Admiral Mike Mullen bids farewell to NATO
After more than 43 years of active service in the US Navy and more than 4 years as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, today marked the last attendance of Admiral Mullen as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff in a Military Committee Meeting.
In his own words: “It has been my distinct honor to serve alongside the Chiefs of Defense over the past four years of dynamic change in NATO. While maintaining our historically strong and vibrant relations with our European partners, we have also stood shoulder-to-shoulder in combat, making great progress in such places as Afghanistan and Libya. We have achieved much together, but I also fully recognize that these operational successes have not come without great cost, and I salute those in uniform and their families who have sacrificed so much”, said Admiral Mullen.
“On a personal level, I will miss this conference each year as it provided an opportunity to gather with peers I have come to deeply respect over the years and I look forward to maintaining these warm relationships well into the future. They have been great partners, great advisors, and, quite simply, great friends. I wish each of these leaders “fair winds and following seas” as I bid them farewell and thank them and their government for the role they have played during what I believe is a defining moment in NATO’s history.”