Admiral Sam Paparo
Commander, U.S. Indo-Pacific Command
Samuel John Paparo, Jr. was born in 1964 in Morton, Pennsylvania. He earned an undergraduate degree and was part of the ROTC program at Villanova University. He earned an M.A. from Old Dominion University, an M.S. from the Naval Postgraduate School, and has graduated from other educational opportunities afforded him by the U.S. military.
Paparo deployed to the War in Afghanistan and the Iraq War. Throughout his Navy career, he has held numerous commands, including for Carrier Air Wing Seven, Carrier Strike Group 10, the U.S. Naval Forces Central Command, the U.S. Fifth Fleet, and the U.S. Pacific Fleet. He has commanded the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command since May 2024.
In the News…
Admiral Sam Paparo, commander of the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command, addressed the U.S. Pacific Command’s 37th annual International Military Law and Operations Conference (MILOPS) held in Kuala Lumpur. The admiral spoke on the lawfare used by the Chinese Communist Party to coerce, isolate, and delegitimize the territorial integrity of other countries.
Admiral Paparo said that China invokes “false claims of legitimacy” to pressure other nations into relinquishing their lawful sovereign rights. The admiral encouraged stronger “legal interoperability,” highlighting the effective deterrence of nations’ armed forces and civilian ministries acting together.
“The United States is clear-eyed about the complex security environment in this region. Our posture and our intent are well defined. The United States is deterring China through strength, not through confrontation,” Admiral Paparo said. “We will not let any nation dominate this region or sweep away the hard-fought sovereign rights of independent states.”
