“General McMaster appreciates the good work accomplished in the NSC’s Intelligence directorate under Ezra Cohen’s leadership. He has determined that, at this time, a different set of experiences is best-suited to carrying that work forward,” a White House official said in a statement. “General McMaster is confident that Ezra will make many further significant contributions to national security in another position in the administration.”
Mr. Cohen-Watnick served on President Donald Trump’s transition team and was brought onto the NSC by Mike Flynn, the former national security adviser who was asked to resign in February after misleading the vice president about his contacts with Russian officials.
His removal is part of what officials have described as Mr. McMaster’s effort to remove some political aspects from the NSC. While Mr. McMaster has had some tensions with Mr. Trump in recent months, some White House officials have said they expect this week’s appointment of John Kelly, a retired general like Mr. McMaster, as chief of staff to bolster that relationship.
The two other NSC officials who were recently removed are Rich Higgins, the council’s director of strategic planning, and Derek Harvey, a top Middle East adviser who focused on Iran policy.
Mr. Higgins was removed late last month, a senior administration official said Wednesday. Mr. Higgins was seen as an ally of White House chief strategist Steve Bannon, who himself was removed from the NSC principals committee earlier this year after Mr. McMaster was appointed national security adviser.
Mr. Harvey was removed from his post last week after months of internal clashes with NSC staff.
Source: Senior National Security Council Official Removed From Post – WSJ
No comments:
Post a Comment