President Barack Obama announces resignation of
Pentagon chief who is said to have quit under
pressure.
US President Barack Obama has accepted the
resignation of Defence Secretary Chuck Hagel, who
he said requested last month to leave Pentagon ' s
top post .
According to US media, Hagel was pressured by
Obama to quit , as Pentagon embarks on a new
strategy to deal with the Islamic State in Iraq and
Levant ( ISIL ) .
Announcing the resignation on Monday at the
White House, Obama , who was flanked by Hagel
and Vice President Joe Biden , praised the outgoing
defence secretary , who he described as
"exemplary" .
"When I asked Chuck to serve as secretary of
defence we were entering a significant period of
transition : the drawdown in Afghanistan, the need
to prepare our forces for future missions and
tough fiscal choices to keep our military strong
and ready, " Obama said .
Hagel, who was the the sole Republican on the US
national security team , struggled to improve his
ties with Congress after a contentious 2013
confirmation hearing . He submitted his resignation
letter after lengthy discussions with Obama that
began in October , officials said .
"It ' s been the greatest privilege of my life to lead ,
and most important , to serve with the men and
women of the Defence Department and support
their families. I am immensely proud of what we
have accomplished during this time ,
" Hagel said .
He will remaim in his post untill his successor is
appointed by the US Senate
Al Jazeera.
No comments: