Senior defense aide resigns after Mattis steps down

Rear Adm. Kevin Sweeney has resigned his post as chief of staff to the U.S. secretary of defense, the Defense Department said.

Sweeney had become chief of staff to former Defense Secretary Jim Mattis in January 2017, and his resignation comes soon after Mattis’ pointed departure in December.

Mattis said then that he had resigned in protest of President Trump’s decision to withdraw U.S. forces from Syria and in protest of the president’s rejection of international alliances. Mattis had originally said he would step down at the end of February, but angered by Mattis’ criticism, Trump said he was removing Mattis from his post two months early.