President Barack Obama looks on as Defence Secretary Ashton Carter congratulates Marine Gen. Joseph Dunford (right) after he was named as Obama’s pick to be the new chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff in the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington yesterday.

AFP/Washington

President Barack Obama nominated Marine General Joseph Dunford as chairman of the joint chiefs yesterday, choosing an officer with battlefield experience in Iraq and Afghanistan for the military’s top job.
Describing Dunford as “one of the most admired officers in our military,” Obama hailed the Boston native as a top-notch strategic thinker.
“I know Joe. I trust him,” Obama said in a White House Rose Garden announcement ceremony.
“He’s already proven his ability to give me his unvarnished military advice based on his experience on the ground.”
If confirmed by the Senate, Dunford will be drawing on his years fighting insurgents over the past decade when he advises Obama on the US-led war against the Islamic State group.
Obama lauded Dunford’s work in Afghanistan in particular.
“Under his steady hand, we’ve achieved key milestones, including the transition to Afghan responsibility for security, historic Afghan elections, and the drawdown of US forces, setting the stage for our combat mission there.”
Dunford, 59, currently the commandant of the US Marine Corps, would replace General Martin Dempsey, an army officer who will retire after he finishes his second term as chairman in October.
The next chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff will have to contend with a resurgent Russia, China’s growing military might and looming automatic budget cuts that could create headaches for the military.
The chairman of the joint chiefs does not have troops or weapons at his command but he acts as the top military adviser to the president and the defence secretary.
The job often carries hefty influence on matters of war and peace, and the chairman also is seen as the public face of the armed forces.
Obama also nominated Air Force General Paul Selva to be next the vice chairman of the joint chiefs. The current vice chairman, Admiral James Winnefeld, is due to retire.
Selva is head of the military’s transportation command and had served as the lead Air Force strategist.
Dunford previously served as the commander of Nato’s International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan from February 2013 until August 2014.
During his time as commander in Kabul, Dunford oversaw a major drawdown of tens of thousands of US troops, as Afghan forces took the lead in the fight against the Taliban insurgency.  
But Dunford persuaded the White House to keep a small force on the ground after 2014 instead of a total troop withdrawal.
Dunford also led troops in the 2003 US-led invasion of Iraq and spent nearly two years in the country.