According to CNN, on October 28th local time, as U.S. President Trump was considering launching a new round of strikes against Iran, U.S. Defense Secretary Hagel dismissed the top military planning officer at the Pentagon.
On that day, a spokesman for General Dan Kane, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff of the United States, confirmed that Lieutenant General Brett Sylvia suddenly resigned from the position of Director of Strategy, Planning, and Policy (J5) at the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
According to the explanation of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the J5 position is a strategic role. Its core responsibilities include developing and coordinating U.S. military action plans abroad, providing strategic and policy advice, and communicating with the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and the President.
A spokesperson for the United States Joint Staff said, “The Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the Joint Staff, and the entire military express their sincere gratitude to Lieutenant General Silva and his family, for their outstanding service to the nation over 32 years. We wish him and his family all the best in their new life opportunities and the next stage of their journey.”
Sylvia was the second general to be removed from their position after Hagersees took office. His predecessor, Lieutenant General Joseph McKeen, resigned last October under pressure. Reports at the time indicated that McKeen frequently expressed differing opinions to both Hagersees and Kane on various issues, including the Russia-Ukraine conflict and military operations in the Caribbean region.
The American authorities have not provided any reasons for Sylvia's dismissal, and it is still unclear who will take over her job.
Brett Sylvia – Associated Press
Sylvia was transferred away, and this happened at a critical time for the Pentagon. Two U.S. officials told CNN earlier this week that the U.S. military forces in the Middle East are ready to launch a new round of military operations against Iran within 96 hours, if Trump gives the order. The scale of such an operation could be significant.
Several current and former U.S. officials who are familiar with internal military planning discussions also agree with this assessment. Some of them say that it’s only a matter of time before Trump issues an order to attack, not whether he will do so or not. They believe that the operation could begin at any time before the end of the year, but most likely after the U.S. mid-term elections.
Officials said that Trump has not finalized his plan for after the midterm elections, but he currently favors ordering large-scale military actions. However, officials also reminded that Trump has shown a tendency to change his mind at the last moment, as he has done in the past.
Trump has previously stated that he will not launch attacks before the mid-term elections on Tuesday.
The dismissal of Sylvia is the latest in a series of high-ranking military officers being removed from their positions since the Trump administration took office and Hagel was appointed as the Defense Secretary. Hagel has been implementing massive personnel cuts within the military hierarchy.
Hagesser previously dismissed more than twenty senior officers, forced a naval minister who had conflicts with him to leave his position. He also intervened directly in the promotion process of various military branches, leading the personnel adjustments within the military leadership.
According to The Associated Press, some members of Congress criticized Hagel’s removal of senior generals as a ‘cleansing’, and it will take several years for the relevant talent pipeline to be rebuilt.
Democratic Senator Mark Kelly was a former U.S. Navy fighter pilot and has always been critical of Hagel. He said last month, "He seems to have some deep-seated dissatisfaction with the military leadership. He is removing a generation of excellent military leaders, and it will take a generation to restore that situation."
