Michael K. Nagata
BornAlexandria, Virginia
AllegianceUnited States
Service/branchUnited States Army
Years of service1982–2019
RankLieutenant General
Commands heldIntelligence Support Activity
Special Operations Command Central
Battles/warsOperation Gothic Serpent
Battle of Mogadishu
Iraq War
War in Afghanistan
AwardsDefense Distinguished Service Medal
Defense Superior Service Medal (3)
Legion of Merit (2)
Bronze Star Medal (2)
Spouse(s)Barbara Nagata
Children5

Michael K. Nagata is a retired United States Army lieutenant general.[1]

Early career

Nagata was commissioned as a second lieutenant in 1982 and served as an infantry platoon leader with the 1st Battalion, 9th Infantry Regiment, 2d Infantry Division in South Korea. He graduated from the Special Forces Qualification Course in 1984 and commanded a ODA detachment of the 2nd Battalion, 1st Special Forces Group, where he gained a "reputation for coolness under pressure, and for a wry sense of humor."[2]

Nagata volunteered and was selected for the Intelligence Support Activity in 1990, nicknamed "The Activity", an ultra-secret unit conducting signal and human intelligence gathering for special mission units of Joint Special Operations Command. Nagata spent 15 years in the unit, serving as troop commander until 1994, and operations officer from 1997 to 1999. He would later serve as squadron commander from 2000–2002 and later unit commander as a colonel from 2005 to 2008.[2]

In 1993, while deployed on his first tour with The Activity in Somalia, Nagata was "the CIA chief of station’s right-hand man" according to Jerry Boykin (former commander of Delta Force) in Somalia, "functioning as the liaison between the chief of station in Mogadishu and Task Force Ranger, the Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC) task force given the mission to hunt down the warlord Mohamed Farrah Aidid."[2]

Special Operations Command

Brigadier General Michael Nagata in Pakistan, 2010

From June 2013 to October 2015 Nagata commanded the Special Operations Command Central.[3][4] Nagata was in charge of an Obama administration program to "train and equip Syrian rebels," but the program was deemed a "failure," and Nagata stepped down as commander of American Special Operations forces in the Middle East. The program "ultimately produced only a few dozen fighters," rather than the 15,000 originally hoped for.[5]

Nagata's last position on active duty was the Director of Strategy for the National Counterterrorism Center (NCTC) from 2016 to 2019.[6]

Post-army career

On January 6, 2020, CACI International Inc. announced that it had "named Lt. Gen. Michael Nagata, U.S. Army (Ret.), as Corporate Strategic Advisor and Senior Vice President to enhance the positioning of CACI’s national security-related expertise and technology offerings."[7]

Awards and decorations

Combat Infantryman Badge
Special Forces Tab
Ranger tab
Master Parachutist Badge
Special Operations Diving Supervisor Badge
Military Freefall Jumpmaster Badge
Joint Chiefs of Staff Identification Badge
United States Special Operations Command Combat Service Identification Badge
Office of the Secretary of Defense Identification Badge
Korean parachutist badge
1st Special Forces Regiment Distinctive Unit Insignia
8 Overseas Service Bars
Defense Distinguished Service Medal
Defense Superior Service Medal with two bronze oak leaf clusters
Bronze oak leaf cluster
Legion of Merit with oak leaf cluster
Bronze oak leaf cluster
Width-44 scarlet ribbon with width-4 ultramarine blue stripe at center, surrounded by width-1 white stripes. Width-1 white stripes are at the edges.
Bronze Star Medal with oak leaf cluster
Defense Meritorious Service Medal with four oak leaf clusters
Meritorious Service Medal with two oak leaf clusters
Army Commendation Medal with two oak leaf clusters
Army Achievement Medal with two oak leaf clusters
Joint Meritorious Unit Award
Valorous Unit Award
Meritorious Unit Commendation
Superior Unit Award
Army Good Conduct Medal
Bronze star
National Defense Service Medal with one bronze service star
Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal
Bronze star
Iraq Campaign Medal with service star
Bronze star
Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal with service star
Global War on Terrorism Service Medal
Korea Defense Service Medal
Armed Forces Service Medal
Humanitarian Service Medal
Army Service Ribbon
Army Overseas Service Ribbon with bronze award numeral 3
NATO Medal for the former Yugoslavia

Personal life

Nagata and his wife Barbara have five children. He was born in Alexandria, Virginia, to Frances and William Nagata, both from Honolulu, Hawaii. His father is a retired military intelligence colonel and was stationed in Virginia at the time of Michael's birth.[8][9]

References

  1. ↑ "NOMINATIONS CONFIRMED (NON-CIVILIAN) — PN1181". United States Senate. July 13, 2016.
  2. 1 2 3 "Meet the Shadow Warrior Leading the Fight Against the Islamic State". Foreign Policy. May 1, 2015.
  3. ↑ Special Operations Command Central welcomes new commander
  4. ↑ Eric Schmitt In Battle to Defang ISIS, U.S. Targets Its Psychology nytimes.com DEC. 28, 2014
  5. ↑ Eric Schmitt New Role for General After Failure of Syria Rebel Plan nytimes.com OCT. 19, 2015
  6. ↑ "Are we winning against terrorism? LTG Michael Nagata, USA Ret. discusses at IWP". The Institute of World Politics. 2019-09-20. Retrieved 2021-02-12.
  7. ↑ CACI Appoints Lt. Gen. Michael Nagata (Ret.) as Corporate Strategic Advisor bloomberg.com JAN. 6, 2020
  8. ↑ Wade Ishimoto: Michael K. Nagata Promoted to Major General – Japanese American Veterans Association October 2012, Volume 62, Issue 9 via Nisei Veterans Committee Newsletter
  9. ↑ Nagata tapped to lead U.S. Central Command special ops – Honolulu Star-Advertiser, 2013-01-22
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