President-elect Joe Biden’s choice of retired Gen. Lloyd Austin to serve as his secretary of defense has worried some military analysts who are concerned that Austin’s Mideast-centered career does not make him ready for the current national security challenges facing America.

The 41-year Army veteran served as head of U.S. Central Command, overseeing 20 countries in the Middle East, including the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, from 2013 to 2016.