Why Leadership Matters: Joint Task Force Planning with the Department of State

摘要

This work examines the relationship of the Joint Task Force Commander and the United States Ambassador during contingency operations conducted by the United States. The work examines the impacts of this relationship on operations conducted for regime change and how it influenced conflict termination in the 20th century. The work examines two historic case studies: Operation Just Cause and Operation Uphold Democracy. Moreover, the work examines communication and integration between the strategic policy makers, the Department of State and the Department of Defense and how they are linked to the Joint Task Force to answer the primary research question. The Operation in Haiti is an example of international institutions working to achieve clear termination criteria, which are necessary to ensure successful war termination or conflict resolution. Though vastly different in scope, duration, and international support Operations Just Cause and Uphold Democracy highlight the best and worst examples of United States military intervention. The drastically different cases highlight the differences in the types of conflict termination and the stark differences in the relationship of the Joint Task Force Commander and the in country ambassador. Numerous aspects about collaborative planning and integration of the Department of State and Department of Defense could improve, but the focus of the conclusions and recommendations will be on Department of Defense led initiatives.