US renames Pacific Command as US Indo-Pacific Command

TIL Desk/World/Washington/ In recognition of the increasing connectivity between the Indian and Pacific Oceans, the Trump administration on Thursday renamed the to US Indo-Pacific Command. The move is also reflective of the growing importance of the Indian Ocean in US strategic thinking. Henceforth, the storied US Pacific Command, or PACOM, which was formed after World War II, will be known as the Indo-Pacific Command.

Soon after coming to power, the Trump administration had renamed Asia Pacific as Indo-Pacific and identified India as one bookend of the region.The latest announcement was made by the US Defence Secretary Jim Mattis during the change of guard ceremony at Joint Base Pearl Harbour wherein Admiral Phil Davidson replaced Admiral Harry Harris as Commander, US Indo-Pacific Command or IndoPacom.

“In recognition of the increasing connectivity, the Indian and Pacific Oceans, today we rename the US Pacific Command to US Indo-Pacific Command. Over many decades, this command has repeatedly adapted to changing circumstance, and today carries that legacy forward as America focuses west,” Mattis said in his remarks on the occasion.