Outside the Beltway

Khalilzad to U.N. Ambassador, Crocker to Iraq

James Joyner · Friday, January 5, 2007 · 2 comments

U.S. ambassador to Iraq Zalmay Khalilzad is going to be nominated to replace John Bolton as U.N. ambassador and Ryan Crocker, currently the U.S. ambassador to Pakistan, will be nominated to replace Khalilzad in Baghdad later today.

This continues a significant shake-up of the foreign policy staff including the replacement of Don Rumsfeld with Bob Gates at Defense, the shift of John Negroponte from DNI the number two slot at State, and a reshuffling of the senior military commanders in Iraq. Whether any substantive policy changes will follow, however, is unclear.

FILED UNDER: United Nations, Baghdad, Donald Rumsfeld, Iraq, John Bolton, Pakistan, Robert Gates, Ryan Crocker

About James Joyner

James Joyner is Professor and Department Head of Security Studies at Marine Corps University's Command and Staff College. He's a former Army officer and Desert Storm veteran. Views expressed here are his own. Follow James on Twitter @DrJJoyner.

Comments

legion says:

Friday, 5 January 2007 at 09:53

Oooohh, Rep Goode from Virginia must be just seething at that…
daveinboca says:

Friday, 5 January 2007 at 15:18

Bremer, Cheney, Rumsfeld were Larry/Curly/Moe when it came to nation-building. Petraeus is terrific. Crocker is excellent, Zal will be great at the UN.

Going back to first base, Rumsfeld’s overweening arrogance in throwing out Gen. Garner and the Arabist team at the start and giving the nod to Bremer/Khalilzad [Bremer refused to work with Zal & got him booted] started the string of disasters that the clueless “Decider” still doesn’t understand.

I hope Rummy gets nabbed in Germany, not for war crimes, but for arrogant stupidity.