Mark Kimmitt
Mark Kimmitt | |
---|---|
Assistant Secretary of State for Political-Military Affairs | |
In office August 8, 2008 – January 20, 2009 | |
President | George W. Bush |
Preceded by | John Hillen |
Succeeded by | Andrew J. Shapiro |
Personal details | |
Born | Mark Traecey Patrick Kimmitt June 21, 1954 |
Profession | U.S. Army officer |
Awards | Defense Superior Service Medal Legion of Merit Bronze Star NATO Medal (3) |
Military service | |
Allegiance | United States |
Branch/service | United States Army |
Years of service | 1976–2006 |
Rank | Brigadier general |
Battles/wars | Bosnian War Kosovo War Iraq War |
Mark Traecey Patrick Kimmitt.
Early life and education
Kimmitt was born in
Kimmitt graduated from the
Personal life
He is married to Catherine Kimmitt.[6]
Military career
Kimmitt retired from the US Army a brigadier general in December 2006.[7] While in the Army, Kimmitt had command and staff assignments throughout the United States, Europe, Asia and the Middle East, including planning positions within both Allied and Joint service commands. Additionally, he spent three years as an assistant professor and instructor with the Military Academy's Department of Social Sciences.[4]
Kimmitt's professional military education includes the Field Artillery Officer Basic and Armor Officer Advanced Courses, the
Timeline
Kimmitt's military service:
- 1977–78 – Battery executive officer; 1/15th Field Artillery; Camp Stanley, Korea
- 1978–80 – Fire support officer; 2nd Ranger Battalion; Fort Lewis, Washington
- 1980–82 – Battery commander and battery executive officer; 9th Infantry Division; Fort Lewis, Washington
- 1984–87 – Assistant professor, Department of Social Sciences; U.S. Military Academy; West Point, NY
- 1989–91 – Chief of war plans; 8th Infantry Division; Bad Kreuznach, Germany
- 1991–92 – 4/29th Field Artillery; Baumholder, Germany
- 1992–93 – Division artillery executive officer; 1st Armored Division; Baumholder, Germany
- 1993–96 – Battalion commander; 2/320th Field Artillery; Fort Campbell, KY
- 1996–97 – Special assistant – J5; Joint Chiefs of Staff; The Pentagon
- 1997–00 – Division artillery commander; 1st Armored Division; Baumholder, Germany
- 2000–02 – Military assistant to the Supreme Allied Commander Europe; Supreme Headquarters, Allied Powers Europe; Mons, Belgium
- 2002–04 – Chief of staff and commander; Corps Artillery XVIII Airborne Corps; Fort Bragg, NC
- 2003–04 – Deputy director of operations; Combined Joint Task Force – Seven; Baghdad, Iraq
- 2004–06 – Deputy director, strategy, plans and policy; U.S. Central Command; MacDill Air Force Base, FL
Awards and decorations
Kimmitt's distinctive awards and decorations include the following:[6]
United States awards
- Defense Superior Service Medal
- Legion of Merit
- Bronze Star
- Defense Meritorious Service Medal
- Meritorious Service Medal
- Army Commendation Medal
- Joint Service Commendation Medal
- Korean Defense Service Medal
- Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal
- Global War on Terror Service Medal
- Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal
- Master Parachutist Wings
Foreign and international awards
- NATO Medal for operations in Bosnia
- NATO Medal for operations in Kosovo
- Republic of Macedonia.[4]
- NATO Meritorious Service Medal
- German Parachutist Wings
- German Leistungsabzeichen in Gold.
Government career
After retiring from the Army in 2006, Kimmitt served as the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Middle East Policy, responsible for military policy development, planning, guidance and oversight for the region.[7] Kimmitt served in this position until July 31, 2008, before being nominated as Assistant Secretary of State. Kimmitt's nomination was delayed because of two investigations into anonymous letters sent to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee,[8] but was ultimately confirmed, and was sworn as Assistant Secretary of State on August 8, 2008.[7] In this role, Kimmitt was responsible for State Department political-military policy, with particular emphasis on security assistance and sales of arms around the world, as well as serving as the primary liaison between the Departments of State and Defense. He was also instrumental in recent counter-piracy operations off the coast of Somalia, and negotiated the groundbreaking arrangements for the prosecution of pirates abroad.[2] He left office in January 2009.
Nomination delay
Kimmitt's nomination for Assistant Secretary of State was delayed because of two investigations into anonymous letters sent to the
Controversy
After the Mukaradeeb wedding party massacre in 2004, Kimmitt said, "There was no evidence of a wedding: no decorations, no musical instruments found, no large quantities of food or leftover servings one would expect from a wedding celebration. There may have been some kind of celebration. Bad people have celebrations, too."
Video footage obtained by the Associated Press seems to contradict this view. The video shows a series of scenes of a wedding celebration, and footage from the following day showing fragments of musical instruments, pots and pans and brightly colored beddings used for celebrations, scattered around a destroyed tent.[11][12]
References
- ^ a b c d "Presidential Nomination". The White House. Retrieved 2016-10-07.
- ^ a b "Middle East Strategy at Harvard". Harvard University. Retrieved 2016-10-07.
- ^ "Wayback Wednesday: West Point founded". The Oklahoman. 16 March 2016. Retrieved 2016-10-11.
- ^ a b c "Iraq: Mission Continued?". The Chicago Council on Global Affairs. Archived from the original on 2007-09-27. Retrieved 2007-07-11.
- ^ "New Horizons for Iraq". Harvard Business School Bulletin. Retrieved 2007-07-11.
- ^ a b c d "BRIGADIER GENERAL MARK T. KIMMITT" (PDF). BritishAmerican Business Inc. Archived from the original (PDF) on May 9, 2005. Retrieved 2008-08-13.
- ^ a b c "Kimmitt, Mark". 5 August 2008. Retrieved August 12, 2008.
- ^ a b c Al Kamen (April 30, 2008). "But His Dad Was a Good Guy". Washington Post. Retrieved 2008-08-06.
- ^ a b c d e f g "Inquiry into an Allegation Involving Brigadier General Mark T. Kimmitt, U.S. Army, Retired, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense (Near East and South Asian Affairs)" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on September 23, 2015. Retrieved August 21, 2008.
- ^ a b c d Adam Graham-Silverman (June 4, 2008), Inspector General Finds That Employees Feared State Department Nominee, Congressional Quarterly
- ^ "US general strongly defends air campaign against ISIS". Fox News. 2015-06-06. Retrieved 2024-01-18.
- ^ McCartyh, Rory (2004-05-25). "Wedding party video casts doubt on American version of attack that killed 42". The Guardian. Retrieved 2013-01-11.
External links
- Mark Kimmitt State Department biography
- Appearances on C-SPAN