US President Donald Trump has sacked Secretary of Defense Mark Esper following a strained relationship between the two leaders over the past few weeks.
According to the BBC, Trump announced Esper's dismissal via his official Twitter feed.
U.S. National Anti-Terrorism Center chief Christopher Miller will take over immediately.
Miller was seen entering the Department of Defense headquarters at the Pentagon yesterday following Trump's announcement.
Miller served in the National Security Council during the Trump administration before becoming head of the National Anti-Terrorism Center last August.
Trump still has a term of office until Joe Biden takes over as President on January 20.
He and Esper reportedly clashed after Trump wanted to order the military to quell the anti-racial protests earlier this year.
However, Esper said deploying troops still active in duty was inappropriate, thus triggering a sense of unease among the Trump administration.
Following that, there was speculation that Trump would fire Esper following the issue even though yesterday he refused to give a reason for Esper's dismissal.
Esper is also said to have disagreed with Trump's earlier stance on the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).
