Robert Komer
Robert Komer | |
---|---|
United States Ambassador to Turkey | |
In office December 3, 1968 – May 7, 1969 | |
President | Lyndon B. Johnson Richard Nixon |
Preceded by | Parker T. Hart |
Succeeded by | William J. Handley |
3rd Deputy National Security Advisor | |
In office 1965 | |
President | Lyndon B. Johnson |
Preceded by | Carl Kaysen |
Succeeded by | Francis M. Bator |
Personal details | |
Born | Robert William Komer February 23, 1922 Arlington, Virginia, U.S. |
Alma mater | Harvard University (BA, MBA) |
Nickname | "Blowtorch Bob" |
Military service | |
Battles/wars | World War II |
Robert William "Blowtorch Bob" Komer (February 23, 1922 – April 9, 2000) was an American national security adviser known for managing Civil Operations and Revolutionary Development Support during the Vietnam War.
Early life and education
Born in
Career
Komer served on the staff of the National Security Council, which was led by McGeorge Bundy. After Bundy's departure, Komer briefly succeeded Bundy as interim National Security Advisor, before he was assigned to the Vietnam pacification campaign.
While with the NSC, Komer and others negotiated with Israeli prime minister Levi Eshkol a memorandum of understanding (MOU) about Israeli nuclear capabilities. The March 10, 1965, MOU, variously interpreted since, said 'Israel would not be the first country to "introduce" nuclear weapons to the Middle East'.[2]
Komer arrived in
However, the problems CORDS faced were intractable and the results of Komer's work ambiguous. In a revealing discussion with military historians,
Komer left South Vietnam in November 1968 and after working briefly as a consultant for the
Ambassador Komer, known for his success in garnering support in a hostile environment like Vietnam, tried to calm down the relations to the Turkish population, which was furious due the presence of sailors of the
Komer joined the RAND Corporation in June 1970 as program manager for defense studies, which included RAND's ongoing work in South Vietnam.[10]: 383 In July 1970 Komer returned to South Vietnam for a two week visit in which he toured 20 of the 44 provinces to assess the progress of pacification. On his return to the US he optimistically reported to various interested parties that the US and South Vietnam had beaten the Vietcong insurgency and controlled most of the population, but that the South Vietnamese government still needed to secure the support of the population to prevent the North Vietnamese from conducting a protracted struggle while waiting for the US to withdraw.[10]: 385–7
Komer also later worked in the Jimmy Carter administration as the Under Secretary of Defense for Policy.[1]
In the 1980s, Komer became a vocal critic of "The Maritime Strategy", which was devised by
Personal life
Robert Komer's first marriage to Jane Komer ended in divorce. He later married Geraldine, who died in 1996.[1]
Awards and honors
On December 23, 1967, he was presented with the
Death and legacy
Komer died on April 9, 2000.[1]
Sources
References
- ^ a b c d e Weiner, Tim (12 April 2000). "Robert Komer, 78, Figure in Vietnam, Dies". The New York Times.
- ^ Avni, Benny,"Iran and Syria Eye Israel’s Nukes", Newsweek, October 17, 2013. This source and others misspell Komer's last name as 'Comer'. For confirmation of correct spelling and confirmation of identification, for example: Avner Cohen, Israel and the Bomb (Columbia University Press) p. 207; or Hersh, Seymour, The Samson option: Israel's nuclear arsenal (NY: Random House, 1991), p. 134; both via Google Books. Retrieved 2015-04-04.
- New York Times. Retrieved 2008-10-11.
- ^ Jones 2005: 107
- ^ Hunt 1995: 90.
- ) Declassified in 2005.
- ^ Hunt 1995: 90 - 93
- ISBN 978-6059022477.
- ^ Photographs of Komer's car aflame: Devrimden vazgeçmeyen okul: ODTÜ, Radikal
- ^ ISBN 9780833047540.
- Bibliography
- Hunt, Richard A. Pacification: The American Struggle for Vietnam's Hearts and Minds (Boulder, CA: Westview Press, 1995).
- Jones, Frank Leith. 'Blowtorch: Robert Komer and the Making of Vietnam Pacification Policy', Parameters (Autumn 2005).
- Jones, Frank Leith. Blowtorch: Robert Komer, Vietnam, and American Cold War Strategy. 2013. OCLC 813910349
External links
- Interview About U.S. Maritime Strategy from the Dean Peter Krogh Foreign Affairs Digital Archives
- Frank Jones Discusses Robert Komer at the Pritzker Military Museum & Library