Marine Corps Gen. Kenneth McKenzie Archives

CENTCOM CO: No U.S. Over-the-Horizon Strikes in Afghanistan Since Withdrawal

15 March 2022

Gen. Kenneth McKenzie commander, U.S. Central Command, provides testimony at a House Armed Services Committee hearing on ending the U.S. military mission in Afghanistan, Rayburn House Office Building, Washington, D.C. on Sept. 29, 2021. DoD Photo

The U.S. is gathering over-the-horizon intelligence on terrorist activities in Afghanistan but hasn’t made a strike against ISIS-K and al Qaeda, the head of U.S. Central Command told a Senate panel said.

Marine Corps Gen. Kenneth McKenzie said Tuesday in...

https://news.usni.org/2022/03/15/centcom-co-no-u-s-over-the-horizon-strikes-in-afghanistan-since-withdrawal

CENTCOM Nominee Kurilla: Iran Largest ‘Destabilizing Factor’ in Middle East

9 February 2022

Lt. Gen. Michael Kurilla, commander of the XVIII Airborne Corps, gives a speech at the 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) change of command on March 5, 2021. US Army Photo

Iran is “the number one destabilizing factor” in the 21-nation region covered by U.S. Central Command, the nominee to head the command testified Tuesday.

Army Lt. Gen. Michael Kurilla, the current commander of the XVIII Airborne Corps, told the Senate Armed Services Committee that Tehran poses “vexing challenges” by...

https://news.usni.org/2022/02/08/centcom-nominee-kurilla-iran-largest-destabilizing-factor-in-middle-east

CENTCOM: Iran Wants Nuclear Agreement and To Retain Ballistic Missile Capability

7 February 2022

Iran’s Khalij Fars single-stage ballistic missile

Iran “wants some type of agreement” over its nuclear program as a way to lift sanctions on the regime, but Tehran views its ballistic missile arsenal “as their crown jewels” not to be bargained away, the senior American commander in the Middle East said Thursday.

U.S. Central Command chief Marine Corps Gen. Kenneth McKenzie, delivering the keynote address at a Middle East Institute conference, said Iran has “relentlessly” built several thousand...

https://news.usni.org/2022/02/07/centcom-iran-wants-nuclear-agreement-and-to-retain-ballistic-missile-capability

One Explosive Device Responsible for Deaths of 13 U.S. Service Members in Kabul Attack, Pentagon Says

5 February 2022

A Marine assigned to 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) provides over-watch during an evacuation at Hamid Karzai International Airport, Kabul, Afghanistan on Aug. 21, 2021. US Marine Corps Photo

The attack during the United States withdrawal from Afghanistan that left 13 U.S. troops dead was the result of one explosive device detonation, according to U.S. Central Command officials.

After conducting an investigation into the August attack at Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul,...

https://news.usni.org/2022/02/04/one-explosive-device-responsible-for-deaths-of-13-service-members-in-kabul-attack

CENTCOM: Keeping Bagram Airbase Was ‘Untenable’ Under White House Rules for Afghanistan Withdrawal

30 September 2021

The sprawling size of the U.S. airbase at Bagram and its isolation from Kabul meant that keeping it under American control was “untenable under the situation” once President Joe Biden ordered all U.S. forces out of Afghanistan, U.S. Central Command’s...

https://news.usni.org/2021/09/29/centcom-keeping-bagram-airbase-was-untenable-under-white-house-rules-for-afghanistan-withdrawal

Milley: Staying in Afghanistan Past Deadline Would Have Put U.S. Troops, Afghans in Danger

28 September 2021

Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and Gen. Kenneth McKenzie, commander, United States Central Command appear before the Senate Armed Services Committee on the conclusion of military operations in Afghanistan and plans for future counterterrorism operations on Sept. 28, 2021. DoD Photo

If Presidents Donald Trump and Joe Biden had chosen to ignore the dates set for the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, it would have meant moving elements of...

https://news.usni.org/2021/09/28/milley-staying-in-afghanistan-past-deadline-would-have-put-u-s-troops-afghans-in-danger

CENTCOM Commander: U.S. ‘Completely Focused’ on Responsible Afghanistan Withdrawal

27 April 2021

A U.S. Marine with Task Force Southwest (TFSW) provides security for Marine advisors during an advising mission with 1st Brigade, Afghan National Army (ANA) 215th Corps as the Afghan National Defense and Security Forces conduct Operation Maiwand 12 at Camp Shorserack, Afghanistan, March 12, 2018. US Marine Corps Photo

U.S. Central Command’s top officer stressed today that the military is “completely focused” on responsibly withdrawing from Afghanistan by Sept. 11, 2021, the 20th anniversary of...

https://news.usni.org/2021/04/27/centcom-commander-u-s-completely-focused-on-responsible-afghanistan-withdrawal