Editing Robert Komer

'''Robert William "Blowtorch Bob" Komer''' (February 23, 1922 – April 9, 2000) was a [[Central Intelligence Agency|CIA]] officer, a [[United States National Security Council]] staffer in the [[John F. Kennedy|Kennedy]] administration, was briefly the US Ambassador to [[Republic of Türkiye|Turkey]] in 1968, and later the Undersecretary of Defense for Policy (a [[United States Department of Defense|Department of Defense]] position) in the [[Jimmy Carter|Carter]] administration. Komer headed the [[Phoenix Program]] and [[CORDS]] "pacification" program in the [[Vietnam War]].<ref>[[Jeremy Kuzmarov|Kuzmarov, Jeremy]]. [https://covertactionmagazine.com/2023/04/03/former-ghanaian-president-kwame-nkrumah-is-no-doubt-rolling-in-his-grave-as-africom-carries-out-military-training-exercises-in-ghana/ “Former Ghanaian President Kwame Nkrumah Is No Doubt Rolling in His Grave as AFRICOM Carries out Military Training Exercises in Ghana.”] [[CovertAction Magazine]]. April 3, 2023. </ref> Later he became a consultant with the [[Rand Corporation]], writing classified studies on [[North Atlantic Treaty Organization|NATO]] and about rapid-deployment forces in the [[Persian Gulf]], eventually working in the Carter administration.<ref name=":0">[https://www.nytimes.com/2000/04/12/world/robert-komer-78-figure-in-vietnam-dies.html “Robert Komer, 78, Figure in Vietnam, Dies.”] New York Times, April 12, 2000. [https://web.archive.org/web/20110619085911/http://www.nytimes.com/2000/04/12/world/robert-komer-78-figure-in-vietnam-dies.html Archived Page 1], [https://web.archive.org/web/20110621025650/http://www.nytimes.com/2000/04/12/world/robert-komer-78-figure-in-vietnam-dies.html?pagewanted=2&src=pm Archived Page 2].</ref> He later returned to the Rand Corporation as a defense consultant.<ref>Byrne, Ciar. [https://www.theguardian.com/news/2000/apr/14/guardianobituaries “Robert Komer.”] The Guardian. April 14, 2000. [https://web.archive.org/web/20210211210558/https://www.theguardian.com/news/2000/apr/14/guardianobituaries Archived] 2021-02-11.</ref>

In 1969, while serving as the ambassador to Turkey, Komer's car was overturned and burned by students at the Middle East Technical University in [[Ankara]].<ref>''The New York Times''. [https://www.nytimes.com/1969/01/07/archives/komers-car-burned-by-turkish-leftists.html "KOMER’S CAR BURNED by TURKISH LEFTISTS"] Published 1969.</ref>

== Early life ==
Komer was born in [[Chicago]], [[State of Illinois|Illinois]]. He graduated from [[Harvard]] in 1942, served in the Army in the [[Second World War]], and, after having graduated from the Harvard Graduate School of Business in 1947, joined the newly-formed CIA.<ref name=":0" />

== References ==
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