US Army General David McKiernan, Command

US Army General David McKiernan, Commander of US Forces in Afghanistan (C), outgoing commander of the east, Major General Jeffrey Schloesser (R) and incoming major General Curtis M. Scaparrotti (R) salute during a ceremony to mark a transfer of authority of US military forces in charge of several provinces in eastern Afghanistan, at Bagram air base, about 50 kms north of Kabul on June 3, 2009. The US commander of international troops in Afghanistan praised military efforts against insurgent leaders on June 3 in one of his last public addresses before leaving the country. General David McKiernan, fired last month when the US government said it needed to make way for "new thinking" in the war against extremists, is expected to be replaced by Lieutenant General Stanley McChrystal, a former commander of special operations forces in Iraq and Afghanistan, although this has to be confirmed by the US Senate. AFP PHOTO/SHAH Marai (Photo credit should read SHAH MARAI/AFP via Getty Images)