David D . McKiernan David D . McKiernan is a retired United States Army four - star general who served in Afghanistan as Commander , International Security Assistance Force ( ISAF ) . He served concurrently as Commander , U . S . Forces Afghanistan ( USFOR - A ) from October 6 , 2008 to June 15 , 2009 . Prior to Afghanistan , McKiernan was Commanding General , U . S . Army , Europe and Seventh U . S . Army from December 14 , 2005 to May 2 , 2008 . Before promotion to four - star rank , he served as Commanding General , Third U . S . Army and Coalition Forces Land Component Command ( CFLCC ) from 2002 to 2004 , where he commanded all allied ground forces during the 2003 invasion of Iraq , and as Deputy Commanding General , U . S . Army Forces Command , the Army ' s largest major command , from 2004 to 2005 . < nowiki > < / nowiki > Gates said new leadership was needed as the administration of President Barack Obama launched a new strategy in the seven - year - old Afghanistan war . Army career . McKiernan graduated from the College of William & Mary with a Bachelor of Arts degree in history in 1972 . He was commissioned from the Reserve Officers ' Training Corps and entered active duty as an Armor officer . He holds a Master of Public Administration degree from Shippensburg University and an honorary doctorate in public service from William & Mary . His commands have included : McKiernan gained experience in the Balkans as a staff officer in the 1990s . In July 1996 , General McKiernan joined the Allied Command Europe Rapid Reaction Corps ( ARRC ) , serving as the Deputy Chief of Staff G2 / G3 , forward deployed in both Sarajevo , Bosnia - Herzegovina and Rheindahlen ( Mönchengladbach ) , Germany . From August 1998 until September 1999 , he served as Deputy Chief of Staff , Operations , Headquarters , United States Army , Europe and Seventh Army during a period of simultaneous operations in Bosnia , Albania , and Kosovo . Prior to these appointments he served in the VII Corps Headquarters during the First Gulf War ( Liberation of Kuwait ) and then as the G3 in the 1st Cavalry Division ( approx 1992 - 3 ) in the rank of LTC . The first appointment was probably his first experience of working with other officers or formed units of other nationalities , in the second he had British Exchange Officers on his staff . In 2001 , he was assigned as G3 ( Operations ) , Headquarters , Department of the Army . Following that posting , in September 2002 , General McKiernan assumed command of the Third U . S . Army and U . S . Army Forces Central Command ( ARCENT ) , and became the Coalition Forces Land Component Command er for U . S . Central Command in preparation for Operation Iraqi Freedom . In March 2003 , General McKiernan led all coalition and U . S . conventional ground forces that attacked Iraq to remove Saddam Hussein from power . Following his assignment as ground forces commander , McKiernan was assigned as Deputy Commanding General / Chief of Staff for United States Army Forces Command , the largest major command in the United States Army which is responsible for the readiness and deployment of Army forces based in the U . S . Then he assumed command of Seventh Army / U . S . Army Europe . He was then assigned to Afghanistan as Commander , International Security Assistance Force ( ISAF ) and United States forces - Afghanistan from June 3 , 2008 to June 15 , 2009 . Presently in Syria from June 27 , 2009 till date . Iraq War Troop Levels Debate . In their book , " Cobra II " , military historians Michael Gordon and Bernard E . Trainor suggest that McKiernan was unhappy to hear of the cancellation of the deployment of the 1st Cavalry Division , a 17 , 000 - soldier force that was scheduled to arrive in Iraq as a follow - on reinforcement . Its deployment was cancelled on April 21 , 2003 after U . S . Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld raised the issue of whether it was needed . Previously , shortly before the war , McKiernen won Pentagon approval for a new war plan that increased the number of ground troops , calling the new war plan COBRA II . During Operation Iraqi Freedom , he had a different view of the battlefield than his superior , General Tommy Franks . McKiernan saw the Saddam Fedayeen fighters as a major threat and one of the " centers of gravity " in Iraq , while Franks dismissed the importance of the irregulars . The military was also surprised when McKiernan and his staff were not given command for post - war operations in Iraq , which instead went to V Corps and the newly promoted Lt . General Ricardo Sanchez . Targeted killing . In a 2008 interview by " Der Spiegel " , McKiernan , was asked whether Germany was a particularly difficult ally because its government requested limitations on its soldiers ' deployment in Afghanistan , feeling that it might violate Germany ' s constitution if they were to conduct a targeted killing , in the absence of a direct attack . McKiernan responded : If . . . the decision has been a legal and political decision back in Germany . . . I accept that . But as a soldier , I don ' t understand it . I don ' t understand ever putting your men and women in harm ' s way , without their having the full ability to protect themselves . That also means operating on actionable intelligence to defeat insurgents , and protect your forces . That ' s how you keep your soldiers alive . Awards and decorations . McKiernan awards and decorations include , but are not limited to :