Trump, annoyed by the resignation letter, pushes Mattis early



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The American president Donald Asset announced on Sunday that he was replacing Defense Secretary Jim Mattis two months earlier than planned, said an official who would have been motivated by AssetMattis 'anger at Mattis' letter of resignation and reprimand for his foreign policy.

On Thursday, Mattis had abruptly announced that he was quitting, as of February 28, after getting scrambled with Asset on his foreign policy, including surprise decisions to withdraw all troops from Syria and start planning a withdrawal to Afghanistan.

Asset He is subject to harsh criticism from his Republican, Democratic and international allies for his decisions on Syria and Afghanistan, against the advice of his major US advisers and commanders.

The release of Mattis, much appreciated by Republicans and Democrats, added to concerns about what many see as AssetGo's unpredictable approach, the only one to global security.

Asset Deputy Secretary of Defense Patrick Shanahan will take up his duties as of 1 January.

In announcing his resignation, Mattis distributed a candid letter of resignation to Asset who laid bare the growing divide between them, and implicitly criticized Asset for not having appreciated the closest allies of America, who fought alongside the United States in both conflicts.

Mattis said that Asset deserved to have a Secretary of Defense closer to his views.

Read: US Chief of Defense Mattis leaves after confronting Trump on politics

Asset, who tweeted Thursday that Mattis "was retiring, with distinction, at the end of February," made clear his dissatisfaction on Saturday by tweeting that the retired general had been "unscrupulously dismissed" by the government. former President Barack Obama and gave Mattis a second chance.

Obama sacked Mattis at the head of the United States Central Command in 2013 because of what officials at the time had perceived as his hawkish view of Iran.

Thursday's tweet was dictated to an badistant to send before Asset read the letter of resignation from Mattis, said Sunday to the press a senior manager of the administration.

"This is not the kind of letter of resignation I think you should write," said the official, adding that US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo had told Mattis that he would leave January 1st.

In a tweet Sunday, Asset congratulated Shanahan, former Boeing Co executive, as "very talented".

In his letter, Mattis had announced that he would step down at the end of February to allow a successor to be confirmed and attend congressional hearings and a key meeting of NATO.

A senior White House official said that Asset was annoyed by the attention given to Mattis' resignation letter.

"He just wants a smooth and faster transition and felt that it would not be good to drag him for two months," said the manager, under cover of anonymity.

The official said Asset should nominate a candidate for the position of Secretary of Defense in the next two weeks.

Defense Department spokeswoman Dana White said Mattis would work with the Shanahan and Pentagon leaders to make sure the department "remains focused on defending the nation during this transition."

Shanahan, as Assistant Secretary of Defense, is largely focused on the Pentagon's internal reform and on issues such as the creation of a Space Force, a project driven by Asset but resisted by some legislators and some of the Pentagon.

A senior administration official told Reuters that Shanahan "has a deep understanding of military operations and global security issues and, importantly, has extensive experience in corporate management at large. scale that will allow him to effectively oversee the Department of Defense. "

SYRIA PULLOUT & # 39; SLOW & # 39;

In a shock announcement Wednesday, Asset said he was withdrawing US troops from Syria, citing its cost in terms of both US military life and financially. A day later, US officials announced that the United States planned to withdraw about half of the 14,000 US troops deployed in Afghanistan.

Mattis, whose membership in NATO and traditional US alliances often put him in conflict with Asset, had advised against the withdrawal of Syria – one of the factors of his resignation.

On Sunday, Asset said in a tweet that he had spoken with Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan about a "slow and highly coordinated" withdrawal, suggesting that he could slow down the process after the barrage of criticism.

A US military official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the withdrawal would be "safe, professional and deliberate", but was unaware of any new directive of the White House.

A plan on the withdrawal should be presented by commanders at the Pentagon this week, said the official.

French President Emmanuel Macron said Sunday that he deeply regretted Assetthe decision of Syria.

The plan also provoked strong criticism Asset of some of his Republican compatriots.

Senator Bob Corker, the influential Republican chair of the Senate's External Relations Commission, said he was "saddened" by Assetthe decision to withdraw from.

"I think he knows he's made a mistake," said Corker, who is retiring, on CNN. "The president's tendencies are to dig in and dupe if he knows that he's done something that's probably incorrect."

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