Kenneth F. McKenzie Jr.
Official portrait, 2019
Nickname(s)Frank
Born1956 or 1957 (age 66–67)[1]
Birmingham, Alabama, U.S.
AllegianceUnited States
Service/branchUnited States Marine Corps
Years of service1979–2022
RankGeneral
UnitFirst Battalion, Sixth Marines
Commands heldUnited States Central Command
22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit
1st Battalion, 6th Marines
Battles/warsWar in Afghanistan
Iraq War
AwardsDefense Distinguished Service Medal
Navy Distinguished Service Medal
Defense Superior Service Medal (3)
Legion of Merit (3)
Bronze Star Medal

Kenneth Franklin McKenzie Jr.[2] (born 1956 or 1957) is a retired United States Marine Corps general who served as the 14th commander of the United States Central Command from March 28, 2019 to April 1, 2022.[3][4] He served as Director of the Joint Staff from July 5, 2017 after having previously served for two years as Director of Strategic Plans and Policy (J-5) on the Joint Staff.[5]

In May 2022, he became the Executive Director of the Global and National Security Institute, University of South Florida, and in July 2022 he was appointed Executive Director for the Florida Center for Cybersecurity. He also serves as the President, Board of Directors, of the Institute for Applied Engineering, University of South Florida.[6]

Early life and education

A native of Birmingham, Alabama, McKenzie was commissioned in 1979 via the Naval Reserve Officers Training Corps at The Citadel. McKenzie holds a master's degree in history from the National Defense University and has served as a Senior Military Fellow at the school's Institute for National Strategic Studies. He is an Honors Graduate of the Marine Corps Command and Staff College and the School of Advanced Warfighting.[7]

Military career

As an infantry officer McKenzie's assignments have included command of the 1st Battalion, 6th Marines as Commanding Officer of the 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit, which he led on deployments to both Iraq and Afghanistan.[8] He also served as Military Secretary to two Commandants of the Marine Corps.

McKenzie's general officer posts have included Deputy Director of Operations for the National Military Command Center in the Pentagon. In 2008 he was selected by the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff to serve as director of his new administration transition team, overseeing the transition of military forces under incoming President Barack Obama. He returned to Afghanistan serving as Deputy Chief of Staff for Stability under the International Security Assistance Force,[9] followed by a tour as Director of Strategy, Plans and Policy at United States Central Command. He then returned to the Pentagon to serve as the Marine Corps Representative to the Quadrennial Defense Review and, after receiving his third star, was appointed Commanding General of United States Marine Forces Central Command.[10]

General McKenzie and Israel Defense Forces Chief of General Staff Aviv Kochavi attend a briefing at CENTCOM headquarters, June 2021
Gen. McKenzie at Hamid Karzai International Airport during the 2021 Fall of Kabul

As CENTCOM commander, McKenzie oversaw the successful high-profile special forces raid in Syria to kill or capture then-Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi in October 2019,[11] and the 2020–2021 withdrawals and reductions of U.S. troops from Iraq.[12]

During the 2020–2021 Afghanistan withdrawal, McKenzie replaced General Austin "Scott" Miller as leader of U.S. and NATO forces in Afghanistan upon the latter's resignation on July 12, 2021, with Miller's departure perceived by some as "the symbolic end of the U.S. military mission in Afghanistan."[13] One month later, McKenzie was responsible for the August 2021 Kabul drone strike which targeted and killed civilians, 7 children and 3 adults.[14]

McKenzie retired from active duty on 1 April 2022, after relinquishing command of CENTCOM to General Michael Kurilla.[15][4][16]

Awards and decorations

Bronze oak leaf cluster
Bronze star
Bronze star
Bronze star
Bronze star
1st row Defense Distinguished Service Medal
2nd row Navy Distinguished Service Medal Defense Superior Service Medal with two bronze oak leaf clusters Legion of Merit with two gold award stars Bronze Star Medal
3rd row Defense Meritorious Service Medal Meritorious Service Medal with two award stars Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal Combat Action Ribbon
4th row Joint Meritorious Unit Award with one oak leaf cluster Navy Unit Commendation National Defense Service Medal with one bronze service star Kosovo Campaign Medal with service star
5th row Afghanistan Campaign Medal with two service stars Iraq Campaign Medal with service star Global War on Terrorism Service Medal Korea Defense Service Medal
6th row Humanitarian Service Medal Navy Sea Service Deployment Ribbon with four service stars Navy Arctic Service Ribbon NATO Medal for Kosovo with service star
Badge Office of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Identification Badge
Badge United States Central Command Badge
  • General McKenzie earned several awards of the Rifle Expert Badge as well as the Pistol Sharpshooter Badge.

Effective dates of promotion

Promotions
InsigniaRankDate
Second LieutenantJune 8, 1979
First LieutenantJune 1, 1981
CaptainFebruary 1, 1985
MajorSept 1, 1989
Lieutenant ColonelOct 5, 1995
ColonelOct 8, 2001
Brigadier GeneralJuly 1, 2007
Major GeneralMarch 5, 2011
Lieutenant GeneralJune 3, 2014
GeneralMarch 15, 2019

References

  1. ↑ "Meet CentCom's new boss: Marine Gen. Kenneth McKenzie Jr. Takes command".
  2. ↑ "Citadel Announces Graduation Speakers for the Class of 2019". The Citadel. March 15, 2019. Retrieved March 29, 2019.
  3. ↑ Copp, Tara (August 21, 2018). "New CENTCOM, SOCOM leadership named". Military Times. Retrieved March 28, 2019.
  4. 1 2 "Webcast: CENTCOM Welcomes New Commander". DVIDS. April 1, 2022.
  5. ↑ "Lt. Gen. Kenneth F. McKenzie Jr. > Joint Chiefs of Staff > Article View". www.jcs.mil. Archived from the original on 2019-01-04. Retrieved 2017-09-14.
  6. ↑ "Leadership".
  7. ↑ "U.S.-Turkey Business Council". Archived from the original on 2019-02-19. Retrieved 2019-03-26.
  8. ↑ "McKenzie relinquishes 22nd MEU".
  9. ↑ "Three Citadel grads now on the front lines in Afghanistan – The Citadel – Charleston, SC". www.citadel.edu. Archived from the original on 2019-09-03. Retrieved 2017-09-14.
  10. ↑ "Marcent gets new commander in MacDill ceremony". 18 June 2014. Archived from the original on 8 July 2018. Retrieved 14 September 2017.
  11. ↑ "Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi: US releases first images of raid on compound". BBC News. 31 October 2019.
  12. ↑ Mashal, Mujib (19 June 2020). "U.S. Troops in Afghanistan Reduced to 8,600, General Says". The New York Times. Retrieved 19 June 2020.
  13. ↑ "Commander of U.S., NATO forces in Afghanistan steps down". NBC News.
  14. ↑ "General Kenneth F. McKenzie Jr. Commander of U.S. Central Command and Pentagon Press Secre".
  15. ↑ "EXECUTIVE AND OTHER COMMUNICATIONS; Congressional Record Vol. 168, No. 41 (Senate - March 08, 2022)". U.S. Congress. March 8, 2022.
  16. ↑ "General Kenneth F. McKenzie, Jr". www.defense.gov. Retrieved 2023-01-19.
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