The White House has nominated Army Lt. Gen. Michael Erik Kurilla to lead the U.S. Central Command.
The nomination was first reported by The Wall Street Journal and confirmed by The Hill.
The Senate received a nomination for Kurilla on Wednesday and referred it to the Senate Armed Services committee, according to congressional records. However, the records don’t specify what position Kurilla is nominated for.
If confirmed, Kurilla would replace Gen. Kenneth McKenzie, who has helmed Central Command since March 2019.
The Pentagon said there is nothing to announce at this time.
Kurilla, a native of Elk River, Minn., currently serves as the commander of the 18th Airborne Corps in Fort Bragg, N.C., a role he has held since 2019.
Prior to that role, Kurilla served as chief of staff to the U.S. Central Command. He previously served as the commander of the 82nd Airborne Division of the U.S. Army.
Kurilla would oversee military operations across 21 nations in Northeast Africa, the Middle East, and Central and South Asia.
His nomination comes amid several attacks on U.S. forces in Syria and Iraq this week alone. This week, forces launched strikes against bases near Grear Village in Syria and shot down two drone attacks targeting troops in Iraq.
Meanwhile, American troops are still in Iraq in an advisory role, part of an agreement to formally end the combat mission against ISIS.
Kurilla’s nomination also comes as the U.S. still deals with the fallout of its chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan on Aug. 31, and talks continue to get Iran back into the Obama-era Iran nuclear deal.