Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III passes the U.S. Africa Command guidon to Lt. Gen. Michael Langley, incoming commander of AFRICOM, during a Change of Command Ceremony in Stuttgart, German Aug. 09, 2022. Langley became the sixth commander since the command was established in 2008. (Credit: Africom.mil)

By Gary  Raynaldo     –   DIPLOMATIC  TIMES

U.S. Africa Command welcomed its new commander Lt. Gen. Michael Langley Tuesday during a Change of Command ceremony in Stuttgart, Germany. Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III passed the U.S AFRICOM Command guidon to Lt. Gen. Langley during the event. Langley became the sixth commander since the command was established in 2008.  Langley was confirmed as a general this month, making history as the first Black four-star Marine general in 246 years.    Lt. Gen. Langley will command all U.S. military forces in Africa from AFRICOM’s headquarters in Stuttgart.  U.S. AFRICOM  is a small combatant command with a large mission that they are doing deftly, Secretary of Defense Austin said during the Change of Command ceremony.  Austin and Army Gen. Mark A. Milley, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, spoke as Army Gen. Stephen J. Townsend turned over command to Langley. 

“Every day, Africom works alongside our friends as full partners — to strengthen bonds, to tackle common threats and to advance a shared vision of an Africa whose people are safe, prosperous and free to choose their own future.”

-U.S. Defense Secretary  Lloyd Austin

Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III shakes hands with Marine Corps Gen. Michael E. Langley, the new commander of U.S. Africa Command, during the Africom change-of-command ceremony in Stuttgart, Germany, Aug. 9, 2022.  (Photo By: DOD photo)

“It is truly an honor to stand before you as the new AFRICOM commander,”

Lt. Gen. Langley said at the ceremony.

“I look forward to taking on the mantle of leading these talented professionals here at AFRICOM and across our components as we work shoulder-to-shoulder with our allies and partners to advance peace and prosperity for both Africa and the American homeland.”

Lt. Gen. Langley To Lead U.S. AFRICOM At A Critical Time 

Langley will lead U.S. AFRICOM at a very critical time. The security situation in East Africa has been on a downward trajectory following the previous administration’s decision to withdraw the majority of U.S. military personnel from Somalia in December 2020. Since then, U.S. forces have been conducting periodic engagements to train and advise Somali partners, but U.S. and partner efforts to disrupt and degrade al-Shabaab have not achieved the desired success.  Militant Islamist violence in Africa has risen continuously over the past decade, doubling in just the past 3 years, according to a recent report by the Africa Center for Strategic Studies.   

The Sahel has seen a quadrupling in number of violent extremist events since 2019

Along with Mozambique, this is the sharpest spike in violence of any region on the continent during this timeframe, according to the ACSS report. The 2,612 violent events in the Sahel over the past year is the first time a theater other than Somalia experienced the greatest level of Islamist militant-linked violence. The majority of this increase is being generated by the Macina Liberation Front (FLM), part of the Jama’at Nusrat al Islam wal Muslimin (JNIM) coalition of militant Islamist groups.  The 7,052 fatalities linked to militant Islamist groups in the Sahel represent nearly half of all such deaths reported on the continent.

Lt. Gen. Langley will command all U.S. military forces in Africa

Gen Michael E. Langley, Commander, United States Africa Command (US AFRICOM)

At his confirmation hearing in 2022, Langley expressed his gratitude to his father, stepmother and two sisters: “As many nominees have said in testimony before me, military families form the bedrock upon which our Joint Force readiness stands,” he said. “Without their support, I would not be here today.”

A graduate of the University of Texas at Arlington, Langley was commissioned in 1985 and initially served as an artillery officer. As a general officer, he served as the deputy commanding general for II Marine Expeditionary Force; commanding general for 2d Marine Expeditionary Brigade; commander for Marine Forces Europe and Africa; deputy commanding general for Fleet Marine Force Atlantic; and deputy commander for Marine Forces Command and Marine Forces Northern Command. 

Africom continues to thwart the Islamic State and al-Qaida and other terror groups

Gen. Stephen Townsend, outgoing commander AFRICOM,  welcomes Lt. Gen. Michael Langley, incoming commander AFRICOM at Change of Command ceremony in Stuttgart, Germany  Aug. 9 2022.  (Credit: Africom.mil)

Townsend, who led U.S. Africa Command since July 2019, retires after a U.S. Army career spanning four decades. “The last three years have been an education and Africa is endlessly fascinating—the continent is big, complex, and diverse. America cannot afford to ignore Africa —America’s future security, and I believe prosperity, depends on a more secure and prosperous Africa,” he said. 

Gen. Milley stressed that Africom works to counter terrorist networks that challenge freedom and stability with a small footprint. The chairman called the command “responsive and adaptive” well able to cope with the changing landscape on the ground. “This command acts at the speed of relevance,” the general said. 

The command is only 15 years old and has embraced its mission of “working shoulder-to-shoulder with our partners” to make all nations safer and more prosperous,  Defense Secretary Austin said.   

During his remarks, Austin thanked outgoing commander, U.S. Army Gen. Stephen Townsend, for his dedicated leadership over the past three years as he highlighted the critical work the command is doing in Africa. 

“The continent is on the front lines of many of this century’s most pressing threats — from mass migration to food insecurity, from COVID-19 to the climate crisis, from the drumbeat of autocracy to the dangers of terrorism,” he said. 

The official party, from left to right, for the  U.S. Africa Command Change of Command Ceremony in Stuttgart, German Aug. 09, 2022:   U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, Army Gen. Mark A. Milley, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Stephen Townsend, outgoing commander AFRICOM, and Lt. Gen. Michael Langley, incoming commander AFRICOM)

(Left to Right)   Gen. Stephen Townsend, outgoing commander AFRICOM,  U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, (Center) Army Gen. Mark A. Milley, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and Lt. Gen. Michael Langley, incoming commander AFRICOM at Change of Command ceremony Stuttgart Aug. 9 2022. (Photo: US DOD) 

U.S. Africa Command is one of seven U.S. Department of Defense geographic combatant commands. The command is responsible for all U.S. military operations, exercises, security cooperation, and conducts crisis response on the African continent in order to advance U.S. interests and promote regional security, stability, and prosperity.