Bravo Zulu: Stavridis moves to increase SOUTHCOMs visibility, credibility in 32 countries in t e re!

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Martin Edwin Andersen December 18, 2006 One thing certain about Admiral James G. Stavridis, the new commander of the United States Southern Command, is that he moves fast and plays hard, something reflected in the very competitive figure he still cuts on the s uash, tennis and bas!etball courts. Which is good to know, now that Stavridis is the first nava officer to head S!"#$%!M&res'onsib e for a "(S( mi itar) activities on the and masses of %entra and So*th America, the is and nations of the %aribbean, and the s*rro*nding waters so*th of Me+ico, in a , the home to -2 sovereign states( .n the two months since ass*ming command, Stavridis has been ver) aggressive in getting o*t and meeting 'eo' e with whom he wi be working and 'artnering, in order to ma+imi/e S!"#$%!M visibi it) and credibi it) in the region( 0ot on ) has he a read) visited a of the command1s eight com'onents, inc *ding 2*antanamo, ' *s %o ombia, $ond*ras and E Sa vador, b*t is a so ' anning a fast break in the coming )ear to other co*ntries on his 'riorit) ist( 34#hink 5ra/i ,6 he has to d associates(7 .n the short time he has been in Miami, Stavridis has hammered home ke) e ements of his command 'hi oso'h), which inc *de the m*ch *nder*sed word&4civi it)6&and creativit)( And he is c ear ) someone ' eased to be getting the message o*t( #he choice of this 0av) man sho* d not have come as a s*r'rise( .n addition to grad*ating with honors at the 0ava Academ) in Anna'o is, Stavridis earned a 8h(D( in internationa re ations from the 9 etcher Schoo of :aw and Di' omac), where he won the 2* ion 8ri/e as the o*tstanding st*dent in 1;8-( .n 1;;2, he grad*ated with distinction from the 0ationa War %o ege( 4.1ve worked with navies and the other mi itaries in the region,6 Stavridis notes( 4.1ve had an Argentine shi' assigned to m) carrier strike gro*', m) S'anish is im'roving( < So rather than sa)ing, =!ka) we1ve got to '*t an Arm) officer down there,1 . think the fo ks making the decision ooked at who had the >*a ifications that fit the best(6 0ot that being a nava officer is witho*t significance( Stavridis admits that he 4wi bring a different set of e)es to the 'rob em in an area of res'onsibi it) that has a ver) arge maritime com'onent(6 4$e1s o*tgoing, he oves dea ing with 'eo' e and is e+treme ) 'ersonab e,6 sa)s one two?star admira who has sai ed with Stavridis and who asks not to be >*oted b) name
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so he can s'eak free )( 4$e is an incredib ) 'ositive eader, 'erha's the shar'est commander . have ever seen on a shi'(6 Loving It 4. ove the @ob . am in now,6 Stavridis a owed in a recent interview( 4. ove Miami( . ove ever)thing abo*t the c* t*re in :atin America( .t @*st intrig*es me great )( . was born in so*th 9 orida and it1s wonderf* to come home(6 And that is sa)ing a ot( As commander of the USS "arry 3DD2?A27 he was de' o)ed in $aiti, 5osnia and the 8ersian 2* f as 'art of Operation #igilant $arrior, where the shi' won severa coveted awards( As the sea combat commander with the Abraham %incoln 5att e 2ro*' he received the 0av) :eag*e1s Bohn 8a* Bones Award for ins'irationa eadershi'( 4Another 'ost that . oved was being the admira in charge of the carrier strike gro*', sai ing thro*gh the Arabian 2* f, doing combat missions over .ra>, Afghanistan and the $orn of Africa in s*''ort of Operation &nduring 'reedom(Operation )ra i 'reedom,6 he added( 4.t was a marve o*s, marve o*s to*r(6 #hose who have sai ed with Stavridis sa) his shi'board command st) e is ike ) a ke) to the wa) he wi r*n S!"#$%!M( #he) 'oint to his o'enness to istening before making a decision, his ack of 'reconceived ideas, and his 'ractica it)( Stavridis1 em'hasis on team ' a)ing is ref ected b) his constant em'hasis on the gro*', rather than on individ*a s, himse f inc *ded( #he decisions that he makes, the) sa), conscientio*s ) weighs risks, benefits and costs( 4$e1s c ose to his 'eo' e,6 sa)s one( !ne of those *'on whom Stavridis eft a asting im'ression was Argentine 0av) %a'tain B* io 2raf, a recent %$DS visiting scho ar( 2raf sai ed with Stavridis when the atter commanded !'eration So id Ste' at the head of the &nterprise %arrier Strike 2ro*', a @oint vo)age aro*nd the At antic !cean and Mediterranean Sea in 200designed to 'romote greater intero'erabi it) between the Argentine and "(S( navies( 2raf had met Stavridis nine )ears ear ier when the American was the commander of a destro)er and he was the chief of o'erations for that vesse 1s Argentine sister shi'( =When he was m) commander, . had to make a diffic* t decision, and he et me know . co* d co*nt on his co*nse and s*''ort,6 2raf reca ed( 4And a tho*gh his choice 'roved to be the correct one, it carried with it certain risks( When . said goodb)e to him we were on the high seas in the At antic, and he accom'anied me on the deck of the &nterprise( $e took the S*rface Warfare !fficer 'in that he was wearing and gave it to me, sa)ing, =9rom one sai or to another(16 The Back Story Stavridis1 father served as a co one in the Marine %or's and the fami ) ived in
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Athens from 1;62 to 1;6A whi e the o der man, who remains toda) one of his heroes, was the "S nava attachC there( $is 'aterna grand'arents were immigrants from 2reece( Stavridis reca ed with fee ing the fact that 4the who e immigrant e+'erience is ver) rea to me, 'art of m) ife e+'erience(6 Stavridis1 grandfather immigrated to the "nited States in the 1;20s, o'ening *' a resta*rant( . ove to cook,6 the S!"#$%!M commander sa)s( 4. have been aro*nd cooks and cooking m) who e ife and m) mom is a wonderf* hand in the kitchen(6 Was cooking the road not taken, he was askedD 4.t is,6 he res'onded, a*ghing( 4#hat is a ver) 'erce'tive >*estion( #hat is a '*rs*it that wo* d be of interest to me in another, 'ara e , ife( Stavridis sa)s that the 'assions of his )o*th are sti those that move him now&and a so inc *de reading and ' a)ing s'orts, 'artic* ar ) racket s'orts( .n high schoo he ' a)ed varsit) tennis and even @*nior varsit) basket ba , 4co*nter?int*itive ) beca*se . am not the ta est g*) in the wor d, b*t . ove basketba (6 #hen, ike now, Stavridis was A1611&4on a good da)(6 $e a so ' a)ed tennis and s>*ash on the varsit) teams at the 0ava Academ)( 4M) other activities tended to revo ve aro*nd writing,6 he reca ed( 4. was the editor of m) schoo news'a'er in high schoo , at Mc% intock $igh Schoo in #em'e, Ari/ona, for m) ast two )ears( At the 0ava Academ) . was the editor of the %og maga/ine, which is the '*b ication of the 0ava Academ)( . was a so invo ved in eadershi' o''ort*nities&. was what was ca ed a midshi'man commander, and was one of the brigade eaders as a first c assman, or a senior(6 Stavridis sa)s he grew *' wanting to be an officer in the Marine %or's, ike his dad, and went off to the 0ava Academ) convinced that was his 'ath( $owever, whi e at the 0ava Academ) he went off to sea on a shi'( 4. oved it,6 he said( 4. knew immediate ) then that what . wanted to do was to be a ca'tain of a warshi'( So . fo owed m) father1s ste's into the service b*t veered off from the Marines into the 0av)(6 #he 9 orida native received his commission from then Secretar) of Defense Dona d E*msfe d( 4As he ikes to sa),6 Stavridis noted, E*msfe d 4'romoted me to ensign in the "nited States 0av) in 1;F6 and thirt) )ears ater&in 2006&he 'romoted me to m) fo*rth star as a f* admira (6 Stavridis, who has been married 2A )ears, met his wife, :a*ra $a , when he was eight and she was three )ears o d in Athens, where her father was the assistant nava attachC( 4We ' a)ed together as sma chi dren, o*r fami ies sta)ed in to*ch over the )ears and we met again and fe in ove when . was a )o*ng @*nior officer in the 0av) in the ear ) 1;80s,6 he reca ed( 4We got married in 1;81(6 #heir o dest da*ghter, %hristina, is an American st*dies ma@or at the "niversit) of Girginia, and is thinking abo*t aw schoo or a career in @o*rna ism( B* ia, a so'homore in the Miami '*b ic schoo s, is a 'assionate fig*re skater and a good st*dent, her father 'ro*d ) offers(
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