Army Europe and Africa commander Donahue to step down

Gen. Christopher Donahue, the U.S. Army commander in Europe and Africa and the last American soldier to leave Afghanistan in 2021, will relinquish command July 2, the Army confirmed, marking another high-level military departure under Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.

Donahue has submitted retirement papers, CBS News reported, citing multiple sources familiar with the situation. The Army said Maj. Gen. Christopher Norrie, Donahue’s deputy, will perform the duties of commanding general after Donahue steps down.

“The Army thanks Gen. Donahue for his leadership of U.S. Army Europe and Africa,” an Army spokesperson said.

Donahue, a West Point graduate and career special operations officer, commanded Delta Force units in Iraq and Afghanistan before leading the 82nd Airborne Division from July 2020 to March 2022. He helped oversee security at Hamid Karzai International Airport during the U.S. evacuation from Kabul in August 2021. On Aug. 30, 2021, he boarded the final U.S. C-17 aircraft out of Afghanistan, a moment captured in a widely circulated night-vision image.

The Guardian, citing an Army statement provided to The Associated Press, reported that Donahue is also commander of NATO’s Allied Land Command and is leaving after about 18 months in the post. The Atlantic first reported his departure.

His role in the Afghanistan evacuation drew bipartisan praise, The Guardian reported. Hegseth and President Donald Trump have regularly criticized the withdrawal, which followed a treaty negotiated with the Taliban during Trump’s first term. In May, Hegseth ordered a new Pentagon review of the operation, despite earlier reviews by the Pentagon, U.S. Central Command, the State Department and Congress, The Guardian reported.

Donahue later became one of the first senior U.S. officers on the ground in Europe to assist Ukrainian forces after Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022, according to CBS News. He was known for playing a pivotal role in advising Ukraine’s military and helping it survive the first year of the war, the network reported.

CBS News reported that Donahue had drawn Hegseth’s ire, citing multiple sources, though the two had met only once or twice. People familiar with Donahue’s career had long believed he could become Army chief of staff and remain in uniform for several more years, CBS reported.

Brett McGurk, who served as special presidential envoy to the counter-Islamic State coalition during the Obama administration and Trump’s first term, told CBS News, “There are few people more responsible for the defeat of ISIS than Chris Donohue. He is among the most consequential commanders of his generation.”

Retired Army Gen. Tony Thomas, a former commander of U.S. Special Operations Command, called Donahue a “Generational leader. One of the best ever.” Another colleague described him to CBS News as “unequivocally one of our Nation’s best” and a “bold, innovative leader who could also relate to and was respected by both the most experienced special operations [non-commissioned officers] and ordinary soldiers.”

Donahue’s exit comes as Hegseth has moved to reduce senior military ranks under the slogan “less generals, more GIs,” The Guardian reported. Nearly two dozen top military leaders have retired or left their jobs early under his leadership, the outlet reported.

An Army official, speaking anonymously to The Associated Press about sensitive discussions, said Donahue’s departure comes as the Army discusses downgrading U.S. Army Europe and Africa from a four-star to a three-star command, The Guardian reported.

Hegseth told NATO allies last week that the Pentagon would conduct a six-month review of U.S. forces in Europe, saying it was “designed to ensure that Nato is moving fast and irreversibly toward Europe leading, stepping up to take primary responsibility for the defense of Europe.” He added: “It’s a review that some countries will fail and others will pass with flying colors.”

Other senior officers have also departed since Trump returned to office. CBS News reported that Hegseth asked Army Chief of Staff Gen. Randy George to step down in April, and that officers leading the Transportation Command, Training Command and Chaplain Corps were removed from their roles. Navy Vice Adm. Shoshana Chatfield was removed in April as the U.S. military representative to NATO’s military committee. Joint Chiefs Chairman Air Force Gen. Charles Q. Brown was ousted in February, along with Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Lisa Franchetti and Air Force Vice Chief of Staff Gen. James Slife. Coast Guard Commandant Adm. Linda Fagan was fired shortly before that, and Navy Adm. Alvin Holsey, head of U.S. Southern Command, retired at the end of last year.