Did you know that CENTCOM traces its roots back to the 1980s? The Iranian Revolution and the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan led President Jimmy Carter to establish the Rapid Deployment Joint Task Force (RDJTF) in March 1980; a flexible force whose mission was to protect U.S. interests in the Middle East. Given the need for a more stable and long-term military presence, President Ronald Reagan, on January 1, 1983, converted RDJTF into U.S. Central Command (United States Central Command).