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Commander, Admiral Brad Cooper
CENTCOM Commander
Admiral Brad Cooper is the proud son of a career Army Officer. He is a graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy and earned a master’s degree in Strategic Intelligence from the National Intelligence University. He studied international relations at Harvard and Tufts Universities. Cooper is a graduate of the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College.
A career Navy Surface Warfare Officer, he has deployed on ships to every combatant command theater of operation and served a tour on the ground in Afghanistan. His command tours include service in Bahrain as commander, U.S. Naval Forces Central Command, FIFTH Fleet and Combined Maritime Forces; commander, Naval Surface Force Atlantic; commander, Expeditionary Strike Group 7 in Okinawa, Japan; and, commander, U.S. Naval Forces Korea in Busan, South Korea. His ship commands include USS Russell (DDG 59) and USS Gettysburg (CG 64).
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Acting Deputy Commander, Major General (Promotable) Kevin C. Leahy
CENTCOM Acting Deputy Commander
Major General (Promotable) Kevin Leahy is the Acting Deputy Commander, U.S. Central Command (USCENTCOM) and is the designated future Commander of U.S. Army Central. He most recently served as Commander, Combined Joint Task Force – Operation Inherent Resolve, Iraq from August 2024-July 2025
A native of Oakland, New Jersey, MG Leahy began his military career in the Army Reserve in December 1989. While at the University of Scranton, Scranton, Pennsylvania, he joined the Reserve Officer Training Corps and later commissioned as a Military Police Officer in May 1993.
MG Leahy completed the Special Forces Qualification Course in 1998 and was assigned to the 5th Special Forces Group (Airborne), Fort Campbell, Kentucky for the first time. Over the course of multiple assignments to 5th SFG (A), MG Leahy served in leadership positions at the detachment, company, battalion and group levels culminating as the Group Commander from 2015-2017. MG Leahy participated in multiple operational and combat deployments to the U.S. Central Command area of operations with 5th SFG(A).
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Chief of Staff, Major General Richard A. Harrison
CENTCOM Chief of Staff
Major General Richard A. Harrison serves as the Chief of Staff for the U.S Central Command. A native of Sunbury, N.C., MG Harrison received his commission through Army ROTC as an Air Defense Artillery (ADA) officer in 1994 from Elizabeth City State University (ECSU), Elizabeth City, N.C.
MG Harrison has served in a variety of command and staff positions throughout his career. His previous assignments include: Commanding General, 32d Army Air Missile Defense Command; Deputy Chief of Staff, G-3/5/7, United States Army Training and Doctrine Command (TRADOC); 44th Commandant of the U.S. Army School, Chief of ADA, and Deputy Commanding General of the Fires Center of Excellence and Fort Sill, Oklahoma; Executive Officer to the Commanding General of United States Forces Korea; Executive Assistant to the Joint Staff J-3; Division Chief for the Protection Division; Commander of the 69th ADA Brigade; Assistant Chief of Staff G-3 (Forward) for the 32d Army Air Missile Defense Command; Commander of the 3rd Battalion, 4th ADA Regiment; and Deputy Commanding Officer for the 108th ADA Brigade.
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Senior Enlisted Leader, Fleet Master Chief Lateef N. Compton
CENTCOM Senior Enlisted Leader
Fleet Master Chief, Lateef N. Compton was born in Hartford, Connecticut. He graduated from Bloomfield High School and enlisted in the United States Navy in 1994. He attended Mess Specialist, “A” School in San Diego, California and reported for duty to the aircraft carrier USS GEORGE WASHINGTON (CVN 73) in Norfolk, Virgina.
Ashore, FLTCM Compton served as the Community Base Housing (CBH) Manager and Front Desk Supervisor while stationed at Naval Education and Training Center (NETC) in Newport, R.I., from December 1998 to January 2002. In 2002, he reported to Strike Fighter Squadron EIGHT TWO (VFA-82) where he completed two deployments onboard USS ENTERPRISE (CVN 65) and on USS ABRAHAM LINCOLN (CVN 72) in support of Operation ENDURING FREEDOM.
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