(NSI News Source Info) WASHINGTON - May 12, 2009: The US defence secretary has asked the country's commander in Afghanistan to step down, saying the battle against the Taleban needs "new thinking".
Robert Gates confirmed Gen David McKiernan would effectively be sacked less than a year after taking command. 
U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, right, walks with Gen. David McKiernan, commander of the U.S. Forces in Afghanistan, upon Gates' arrival in Kabul, on Wednesday May 6, 2009.
He will be replaced by Gen Stanley McChrystal, who is seen as having a better understanding of the conflict.
The change comes as the US boosts troops numbers in Afghanistan and prepares for a change in strategy.
Gen McKiernan has been US commander in Afghanistan for less than one year, a period marked by a surge in violence.
His successor currently serves as the director of US Joint Chiefs of Staff, and was previously a director of special operations forces.
Announcing the removal of Gen McKiernan from his role, defence secretary Robert Gates said new military leadership was needed to go along with a new strategy and a new ambassador.
He said the decision was in the best interest of US national security, the Associated Press reported.
Correspondents say Gen McChrystal is a specialist in the kind of counter-insurgency strategy the Obama administration plans to implement in Afghanistan.
Strategic goals
The change comes as President Barack Obama's administration prepares to send thousands of extra troops to Afghanistan, and amid pressure on international forces to reduce the numbers of civilians killed by coalition air strikes.
With plans announced for a phased pullout of US troops from Iraq, Afghanistan was recently confirmed as the primary focus of US military operations.
The US is sending 21,000 additional troops to the country, to join an existing force of 38,000.
However, the new strategy is expected to pair non-military methods and reconstruction with a stronger armed force on the ground.
But relations with President Hamid Karzai's Afghan government have been strained by a recent air strike which some Afghan officials say killed as many as 150 people.
On Sunday, Gen David Petraeus, who heads US Central Command, responsible for Afghanistan operations, said "tactical actions" should not undermine strategic goals.
Gen McKiernan, who heads both the US presence in Afghanistan and the Nato-led International Security Assistance Force (Isaf), recently described the situation in the country as a "stalemate".
U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, right, walks with Gen. David McKiernan, commander of the U.S. Forces in Afghanistan, upon Gates' arrival in Kabul, on Wednesday May 6, 2009.
He will be replaced by Gen Stanley McChrystal, who is seen as having a better understanding of the conflict.
The change comes as the US boosts troops numbers in Afghanistan and prepares for a change in strategy.
Gen McKiernan has been US commander in Afghanistan for less than one year, a period marked by a surge in violence.
His successor currently serves as the director of US Joint Chiefs of Staff, and was previously a director of special operations forces.
Announcing the removal of Gen McKiernan from his role, defence secretary Robert Gates said new military leadership was needed to go along with a new strategy and a new ambassador.
He said the decision was in the best interest of US national security, the Associated Press reported.
Correspondents say Gen McChrystal is a specialist in the kind of counter-insurgency strategy the Obama administration plans to implement in Afghanistan.
Strategic goals
The change comes as President Barack Obama's administration prepares to send thousands of extra troops to Afghanistan, and amid pressure on international forces to reduce the numbers of civilians killed by coalition air strikes.
With plans announced for a phased pullout of US troops from Iraq, Afghanistan was recently confirmed as the primary focus of US military operations.
The US is sending 21,000 additional troops to the country, to join an existing force of 38,000.
However, the new strategy is expected to pair non-military methods and reconstruction with a stronger armed force on the ground.
But relations with President Hamid Karzai's Afghan government have been strained by a recent air strike which some Afghan officials say killed as many as 150 people.
On Sunday, Gen David Petraeus, who heads US Central Command, responsible for Afghanistan operations, said "tactical actions" should not undermine strategic goals.
Gen McKiernan, who heads both the US presence in Afghanistan and the Nato-led International Security Assistance Force (Isaf), recently described the situation in the country as a "stalemate".
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