US President Donald Trump announced Sunday the interim replacement of Defense Minister Jim Mattis on January 1, earlier than expected, by his deputy Patrick Shanahan. "I am pleased to announce that our highly talented Assistant Defense Minister Patrick Shanahan will assume the title of Acting Defense Minister effective January 1, 2019," said Donald Trump. "Patrick has a long list of accomplishments as an assistant and previously at Boeing, he will be fantastic!" Continued the president.
I am pleased to announce that our very talented Deputy Secretary of Defense, Patrick Shanahan, will assume the title of Acting Secretary of Defense starting January 1, 2019. Patrick has a long list of accomplishments while serving as Deputy, & previously Boeing. He will be great!
- Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 23, 2018A minister disagrees with his president. Jim Mattis presented his resignation Thursday, which was to be effective in late February, the day after Donald Trump announced the withdrawal as soon as possible of 2,000 US troops stationed in Syria, saying that the Islamic State (IS) group was defeated. On the same day, he indicated that preparations for a partial disengagement from Afghanistan had begun.
The former defense minister since the billionaire's arrival at the White House in January 2017 openly declared Thursday his disagreement with the new strategy of the US administration. In particular, he stressed the need for the United States to "treat allies with respect." On several occasions, this 68-year-old former Marine General had warned against a precipitous departure from Syria, at the risk of "leaving a vacuum that can be exploited by the Assad regime or its supporters".
A former Boeing. Patrick Shanahan has been Pentagon Assistant since July 2017, according to the ministry's website. Previously, he was vice president of US aircraft manufacturer Boeing, responsible for logistics and operations, but also vice president and general manager of Boeing Missile Defense Systems. He joined this group in 1986.