He succeeds General Joe Dunford, appointed to this position in 2015 by Barack Obama for two years, and retained by Donald Trump in 2017 for a second two-year term.
General Mark Milley, 61, became the new chief of staff of the United States Army on Monday (September 30th) and will now advise President Donald Trump militarily. "You can be sure that I will always give you an informed, frank and impartial military advice"said Mark Milley, known for his outspokenness, after taking an oath in the presence of Mr. Trump. "You are my friend, my advisor and you deserve this post, I never doubted it"Mr. Trump responded in a speech closing the ceremony.
A former ice hockey player, General Milley, a brilliant graduate officer from Princeton University, was involved in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. He succeeds General Joe Dunford, appointed to this position in 2015 by Barack Obama for two years, and maintained by Trump in 2017 for a second two-year term.
The duration of the term doubled
The US president had chosen in December General Milley, then chief of staff of the army, against the wish of Jim Mattis, who was then secretary of defense – before resigning – and whose candidate was the Chief of Staff of the Air Force, General David Goldstein.
The new highest ranking US military has a new law passed in 2017 to double the term of office of the Chief of Staff and his deputy (bringing it to four years) to ensure military continuity despite changes in administration.
