Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter announced Wednesday the nomination of Gen. Mark Milley as the new Army chief of staff and Navy Adm. John Richardson as the new chief of naval operations.
Carter made the four-minute announcement from the Pentagon press room, with his new nominees standing beside him, and their families and outgoing Chief of Naval Operations Jonathan Greenert and Army Chief of Staff Gen. Raymond Odierno off to the side. Carter took no questions from reporters.
Carter called Milley “a warrior and a statesman” who has served in Afghanistan, Iraq and on the Joint Staff. Milley also served as the commanding general of International Security Assistance Force-Afghanistan.
“Mark and I flew to Herat the day after an attack on the U.S. consulate there,” Carter said, adding the experience showed that Milley “had even more to offer the United States Army.”
Carter called Richardson a “bold thinker” who has cut his teeth navigating the Navy through the sensitive and costly Ohio ballistic missile submarine replacement program, and through the ethical and integrity challenges the Navy faced after a contracting scandal last year that led to several indictments within the Navy’s Pacific officer ranks.
Both nominations must be approved by the Senate.
