Bush taps Petraeus to oversee military operations in Middle East, Central Asia

WASHINGTON — Army Gen. David Petraeus, the top U.S. commander in Iraq and the public face of the war effort there, Wednesday became President Bush's nominee to supervise U.S. military operations in the Middle East and Central Asia as head of Central Command, putting him in position to oversee American strategy in Iraq for years to come.

Lt. Gen. Raymond Odierno, who worked closely with Petraeus as the No. 2 commander in Iraq until two months ago, was nominated to receive a fourth star and take Petraeus' current job.

Together, the moves would elevate the two American military officers most responsible for executing last year's new counterinsurgency strategy and buildup of nearly 30,000 U.S. troops in Iraq. Senior officials said the shifts in top command are aimed at minimizing disruption to the military campaign in Iraq, at a time when security there remains fragile, and as the prospect looms in Washington of major changes in Iraq policy after the U.S. presidential election in November.

"This arrangement probably preserves the likelihood of continued momentum and progress," Defense Secretary Robert Gates said in announcing the nominations at the Pentagon Wednesday morning.

Referring to Odierno as Petraeus' "right-hand man" and pointing to the officers' close relationships with U.S. and Iraqi commanders, Gates said the decisions will "provide some continuity for a new administration," though he added that the next president will "always have the opportunity to make a change."

Asked whether the nominations by Bush were a sign that American policy was to "stay the course" in Iraq, Gates said the security gains that had been achieved under Petraeus' command meant that "staying that course is not a bad idea."

By naming Petraeus to a job that lasts into the next administration, Bush ensures that the new president will confront the military's strongest voice for maintaining a big force in Iraq.

"There is no precedent in U.S. tradition for a new president changing these kinds of officers," said Stephen Biddle, a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations and an occasional adviser to Petraeus. "For an incoming president to change them [in 2009] would be a real statement."

Gates said he hopes the Senate will confirm the nominees before Memorial Day. Hearings are expected next month, and senior Democrats and Republicans on the Senate Armed Services Committee Wednesday referred to Petraeus' confirmation as a fait accompli.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid noted after Gates' announcement that any war commander must be committed to "implementing major changes in strategy" if directed to do so by a new president.

"The Senate will carefully examine these nominations, and I will be looking for credible assurances of a strong commitment to implementing a more effective national security strategy," said Reid, D-Nev.

Gates also announced that his senior military assistant, Lt. Gen. Peter Chiarelli, will replace Odierno as Bush's nominee to become the Army's vice chief of staff. The current vice chief of staff, Gen. Richard Cody, is expected to retire this summer.

The personnel changes come at a critical time for decisions on troop levels in Iraq, currently at 156,000. Petraeus testified before Congress this month that after five U.S. brigades withdraw from Iraq by July, he will require at least 45 days to evaluate the impact of the reductions on security before assessing whether to recommend further reductions.

But Gates said Petraeus will decide whether to bring out another brigade, about 3,500 troops, before he leaves Iraq in "late summer or early fall," suggesting an immediate decision after the 45-day evaluation.

"I would expect that General Petraeus would ... carry out not only the evaluation, but that first decision in terms of, are we able to draw down another brigade combat team?" Gates said. Subsequently, the job of making regular weekly evaluations of troop levels will pass to Odierno, he said.

The nomination of Petraeus could, however, portend a renewed American focus on Afghanistan, where the American war effort is widely recognized to be lagging, with violence by the Taliban and al-Qaida on the rise. Gates already has expressed the desire to add several thousand troops next year to the 32,000 deployed in Afghanistan, although that could require further reductions in troop commitments to Iraq. Petraeus would be expected to apply his views of counterinsurgency to Afghanistan, which may include a push toward increased troops.

Gates said he and Bush settled on Petraeus for the post because his counterinsurgency experience in Iraq made him best suited to oversee American operations across a region where the United States is engaged in "asymmetric" warfare, a term used to describe the fight against militants and nonuniformed combatants.

The previous Central Command chief, Adm. William Fallon, chose early retirement in March after rankling the Bush administration with public comments that seemed to suggest differences with the White House. If Petraeus and Odierno were to win Senate confirmation to their new posts, Gates said, they would take over in late summer or early fall.

As Centcom chief, Petraeus will oversee more than 200,000 U.S. military personnel in the region.

After three tours in Iraq, Petraeus, 55, has become perhaps the best-known military officer of his generation, and it had been expected that his next assignment after Iraq would be as the top American commander in Europe. Chosen instead to take charge of a region that includes Pakistan and Iran, as well as Iraq and Afghanistan, Petraeus issued a statement on Wednesday saying, "I am honored to be nominated for this position and to have an opportunity to continue to serve."

Odierno, currently commander of the Army's 3rd Corps at Fort Hood, Texas, had been criticized in some quarters during his first tour in Iraq, as commander of the 4th Infantry Division based in Tikrit. A high point was the capture of Saddam Hussein by forces under his command, but his troops also were criticized for heavy-handed operations that, critics said, helped fuel frustration and, perhaps, the insurgency itself.

Yet he received high marks during his most recent tour, as day-to-day commander of operations, playing an important role in prosecuting the troop-increase strategy.

Gates said he did not foresee that the new lineup at Central Command and in Iraq would mean any changes in the way the United States is approaching the issue of Iranian influence in Iraq. Petraeus and Odierno have both accused Iran of aiding rebels opposing U.S. troops.

Petraeus will face broader aspects of the Iran issue if he is confirmed as Fallon's replacement. A number of U.S. officials, including Adm. Michael Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, have asserted that Iran also is supplying arms or otherwise supporting the Taliban rebels in Afghanistan.

"You will find a very pragmatic general" in Petraeus, said Frederick Kagan, a scholar at the American Enterprise Institute who has advised the Bush administration on its war strategy. "The Iranians won't be happy because they are not going to be able to feed him nonsense. But he won't be handing anyone in Washington memos saying, 'It's time to go to war.' "

Compiled from Washington Post,

New York Times, Associated Press

and Los Angeles Times reports