines, where he was assigned to the 31st Infantry Regiment, then stationed at Fort William McKinley. He served three-year tour of duty in Manila, before he returned to the United States and he also attended the U. S. Army Command and General Staff School at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas in 1925. He was subsequently assigned to the 4th Infantry Regiment at Fort George Wright and it was followed by short period of duties with the 30th Infantry Regiment at Presidio of San Francisco, California. In 1930, he was appointed an Instructor in the Weapons Section of the U. S. Army Infantry School at Fort Benning, Georgia and he was later appointed a commander of the Los Angeles District of the Civilian Conservation Corps. As an avid and experienced marksman, Easley served as Captain of the Infantry Rifle and he was subsequently ordered for studies at U. S. Army War College in Washington, D. C. and graduated in 1940. Armys first airborne division and was redesignated the 82nd Airborne Division, in September 1942 Easley was transferred to Camp Adair, Oregon, where he was appointed Assistant Division Commander of the 96th Infantry Division. He was also promoted to the general officer of brigadier general. Brigadier General Easley personally supervised the 96th Divisions marksmanship training and helped to keep the level of markmanship. Thus division gained the nickname Deadeyes, Easley also participated in the Oregon Maneuver during the fall of 1943. The 96th Division was sent to Hawaiian Islands in July 1944 for preparation for landing in Philippines, brigadier General Easley subsequently went ashore during the Battle of Leyte and was wounded by enemy sniper fire. He was later decorated with the Legion of Merit for meritorious conduct and leadership, Easley remained in command and later participated in the Battle of Okinawa, where he was decorated with the Silver Star for gallantry in action. During the final phase of the battle, Easley personally directed fire on the last enemy positions, while assessing the battle situation, he was shot in the forehead by enemy sniper fire on June 19,1945
14.
Fort Douglas
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In 1878, the post was renamed Fort Douglas. It was officially closed in 1991 pursuant to BRAC action and most of the buildings were turned over to the University of Utah, a small section of the original fort is still used by the U. S. Army Reserve and includes the Fort Douglas Military Museum. Early in the Civil War, the threat of violence increased with the withdrawal of Federal troops from the West for use against the Confederate States of America, colonel Patrick Connor was ordered to reestablish a military presence with volunteer soldiers in the Utah Territory. He selected a site east of Salt Lake City, and Camp Douglas, connors men were Union volunteers from both California and Nevada. The post served as headquarters for the District of Utah in the Department of the Pacific, following the end of the Civil War, between 1866 and 1898, the fort was part of the Department of the Platte. Its importance increased when the Union Pacific and Central Pacific railroads joined rails at Promontory Summit, Utah, on May 10,1869, through the efforts of Utahs U. S. Sen. Thomas Kearns, the fort became a regimental post. During World War I, the fort was used as an internment camp for German citizens who lived in the United States, denied the coal needed for their boilers, the German captain reluctantly submitted to detention. When the United States entered the war on the Allied side in 1917, in 1922, the fort became the base of the 38th Infantry, which remained there until August 1940. After World War II, the Army began disposing of its land, transferring it to the University of Utah, however, it maintained Army Reserve functions there for decades, notably with the 96th Army Reserve Command under the command of Maj. Gen. Michael B. Kauffman, who had spent much of his Army career at the fort and was instrumental in keeping it alive well past its announced closing in the 1970s. On Oct.26,1991, the fort closed officially, though the Utah National Guard maintained control of the museum, a small portion of the southwestern section of the original fort remains in use by the United States military. This portion of the fort is designated the Fort Stephen A. Douglas Armed Forces Reserve Center, the reserve center consists of 51 acres, and includes the historic Soldier’s Circle, along with several sub-installation buildings. The center hosts offices, along with training and support space for staff for two Army Reserve commands, and staff from other Army, Navy and Marine Reserve units. There have been attempts to relocate the center to allow the University of Utah to grow its campus. A law requires the property be given to the University of Utah, without charge, in 1991 the University of Utah received much of the forts former property. During the 2002 Winter Olympics held in Salt Lake City, much of the campus was used to host events. Stilwell Field is used as a lot during special events. The Officers Club building is used as a center by the university
15.
Salt Lake City
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Salt Lake City, often shortened to Salt Lake or SLC, is the capital and the most populous municipality of the U. S. state of Utah. With an estimated population of 190,884 in 2014, the city lies at the core of the Salt Lake City metropolitan area, Salt Lake City is further situated within a larger metropolis known as the Salt Lake City-Ogden-Provo Combined Statistical Area. This region is a corridor of contiguous urban and suburban development stretched along an approximately 120-mile segment of the Wasatch Front and it is one of only two major urban areas in the Great Basin. The city was founded in 1847 by Brigham Young, Isaac Morley, George Washington Bradley and numerous other Mormon followers, who extensively irrigated and cultivated the arid valley. Due to its proximity to the Great Salt Lake, the city was originally named Great Salt Lake City—the word great was dropped from the name in 1868 by the 17th Utah Territorial Legislature. Today, however, less than half the population of Salt Lake City proper are members of the LDS Church. It was traversed by the Lincoln Highway, the first transcontinental highway, in 1913, Salt Lake City has since developed a strong outdoor recreation tourist industry based primarily on skiing, and hosted the 2002 Winter Olympics. It is the banking center of the United States. Before Mormon settlement, the Shoshone, Ute, and Paiute had dwelt in the Salt Lake Valley for thousands of years. The land was treated by the United States as public domain, the first U. S. explorer in the Salt Lake area is believed to be Jim Bridger in 1825, although others had been in Utah earlier, some as far north as the nearby Utah Valley. Frémont surveyed the Great Salt Lake and the Salt Lake Valley in 1843 and 1845, the Donner Party, a group of ill-fated pioneers, had traveled through the Great Salt Lake Valley in August 1846. The first permanent settlements in the date to the arrival of the Latter-day Saints on July 24,1847. Upon arrival at the Salt Lake Valley, president of the church Brigham Young is recorded as stating, This is the right place, Brigham Young claimed to have seen the area in a vision prior to the wagon trains arrival. They found the broad valley empty of any human settlement, four days after arriving in the Salt Lake Valley, Brigham Young designated the building site for the Salt Lake Temple, which would eventually become a famous Mormon and Salt Lake City landmark. The Salt Lake Temple, constructed on the block that would later be called Temple Square, construction started in 1853, and the temple was dedicated on 6 April 1893. The temple has become an icon for the city and serves as its centerpiece, in fact, the southeast corner of Temple Square is the initial point of reference for the Salt Lake Meridian, and for all addresses in the Salt Lake Valley. The Mormon pioneers organized a new state called Deseret and petitioned for its recognition in 1849, the United States Congress rebuffed the settlers in 1850 and established the Utah Territory, vastly reducing its size, and designated Fillmore as its capital city. Great Salt Lake City replaced Fillmore as the capital in 1858
16.
United States Army Reserve
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The United States Army Reserve is the federal reserve force of the United States Army. Together, the Army Reserve and the Army National Guard constitute the Army element of the Reserve components of the United States Armed Forces. On 30 June 2016, Lieutenant General Charles D. Luckey became the 33rd Chief of Army Reserve, on 23 April 1908 Congress created the Medical Reserve Corps, the official predecessor of the Army Reserve. This organization provided a pool of trained Reserve officers and enlisted men for use in war. The Organized Reserve included the Officers Reserve Corps, Enlisted Reserve Corps, the Organized Reserves were redesignated 25 March 1948 as the Organized Reserve Corps. Recognizing the importance of the Organized Reserve to the World War II effort, Congress authorized retirement, a tentative troop basis for the Organized Reserve Corps, prepared in March 1946, outlined 25 divisions, three armored, five airborne, and 17 infantry. These divisions and all other Organized Reserve Corps units were to be maintained in one of three categories, labeled Class A, Class B, and Class C. The troop basis listed nine divisions as Class A, nine as Class B, eventually the War Department agreed and made the appropriate changes. Although the dispute over Class A units lasted several months, the War Department proceeded with the reorganization of the Organized Reserve Corps divisions during the summer of 1946. That all divisions were to begin as Class C units, progressing to the categories as men and equipment became available. Also, the War Department wanted to take advantage of the pool of trained reserve officers, by that time Army Ground Forces had been reorganized as an army group headquarters that commanded six geographic armies. The armies replaced the nine areas of the prewar era. The First United States Army declined to support a division. After the change, the Organized Reserve Corps had four airborne, the Second Army insisted upon the number 80 for its airborne unit because the division was to be raised in the prewar 80th Divisions area, not that of the 99th. Finally, the 103rd Infantry Division, organized in 1921 in New Mexico, Colorado, and Arizona, was moved to Iowa, Minnesota, South Dakota, a major problem in forming divisions and other units in the Organized Reserve Corps was adequate housing. While many National Guard units owned their own armories, some dating back to the nineteenth century, although the War Department requested funds for needed facilities, Congress moved slowly in response. During the summer and fall of 1951 the six army commanders in the United States, staff agencies, the army commanders urged that all divisions in the Organized Reserve Corps be infantry divisions because they believed that the reserves could not adequately support armored and airborne training. They thought thirteen, rather than twelve, reserve divisions should be maintained to provide a geographic distribution of the units
17.
Attack on Pearl Harbor
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The attack, also known as the Battle of Pearl Harbor, led to the United States entry into World War II. The Japanese military leadership referred to the attack as the Hawaii Operation and Operation AI, Japan intended the attack as a preventive action to keep the U. S. Pacific Fleet from interfering with military actions they planned in Southeast Asia against overseas territories of the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, and the United States. Over the next seven hours there were coordinated Japanese attacks on the U. S. -held Philippines, Guam and Wake Island and on the British Empire in Malaya, Singapore, the attack commenced at 7,48 a. m. The base was attacked by 353 Imperial Japanese fighter planes, bombers, all eight U. S. Navy battleships were damaged, with four sunk. All but the USS Arizona were later raised, and six were returned to service, the Japanese also sank or damaged three cruisers, three destroyers, an anti-aircraft training ship, and one minelayer. 188 U. S. aircraft were destroyed,2,403 Americans were killed and 1,178 others were wounded. Important base installations such as the station, shipyard, maintenance. Japanese losses were light,29 aircraft and five midget submarines lost, one Japanese sailor, Kazuo Sakamaki, was captured. The surprise attack came as a shock to the American people. The following day, December 8, the United States declared war on Japan, the U. S. responded with a declaration of war against Germany and Italy. Domestic support for non-interventionism, which had been fading since the Fall of France in 1940, Roosevelt to proclaim December 7,1941, a date which will live in infamy. Because the attack happened without a declaration of war and without explicit warning, over the next decade, Japan continued to expand into China, leading to all-out war between those countries in 1937. Japan spent considerable effort trying to isolate China and achieve sufficient resource independence to attain victory on the mainland, from December 1937, events such as the Japanese attack on USS Panay, the Allison incident, and the Nanking Massacre swung public opinion in the West sharply against Japan. Fearing Japanese expansion, the United States, the United Kingdom, in 1940, Japan invaded French Indochina in an effort to control supplies reaching China. The United States halted shipments of airplanes, parts, machine tools, and aviation gasoline to Japan, an invasion of the Philippines was also considered necessary by Japanese war planners. War Plan Orange had envisioned defending the Philippines with a 40 and this was opposed by Douglas MacArthur, who felt that he would need a force ten times that size, and was never implemented. By 1941, U. S. planners anticipated abandonment of the Philippines at the outbreak of war and orders to that effect were given in late 1941 to Admiral Thomas Hart, commander of the Asiatic Fleet
18.
Leyte
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Leyte /ˈleɪtɛ/ is an island in the Visayas group of the Philippines. Politically, the island is divided into two provinces, Leyte and Southern Leyte, territorially, Southern Leyte includes the island of Panaon to its south. To the north of Leyte is the province of Biliran. The major cities of Leyte are Tacloban, on the shore at the northwest corner of Leyte Gulf. The island was once the location of Mairete, a community which was ruled by Datu Ete. Before being colonized by Spain, the island was home to indigenous animist Warays to the east. Leyte today is notable for the electric power plants near Ormoc. However, Leyte is most famous for its role in the reconquest of the Philippines in World War II. On 20 October 1944, General Douglas MacArthur waded ashore on Leyte, saying, I have returned, the convergence of naval forces resulted in the four-day Battle of Leyte Gulf, the largest naval battle in history. The island measures about 180 kilometres north-south and about 65 kilometres at its widest point, in the north it nearly joins the island of Samar, separated by the San Juanico Strait, which becomes as narrow as 2 kilometres in some places. The island province of Biliran is also to the north of Leyte and is joined to Leyte island by a bridge across the narrow Biliran Strait, to the south, Leyte is separated from Mindanao by the Surigao Strait. To the east, Leyte is somewhat set back from the Philippine Sea of the Pacific Ocean, Samar to the northeast, to the west is the Camotes Sea. Leyte is mostly forested and mountainous, but the Leyte Valley in the northeast has much agriculture. The Leyte Provincial capital is the seat of the government where there is a historic mural depicting the First Mass of Limasawa in the Orient. The MacArthur Landing Memorial National Park in Red Beach, Palo and it also has a lagoon where a life-size statue of Gen. MacArthur stands. MacArthurs true landing took place at Dulag, Leyte, lake Danao is a violin-shaped lake hemmed by cloud-capped mountain ranges. Kalanggaman Island in Palompon, Leyte is an island with pure white sand. The ecological atmosphere of the island had been preserved by the municipality, nino Shrine and Heritage Museum boasts the painting of the fourteen stations of the cross done by Filipino artists and a bas-relief of the legend of the first Filipino man and woman
19.
Philippines
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The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is a sovereign island country in Southeast Asia situated in the western Pacific Ocean. It consists of about 7,641 islands that are categorized broadly under three main geographical divisions from north to south, Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao, the capital city of the Philippines is Manila and the most populous city is Quezon City, both part of Metro Manila. The Philippines has an area of 300,000 square kilometers, and it is the eighth-most populated country in Asia and the 12th most populated country in the world. As of 2013, approximately 10 million additional Filipinos lived overseas, multiple ethnicities and cultures are found throughout the islands. In prehistoric times, Negritos were some of the archipelagos earliest inhabitants and they were followed by successive waves of Austronesian peoples. Exchanges with Chinese, Malay, Indian, and Islamic nations occurred, then, various competing maritime states were established under the rule of Datus, Rajahs, Sultans or Lakans. The arrival of Ferdinand Magellan in Homonhon, Eastern Samar in 1521 marked the beginning of Hispanic colonization, in 1543, Spanish explorer Ruy López de Villalobos named the archipelago Las Islas Filipinas in honor of Philip II of Spain. With the arrival of Miguel López de Legazpi from Mexico City, in 1565, the Philippines became part of the Spanish Empire for more than 300 years. This resulted in Roman Catholicism becoming the dominant religion, during this time, Manila became the western hub of the trans-Pacific trade connecting Asia with Acapulco in the Americas using Manila galleons. Aside from the period of Japanese occupation, the United States retained sovereignty over the islands until after World War II, since then, the Philippines has often had a tumultuous experience with democracy, which included the overthrow of a dictatorship by a non-violent revolution. It is a member of the United Nations, World Trade Organization, Association of Southeast Asian Nations, the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum. It also hosts the headquarters of the Asian Development Bank, the Philippines was named in honor of King Philip II of Spain. Spanish explorer Ruy López de Villalobos, during his expedition in 1542, named the islands of Leyte, eventually the name Las Islas Filipinas would be used to cover all the islands of the archipelago. Before that became commonplace, other such as Islas del Poniente. The official name of the Philippines has changed several times in the course of its history, during the Philippine Revolution, the Malolos Congress proclaimed the establishment of the República Filipina or the Philippine Republic. From the 1898 Treaty of Paris, the name Philippines began to appear, since the end of World War II, the official name of the country has been the Republic of the Philippines. The metatarsal of the Callao Man, reliably dated by uranium-series dating to 67,000 years ago is the oldest human remnant found in the archipelago to date and this distinction previously belonged to the Tabon Man of Palawan, carbon-dated to around 26,500 years ago. Negritos were also among the archipelagos earliest inhabitants, but their first settlement in the Philippines has not been reliably dated, there are several opposing theories regarding the origins of ancient Filipinos
20.
Okinawa Prefecture
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The larger are mostly high islands and the smaller ones are mostly coral islands. The largest of the islands is Okinawa, the climate of the islands ranges from humid subtropical climate in the north to tropical rainforest climate in the south. Precipitation is very high, and is affected by the rainy season, the islands beyond the Tokara Strait are characterized by their coral reefs. The Amami, Okinawa, Miyako, and Yaeyama Islands have a native population collectively called the Ryukyuan people, the varied Ryukyuan languages are traditionally spoken on these islands, and the major islands have their own distinct languages. In modern times, the Japanese language is the language of the islands. The northern islands are called the Satsunan Islands, while the southern part of the chain are called the Ryukyu Islands in Japanese. Following are the grouping and names used by the Hydrographic and Oceanographic Department of the Japan Coast Guard, the islands are listed from north to south where possible. Nansei Islands Satsunan Islands Ōsumi Islands with, Tanegashima, Yaku, Kuchinoerabu, Mageshima in the North-Eastern Group and they agreed on February 15,2010, to use Amami-guntō for the Amami Islands, prior to that, Amami-shotō had also been used. The English and Japanese uses of the term Ryukyu differ, in English, the term Ryukyu may apply to the entire chain of islands, while in Japanese Ryukyu usually refers only to the islands that were previously part of the Ryūkyū Kingdom after 1624. Nansei-shotō is the name for the whole island chain in Japanese. Japan has used the name on nautical charts since 1907, based on the Japanese charts, the international chart series uses Nansei Shoto. Nansei literally means southwest, the direction of the chain from mainland Japan. Some humanities scholars prefer the uncommon term Ryūkyū-ko for the island chain. In geology, however, the Ryukyu Arc includes subsurface structures such as the Okinawa Trough, the name of Ryūkyū is strongly associated with the Ryūkyū Kingdom, a kingdom that originated from the Okinawa Islands and subjected the Sakishima and Amami Islands. The name is considered outdated in Japanese although some entities of Okinawa still bear the name. In Japanese, the Ryukyu Islands cover only the Okinawa, Miyako, the northern half of the island chain is referred to as the Satsunan Islands in Japanese, as opposed to Northern Ryukyu Islands in English. Humanities scholars generally agree that the Amami, Okinawa, Miyako, there is, however, no good name for the group. The native population do not have their own name, since they do not recognize themselves as a group this size, Ryukyu is the principal candidate because it roughly corresponds to the maximum extent of the Ryūkyū Kingdom
21.
Ryukyu Islands
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The larger are mostly high islands and the smaller ones are mostly coral islands. The largest of the islands is Okinawa, the climate of the islands ranges from humid subtropical climate in the north to tropical rainforest climate in the south. Precipitation is very high, and is affected by the rainy season, the islands beyond the Tokara Strait are characterized by their coral reefs. The Amami, Okinawa, Miyako, and Yaeyama Islands have a native population collectively called the Ryukyuan people, the varied Ryukyuan languages are traditionally spoken on these islands, and the major islands have their own distinct languages. In modern times, the Japanese language is the language of the islands. The northern islands are called the Satsunan Islands, while the southern part of the chain are called the Ryukyu Islands in Japanese. Following are the grouping and names used by the Hydrographic and Oceanographic Department of the Japan Coast Guard, the islands are listed from north to south where possible. Nansei Islands Satsunan Islands Ōsumi Islands with, Tanegashima, Yaku, Kuchinoerabu, Mageshima in the North-Eastern Group and they agreed on February 15,2010, to use Amami-guntō for the Amami Islands, prior to that, Amami-shotō had also been used. The English and Japanese uses of the term Ryukyu differ, in English, the term Ryukyu may apply to the entire chain of islands, while in Japanese Ryukyu usually refers only to the islands that were previously part of the Ryūkyū Kingdom after 1624. Nansei-shotō is the name for the whole island chain in Japanese. Japan has used the name on nautical charts since 1907, based on the Japanese charts, the international chart series uses Nansei Shoto. Nansei literally means southwest, the direction of the chain from mainland Japan. Some humanities scholars prefer the uncommon term Ryūkyū-ko for the island chain. In geology, however, the Ryukyu Arc includes subsurface structures such as the Okinawa Trough, the name of Ryūkyū is strongly associated with the Ryūkyū Kingdom, a kingdom that originated from the Okinawa Islands and subjected the Sakishima and Amami Islands. The name is considered outdated in Japanese although some entities of Okinawa still bear the name. In Japanese, the Ryukyu Islands cover only the Okinawa, Miyako, the northern half of the island chain is referred to as the Satsunan Islands in Japanese, as opposed to Northern Ryukyu Islands in English. Humanities scholars generally agree that the Amami, Okinawa, Miyako, there is, however, no good name for the group. The native population do not have their own name, since they do not recognize themselves as a group this size, Ryukyu is the principal candidate because it roughly corresponds to the maximum extent of the Ryūkyū Kingdom
22.
Beauford T. Anderson
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Beauford Theodore Andy Anderson was a United States Army soldier who received the Medal of Honor for his actions during World War II. Anderson was born on July 6,1922 in Eagle, Wisconsin, enlisting in the United States Army in 1942, Anderson was sent to the South West Pacific theater in July 1944. He earned the Bronze Star while serving on the island of Leyte in the Philippines, by April 13,1945, he was participating in the Battle of Okinawa as a technical sergeant in the 381st Infantry Regiment, 96th Infantry Division. During a Japanese counterattack at Kakazu Ridge on that day, he held off a flanking force by alternately firing his carbine. Although seriously wounded by shrapnel during the action, he refused evacuation until he had reported the situation to his commander. For these actions, Anderson was awarded the Medal of Honor the next year, Anderson served in the United States Army Reserve after the war, eventually gaining a commission as a second lieutenant. He left the military on September 30,1952, after ten years of service and he displayed conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity above and beyond the call of duty. When a powerfully conducted predawn Japanese counterattack struck his units flank, he ordered his men to cover in an old tomb. After emptying 1 magazine at pointblank range into the attackers, he seized an enemy mortar dud and threw it back among the charging enemy Japanese soldiers. Despite the protests of his comrades, and bleeding profusely from a shrapnel wound. After returning from the war, Anderson lived in Beloit, Wisconsin, ultimately, he relocated to Monterey County, California, where he served as mayor and city councilman of Seaside and as a Monterey County Supervisor. He lived on a ranch near Hunter Liggett and spent the last years of his life in Salinas. Anderson died on November 7,1996 and his wife of 50 years, Phyllis, died the next month, on December 23. They are buried together in Arlington National Cemetery, list of Medal of Honor recipients for World War II This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the United States Army Center of Military History. Beauford T. Anderson, Medal of Honor recipient Beauford T. Anderson, claim to Fame, Medal of Honor recipients
23.
382nd Infantry Regiment (United States)
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The 382nd Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment in the United States Army. The unit served as a regiment until it was called to active duty during World War II. The unit returned to reserve status after the war until being deactivated in 1952, the 382nd Infantry Regiment was first constituted on 5 September 1918, in the National Army and assigned to the 96th Division. It was demobilized less than three months later, on 30 November 1918, the regiment was reconstituted on 24 June 1921, in the Organized Reserves and was assigned to the 96th Division. The 382nd was organized in December 1921 with its headquarters at Medford, ordered into active-duty service on 15 August 1942, the unit was reorganized at Camp Adair, Oregon, for service in World War II. As part of the 96th Infantry Division, the 382nd participated in the Battle of Leyte from October to December 1944, the regiment returned to the U. S. and was inactivated on 3 February 1946, at Camp Anza, California. A year later, on 10 January 1947, the 382nd Infantry was re-activated into the Organized Reserves with its headquarters at Boise and it was inactivated again on 1 March 1952, and relieved from its assignment to the 96th Infantry Division. Re-designated on 17 October 1999, as the 382nd Regiment, the unit was reorganized to consist of the 1st, 2nd, militarys highest decoration, the Medal of Honor, while serving with the 382nd Infantry. These were Private First Class Clarence B
24.
321st Engineer Battalion (United States)
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The 321st Engineer Battalion is an Army Reserve battalion with active service in World War II and Operation Iraqi Freedom. The 321st Engineer Battalion was constituted in the National Army on 5 September 1918 as the 321st Engineers, four months later, on 7 January 1919, the unit was disbanded. The unit was reconstituted in the Organized Reserves on 24 June 1921 as the 321st Engineers, the battalion was organized in Seattle, Washington in January 1922. On 30 January 1942, the unit was reorganized as an element of the 96th Infantry Division, the battalion was ordered to active service along with the 96th Infantry Division on 15 August 1942. This time, they were organized at Camp Adair, Oregon as the 321st Engineer Combat Battalion, after service in the Pacific Theater, the unit was inactivated at Camp Anza, California on 3 February 1946. On 1 December 1946, the battalion was activated with headquarters in Reno, on 10 November 1948, the headquarters were moved to Boise, Idaho. On 15 November 1953, the battalion was redesignated as the 321st Engineer Battalion. They were relieved from assignment to the 96th Infantry Division on 15 February 1963, the unit was reassigned to the 70th Regional Support Command in 1996. The battalion was activated as the element of Task Force Pathfinder, in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. The 321st Engineer Battalion served with the 96th Infantry Division, including duty in the Pacific Theater. Major areas of operation include Leyte Island, Philippines, and Okinawa, the battalion was activated as the lead element of Task Force Pathfinder in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom from September 2006 to October 2007. Major areas of operation include Al Anbar, Iraq, specifically Ar Ramadi, a silver metal and enamel device,1 3/32 inches in height overall consisting of a shield blazoned, Gules, a pale Argent, on a chief of the last a setting sun of the first. Attached below the shield a red scroll, upturned, inscribed Semper Tentare, the shield is red and white, the colors of the Engineer Corps. The pale stripe represents the Columbia River and the sun symbolizes that unit is organized in the westernmost states. Semper Tentare is translated to be To Always Try, the insignia was originally approved for the 321st Engineer Regiment, Organized Reserves on 14 July 1930. On 22 September 1942 it was redesignated for the 321st Engineer Battalion, navy Unit Commendation for service as part of 1st Marine Expeditionary Force – 2006–2007 Valorous Unit Award for Operation Iraqi Freedom –2007 Coats of arms of U. S. Engineer Battalions Globalsecurity. org, 96th Regional Readiness Command, GlobalSecurity. org, retrieved 13 April 2008 Kolb, Richard K. Army Reserve, Serving the Nation for 100 Years, VFW Magazine, pp
25.
192nd Infantry Brigade (United States)
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The 192nd Infantry Brigade is an infantry brigade of the United States Army. It was first formed as part of the United States Army Reserves 96th Division, as part of the triangularization of the US Army before World War II, the Brigade was inactivated and the assets & personnel formed the 96th Reconnaissance Troop. The unit served as the 96th Recon Troop and it served as the eyes & ears of the 96th Infantry Division in the Pacific Theater during World War II. Returned to U. S.2 February 1946, the 192d Infantry Brigade was reactivated at Fort Benning, Georgia to serve as the Basic Combat Training Brigade from 2007 until 16 June 2013. The units of the 192d Infantry Brigade were moved to the 194th Armored Brigade when the brigade inactivated, historical Atlas of the Vietnam War
26.
191st Infantry Brigade (United States)
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The 191st Infantry Brigade was constituted on 24 June 1921 in the Organized Reserves as Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 191st Infantry Brigade, and assigned to the 96th Division. It was converted and redesignated on 6 April 1942 as the 96th Reconnaissance Troop, the Troop was ordered into active military service on 15 August 1942 and reorganized at Camp Adair, Oregon, as the 96th Cavalry Reconnaissance Troop, an element of the 96th Infantry Division. Following World War II service with the 96th Infantry Division in the Pacific, it was inactivated on 3 February 1946 at Camp Anza, the unit was again activated on 20 January 1947 at Spokane, Washington. It was reorganized and redesignated on 12 April 1949 as the 96th Reconnaissance Company and its location changed on 15 October 1951 to Salt Lake City, as part of an overall force reduction in the Reserve, the unit was inactivated 1 June 1959 at Salt Lake City, Utah. After only five years, the brigade was inactivated on 29 February 1968 at Helena, Montana, on 24 October 1997 the brigade was withdrawn from the Army Reserve and allotted to the Regular Army, Headquarters concurrently activated at Fort Lewis, Washington. It was inactivated there on 16 October 1999, then reactivated at Fort Lewis on 1 December 2006 and this was accomplished by reorganizing and reflagging the existing 4th Brigade, 91st Division and assuming the mission to train Army Reserve and National Guard units. In September 2012 elements of HQ 191st Infantry Brigade deployed as an SFAT to eastern Afghanistan in support of Operation ENDURING FREEDOM. The brigade was inactivated at Fort Lewis, Washington, during a ceremony held on January 8th,2014 and elements of the unit were integrated with the 189th Infantry Brigade
27.
Camp White
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Camp White was an Army training base located in Jackson County, Oregon, United States, during World War II. It was also the site of a prisoner-of-war camp, the camp was named in honor of George A. White, who served as adjutant general for Oregon starting in 1915. On December 12,1941, five days after the attack on Pearl Harbor, a portion of Upper Table Rock was also used for training. The camp was dedicated September 15,1942, many of the troops trained at Camp White participated in the Oregon Maneuver combat exercise in the fall of 1943. At its peak, the camp occupied nearly 50,000 acres and contained nearly 40,000 people, the camp was deactivated in April 1946. There was a Camp White post office from 1942–60, when the name was changed to White City and it is one of several programs produced by SOPTV documenting the history of Southern Oregon. The documentary chronicles the stories of the troops that were trained in this Alcatraz of Boot Camps and this program was produced in cooperation with the Camp White Military Museum. It was written by Ashland freelancer John E. Darling
28.
Oregon
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Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. Oregon is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean, on the north by Washington, on the south by California, on the east by Idaho, the Columbia River delineates much of Oregons northern boundary, and the Snake River delineates much of the eastern boundary. The parallel 42° north delineates the boundary with California and Nevada. Oregon was inhabited by indigenous tribes before Western traders, explorers. An autonomous government was formed in the Oregon Country in 1843 before the Oregon Territory was created in 1848, Oregon became the 33rd state on February 14,1859. Today, at 98,000 square miles, Oregon is the ninth largest and, with a population of 4 million, the capital of Oregon is Salem, the second most populous of its cities, with 164,549 residents. Portland is Oregons most populous city, with 632,309 residents, Portlands metro population of 2,389,228 ranks the 23rd largest metro in the nation. The Willamette Valley in western Oregon is the states most densely populated area, the tall conifers, mainly Douglas fir, along Oregons rainy west coast contrast with the lighter-timbered and fire-prone pine and juniper forests covering portions to the east. Abundant alders in the west fix nitrogen for the conifers, stretching east from central Oregon are semi-arid shrublands, prairies, deserts, steppes, and meadows. At 11,249 feet, Mount Hood is the states highest point, Oregons only national park, Crater Lake National Park, comprises the caldera surrounding Crater Lake, the deepest lake in the United States. The state is home to the single largest organism in the world, Armillaria ostoyae. Because of its landscapes and waterways, Oregons economy is largely powered by various forms of agriculture, fishing. It is also the top timber-producer of the lower 48 states, Technology is another one of the states major economic forces, which began in the 1970s with the establishment of the Silicon Forest and the expansion of Tektronix and Intel. Sportswear company Nike, Inc. headquartered in Beaverton, is the states largest public corporation with a revenue of $30.6 billion. The earliest evidence of the name Oregon has Spanish origins and this chronicle is the first topographical and linguistic source with respect to the place name Oregon. There are also two other sources with Spanish origins such as the name Oregano which grows in the part of the region. Another early use of the name, spelled Ouragon, was in a 1765 petition by Major Robert Rogers to the Kingdom of Great Britain, the term referred to the then-mythical River of the West. By 1778 the spelling had shifted to Oregon, in his 1765 petition, Rogers wrote, The rout. is from the Great Lakes towards the Head of the Mississippi, and from thence to the River called by the Indians Ouragon
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Oregon Maneuver
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The Oregon Maneuver was a large scale military training exercise held in Central Oregon in 1943. The exercise was designed to test United States Army units prior to deployment in support of Allied combat operations in World War II, the maneuver included approximately 100,000 men. The major units involved in the exercise were all part of the army’s IV Corps, the exercise headquarters was located at Camp Abbot, south of Bend, Oregon. The maneuver included five specific training problems that engaged troops from a defensive Red Force, the Oregon Maneuver was the largest military field exercise ever conducted in the Pacific Northwest. It involved over 100,000 army troops, many of them from Camp Adair, Camp White, Camp Abbot was used as the exercise headquarters because of its military infrastructure and location near Bend in central Oregon. The maneuver extended across parts of seven eastern Oregon counties, a total of over 10,000 square miles, almost all of Deschutes County was included in the maneuver area along with large parts of Crook, Harney, Klamath, and Lake counties. Small portions of Jefferson and Grant counties were included in the maneuver area. The maneuver area was a triangle shape, with Sisters in the northwest corner, Burns in the northeast corner. The three divisions that made up the IV Corps were the 91st Infantry Division, the 96th Infantry Division, during the exercise the 96th Infantry Division became the core element of the Red Force. The Red Force was commanded by Major General James L. Bradley, the 91st Infantry Division and the 104th Infantry Division were combined to create the Blue Force. The Blue Force was commanded by Major General Gilbert R. Cook, the Red Force was given the defensive role in the exercise, while the much larger Blue Force conducted offensive operations. The maneuver plan called for the integration of infantry, armor, artillery, air forces, engineers, the specific combat problems included an attack on a consolidated position, an attack and defense of a river line, and an assault and occupation of defensive positions. Army combat aircraft were assigned to support the ground forces from airfield near Redmond, Madras. To help simulate the hardships of real combat, each exercise phase was scheduled to run continuously for two to three days, planning for the exercise began in the spring of 1943. By July 1943, preparations for the maneuver were underway in central Oregon, before training could begin, army engineers had to complete a number of infrastructure projects including the construction of several airfields. Supply depots were established at key locations and a Signal Corps battalion set up a network in the maneuver area. On 27 July 1943, General Patch and his staff arrived at Camp Abbot. The main bodies of infantry arrived in the area in early August
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Fort Missoula
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Beginning in 1888, the fort was home to the famous Buffalo Soldiers of the 25th Infantry Regiment. While stationed at Fort Missoula, this tested the practicality of soldiers traveling by bicycles by conducting numerous training rides, with one ride all the way to St. Louis. The Trans-America Bicycle Trail established in 1976 goes through Missoula, during World War II, Fort Missoula housed a prison camp for Italian POWs, who called the area Bella Vista, and Japanese Americans arrested as enemy aliens after Pearl Harbor. It was intended as a major outpost for the region, however, area residents also were aware of the payroll, contracts. Fort Missoula never had walls, rather, it was an open fort, open forts required troops to take the offensive and actively patrol the areas to which they were assigned. Two companies of the 7th Infantry arrived June 25,1877 to build a post for an infantry company. Construction had barely begun when the Company Commander, Captain Charles Rawn, the Nez Perce, led by Chiefs Joseph, Looking Glass and others, simply went around the soldiers hastily constructed earth and log barricade in Lolo Canyon and escaped up the Bitterroot Valley. The soldiers from Fort Missoula, along with elements of the 7th Infantry and local civilians, attacked the Nez Perce camp at the Battle of the Big Hole. Capt. William Logan, second in command at Fort Missoula, was killed, after the battle, four companies returned to Fort Missoula. In September 1877 Gen. William T. Sherman visited the fort, the 7th Infantry troops were replaced by a battalion of the 3rd Infantry in November 1877. The troops from the 3rd Infantry constructed the majority of Fort Missoula, the 25th Infantry Regiment arrived at Fort Missoula in May 1888. The regiment was one of four created after the Civil War that were made up of soldiers with white officers. In 1896, Lieutenant James Moss organized the 25th Infantry Bicycle Corps to test the potential of bicycles. The Army concluded that while the bicycle offered limited military potential, the 25th Infantry returned to Missoula by train. When the Spanish–American War broke out in 1898, the 25th was one of the first units called to fight, the regiment served bravely in Cuba and the Philippines, but was reassigned to other posts after the wars end. The efforts of Congressman Joseph Dixon of Missoula led to the appropriation of $1 million in 1904 to remodel Fort Missoula, a modern complex of concrete buildings with red tile roofs was constructed between 1908 and 1914, including a new Officers Row, barracks, and Post Hospital. The fort was used as a training center to train truck drivers and mechanics of the Student Army Training Corps during World War I. However, it was designated as the Northwest Regional Headquarters for the Civilian Conservation Corps in 1933
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LeRoy H. Anderson
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LeRoy Hagen Anderson was a U. S. Born in Ellendale, North Dakota, Anderson moved with his parents to Conrad, Montana and he later worked as a wheat and cattle rancher. During the Second World War he served as commander of a task force in the European Theater of Operations in combat from Normandy to the Elbe River. He was separated from the service as a lieutenant colonel in 1945, for his service, he received the Silver Star and Croix de Guerre Medal with Palm. He served as a Major general in Army Reserve, commanding the Ninety-sixth Infantry Division Reserve from 1948 through 1962. He served as a member of the Montana House of Representatives in 1947 and 1948 and he was an unsuccessful candidate for election in 1954 to the Eighty-fourth Congress. Anderson was elected as a Democrat to the Eighty-fifth and Eighty-sixth Congresses and he was not a candidate for renomination in 1960 but was unsuccessful for the Democratic nomination for United States Senator. He served as member of the Montana State senate from 1966 to 1970 and he was a resident of Conrad, Montana, until his death there on September 25,1991. Biographical Directory of the United States Congress, retrieved on 2008-02-18 This article incorporates public domain material from the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress website http, //bioguide. congress. gov
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United States Army North
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The United States Army North is a formation of the United States Army Service Component Command of United States Northern Command. As the joint force land component command, it is responsible for defense and defense support of civil authorities. It is garrisoned at Fort Sam Houston, Texas and it was officially activated on 5 January 1943 at Oujda, French Morocco and made responsible for the defence of Algeria and Morocco. Writing to Lieutenant General Jacob L. Devers in late March 1944, Clark explained the difficulties of the fighting in Italy so far, which could be said of the whole campaign. The Fifth Army first saw action during the Salerno landings, the landings at Salerno, part of the Allied invasion of Italy. Due to the low numbers of American troops available in the Mediterranean Theater it was made up of one American. They were the U. S. VI Corps, under Major General Ernest J. Dawley, at Salerno, VI Corps landed on the right flank, and X Corps on the left flank. Progress was initially slow, due in part to a lack of initiative by Dawley, the VI Corps commander, however, heavy naval and air bombardment, along with a parachute drop by elements of the U. S. On 20 September, by time the Fifth and Eighth Armies had linked up, Major General Dawley. Dawley was temporarily made deputy commander, and was soon replaced in command of VI Corps by Major General John P. Lucas. Progress was then good for a couple of weeks and the Fifth Army crossed the Barbara Line and they had established a position on the Winter Line, which included the formidable defensive positions at San Pietro Infine in the Liri Valley and at Monte Cassino. By this point, Fifth Army had been reinforced by a second American corps, II Corps, commanded by Major General Geoffrey Keyes. By the end of November Clarks Fifth Army had almost doubled in size, with the addition of French General Alphonse Juins French Expeditionary Corps, from 130,247 men to 243,827. VI Corps, with its experience of amphibious landings at Salerno, was chosen for the assault and withdrawn from the line and they made a second attempt to capture Monte Cassino in conjunction with the amphibious assault by VI Corps, which again failed. VI Corps landed at Anzio, unopposed, on 22 January 1944 in Operation Shingle, the fault, however, was not due to Lucass incompetence, it was due instead to wishful thinking, faulty operational planning, and the German armys ability to respond forcefully and aggressively. After the failure of Shingle, a reorganisation took place. Previously the Apennines had been the rough dividing line between Fifth and Eighth Armies, however, the dividing line was shifted westwards, to allow the concentration of both armies on the western side of Italy for maximum firepower to break through to Rome. British V Corps was left on the Adriatic coast to pin down any German units there, Fifth Army was relieved of responsibility for Cassino and the final phases of that battle saw Indian, New Zealand and finally Polish troops thrown against the fortress
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87th Infantry Regiment (United States)
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The 87th Infantry Regiment is an infantry regiment in the United States Army. The regiments 1st and 2nd Battalions are light infantry units assigned to the 1st and 2nd Brigade Combat Teams respectively of the 10th Mountain Division located at Fort Drum, the 3d Battalion was active in the U. S. Army Reserve in Colorado. The 87th Mountain Infantry Battalion was activated on 15 November 1941 at Fort Lewis, Washington and this unit was the first American regiment of mountain troops. It was expanded into a regiment in 1943, on 12 May 1942, the regiment was reorganized as the 87th Mountain Infantry at Fort Lewis. The 87th joined the 10th Mountain Division at Camp Hale, Colorado, on 29 July 1943, the regiment sailed to the Aleutian Islands as part of Amphibious Task Force 9. Also included in Task Force Force 9 were the First Special Service Force, the regiment was part of the Italian Campaign from January 1945 to the end of the campaign, and remained as part of the occupying force until August 1945. The 87th Infantry was again assigned to the 10th Mountain Division on 18 June 1948, in January 1954, 10th Division became a standard infantry division and was sent to West Germany. It was inactivated on 14 June 1958 at Fort Benning, GA, during this era the Army reorganized its combat forces, abandoning three tactical infantry regiments per division for five battle groups of five companies each, known as the Pentomic organization. Effective 1 July 1957 the lineage of Company A, 87th Infantry Regiment was reorganized and redesignated as HHC, 1st Battle Group, 87th Infantry and it was relieved effective 14 June 1958 from the 10th and reassigned to the 2d Infantry Division. On 2 May 1987 the battalion was assigned to the 10th Mountain Division and activated at Fort Drum, New York. The lineage of Company B was inactivated effective 1 July 1957 in Germany, redesignated as HHC, 2d Battle Group, 87th Infantry and relieved from assignment to the 10th Infantry Division. That same year it was relieve from assignment to the 2d Infantry Division and assigned to the 8th Infantry Division, then in Germany, on 2 May 1988 the battalion was assigned to the 10th Mountain Division and activated at Fort Drum, New York. Two companies of 87th Infantry were in Vietnam during the war, the first was Company C, 87th Infantry, which was attached to the 92d Military Police Battalion guarding Tan Son Nhut. It was later assigned to Long Binh under the U. S. Army Support Command, coming from Fort Lewis, WA, it was in Vietnam from 29 November 1966 to 26 November 1972. Also coming from Fort Lewis was Company D, 87th Infantry, the unit served a second tour in Vietnam from 30 June 1971 to 30 April 1972 when it guarded installations of the 26th General Support Group at Tan My. Both companies had an strength of 151 in 1968 and 160 in 1971. Source, Vietnam Order of Battle by Shelby Stanton, pages 154-155, Mountain tabs were not worn over the patch as they were almost impossible to find before the division was reactivated at Fort Drum and tabs went into production again. Each of these objectives lay astride the key lines of communication into the center of Panama city
34.
Gulf War
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The Iraqi Armys occupation of Kuwait that began 2 August 1990 was met with international condemnation, and brought immediate economic sanctions against Iraq by members of the UN Security Council. US President George H. W. Bush deployed US forces into Saudi Arabia, an array of nations joined the coalition, the largest military alliance since World War II. The great majority of the military forces were from the US, with Saudi Arabia, the United Kingdom. Kuwait and Saudi Arabia paid around US$32 billion of the US$60 billion cost, the war was marked by the introduction of live news broadcasts from the front lines of the battle, principally by the US network CNN. The war has also earned the nickname Video Game War after the daily broadcast of images from cameras on board US bombers during Operation Desert Storm. The initial conflict to expel Iraqi troops from Kuwait began with an aerial and naval bombardment on 17 January 1991 and this was followed by a ground assault on 24 February. This was a victory for the coalition forces, who liberated Kuwait. The coalition ceased its advance, and declared a ceasefire 100 hours after the campaign started. Aerial and ground combat was confined to Iraq, Kuwait, Iraq launched Scud missiles against coalition military targets in Saudi Arabia and against Israel. The following names have been used to describe the conflict itself, Gulf War, a problem with these terms is that the usage is ambiguous, having now been applied to at least three conflicts, see Gulf War. The use of the term Persian Gulf is also disputed, see Persian Gulf naming dispute, with no consensus of naming, various publications have attempted to refine the name. Other language terms include French, la Guerre du Golfe and German, Golfkrieg, German, Zweiter Golfkrieg, French, most of the coalition states used various names for their operations and the wars operational phases. Operation Desert Storm was the US name of the conflict from 17 January 1991. Operation Desert Sabre was the US name for the offensive against the Iraqi Army in the Kuwaiti Theater of Operations from 24–28 February 1991, in itself. Operation Desert Farewell was the given to the return of US units and equipment to the US in 1991 after Kuwaits liberation. Operation Granby was the British name for British military activities during the operations, Opération Daguet was the French name for French military activities in the conflict. Operation Friction was the name of the Canadian operations Operazione Locusta was the Italian name for the operations, in addition, various phases of each operation may have a unique operational name. The US divided the conflict into three campaigns, Defense of Saudi Arabian country for the period 2 August 1990, through 16 January 1991
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Cold War
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The Cold War was a state of geopolitical tension after World War II between powers in the Eastern Bloc and powers in the Western Bloc. Historians do not fully agree on the dates, but a common timeframe is the period between 1947, the year the Truman Doctrine was announced, and 1991, the year the Soviet Union collapsed. The term cold is used there was no large-scale fighting directly between the two sides, although there were major regional wars, known as proxy wars, supported by the two sides. The Cold War split the temporary alliance against Nazi Germany, leaving the Soviet Union. The USSR was a Marxist–Leninist state ruled by its Communist Party and secret police, the Party controlled the press, the military, the economy and all organizations. In opposition stood the West, dominantly democratic and capitalist with a free press, a small neutral bloc arose with the Non-Aligned Movement, it sought good relations with both sides. The two superpowers never engaged directly in full-scale armed combat, but they were armed in preparation for a possible all-out nuclear world war. The first phase of the Cold War began in the first two years after the end of the Second World War in 1945, the Berlin Blockade was the first major crisis of the Cold War. With the victory of the communist side in the Chinese Civil War and the outbreak of the Korean War, the USSR and USA competed for influence in Latin America, and the decolonizing states of Africa and Asia. Meanwhile, the Hungarian Revolution of 1956 was stopped by the Soviets, the expansion and escalation sparked more crises, such as the Suez Crisis, the Berlin Crisis of 1961, and the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962. The USSR crushed the 1968 Prague Spring liberalization program in Czechoslovakia, détente collapsed at the end of the decade with the beginning of the Soviet–Afghan War in 1979. The early 1980s were another period of elevated tension, with the Soviet downing of Korean Air Lines Flight 007, the United States increased diplomatic, military, and economic pressures on the Soviet Union, at a time when the communist state was already suffering from economic stagnation. In the mid-1980s, the new Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev introduced the reforms of perestroika and glasnost. Pressures for national independence grew stronger in Eastern Europe, especially Poland, Gorbachev meanwhile refused to use Soviet troops to bolster the faltering Warsaw Pact regimes as had occurred in the past. The result in 1989 was a wave of revolutions that peacefully overthrew all of the communist regimes of Central, the Communist Party of the Soviet Union itself lost control and was banned following an abortive coup attempt in August 1991. This in turn led to the dissolution of the USSR in December 1991. The United States remained as the only superpower. The Cold War and its events have left a significant legacy and it is often referred to in popular culture, especially in media featuring themes of espionage and the threat of nuclear warfare
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Bosnia and Herzegovina
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Bosnia and Herzegovina, sometimes called Bosnia-Herzegovina, and, in short, often known informally as Bosnia, is a country in Southeastern Europe located on the Balkan Peninsula. Sarajevo is the capital and largest city, in the central and eastern interior of the country the geography is mountainous, in the northwest it is moderately hilly, and the northeast is predominantly flatland. The inland is a larger region and has a moderate continental climate, with hot summers and cold. The southern tip of the country has a Mediterranean climate and plain topography, Bosnia and Herzegovina is a region that traces permanent human settlement back to the Neolithic age, during and after which it was populated by several Illyrian and Celtic civilizations. Culturally, politically, and socially, the country has a rich history, the Ottomans brought Islam to the region, and altered much of the cultural and social outlook of the country. This was followed by annexation into the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy, which lasted up until World War I. In the interwar period, Bosnia was part of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia and after World War II, following the dissolution of Yugoslavia, the country proclaimed independence in 1992, which was followed by the Bosnian War, lasting until late 1995. The country is home to three ethnic groups or, officially, constituent peoples, as specified in the constitution. Bosniaks are the largest group of the three, with Serbs second and Croats third, a native of Bosnia and Herzegovina, regardless of ethnicity, is identified in English as a Bosnian. The terms Herzegovinian and Bosnian are maintained as a rather than ethnic distinction. Moreover, the country was simply called Bosnia until the Austro-Hungarian occupation at the end of the 19th century, Bosnia and Herzegovina has a bicameral legislature and a three-member Presidency composed of a member of each major ethnic group. The Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina is itself complex and consists of 10 cantons, additionally, the country has been a member of the Council of Europe since April 2002 and a founding member of the Mediterranean Union upon its establishment in July 2008. The name is believed to have derived from the hydronym of the river Bosna coursing through the Bosnian heartland. According to philologist Anton Mayer the name Bosna could be derived from Illyrian Bass-an-as which would be a diversion of the Proto-Indo-European root bos or bogh, meaning the running water. According to English medievalist William Miller the Slavic settlers in Bosnia adapted the Latin designation Basante, to their own idiom by calling the stream Bosna, the name Herzegovina originates from Bosnian magnate Stephen Vukčić Kosačas title, Herceg of Hum and the Coast. Hum, formerly Zahumlje, was a medieval principality that was conquered by the Bosnian Banate in the first half of the 14th century. Bosnia is located in the western Balkans, bordering Croatia to the north and west, Serbia to the east and it has a coastline about 20 kilometres long surrounding the city of Neum. It lies between latitudes 42° and 46° N, and longitudes 15° and 20° E, the countrys name comes from the two regions Bosnia and Herzegovina, which have a very vaguely defined border between them
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United States Army Center of Military History
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The United States Army Center of Military History is a directorate within the Office of the Administrative Assistant to the Secretary of the Army. The center is responsible for the use of history and military records throughout the United States Army. Traditionally, this mission has meant recording the history of the army in both peace and war, while advising the army staff on historical matters. CMH is the organization leading the Army Historical Program. The center traces its lineage back to historians under the Secretary of War who compiled the Official Records of the Rebellion, a similar work on World War I was prepared by the Historical Section of the Army War College. They began publication of the United States Army in World War II series, since then, the Center has produced detailed series on the Armys role in the Korean and Vietnam Wars and has begun a series on the U. S. Army in the Cold War. These works are supplemented by monographs and other publications on a mix of topics and it has expanded its role in the areas of military history education, the management of the armys museum system, and the introduction of automated data-retrieval systems. The centers work with army schools ensures that the study of history is a part of the training of officers, much of this educational work is performed at field historical offices and in army museums. Under the direction of the chief of military history and his principal adviser and those works under way and projected are described in the Army Historical Program, an annual report to the Chief of Staff on the Army’s historical activities. All center publications are listed in the catalog Publications of the United States Army Center of Military History, CMH also serves as a clearinghouse for the oral history programs in the army at all levels of command. It also conducts and preserves its own oral history collections, including those from the Vietnam War, Desert Storm, in addition, the center’s end-of-tour interviews within the Army Secretariat and Staff provide a basis for its annual histories of the Department of the Army. As tangible representations of the mission, military artifacts and art enhance the soldier’s understanding of the profession of arms. CMH manages a system of more than 120 army museums and their holdings, current projects include the establishment of a National Army Museum at Fort Belvoir, Virginia, and a complementary Army Heritage and Educational Center at Carlisle Barracks, Pennsylvania. The Chief of Military History is responsible for ensuring the use of military history in the teaching of strategy, tactics, logistics. This mission includes a requirement that military leaders at all levels be aware of the value of history in advancing military professionalism, in this effort, the chief of military history is assisted by a historical advisory committee that includes leading academic historians and representatives of the army school system. Staff rides enable military leaders to retrace the course of a battle on the ground, as one of the army’s major teaching devices, staff rides are particularly dependent on a careful knowledge of military history. Center historians lead rides directed by the Secretary of the Army and it administers the army’s Command History Program, to provide historical support to army organizations worldwide. To stimulate interest in history in the army and the nation
United States
United States Army
