U.S Navy Adm. Mike Mullen, center back, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, addresses former Secretary of State George Shultz and Hoover Institution members at Stanford University in Palo Alto, Calif., Sept. 24, 2008. Defense Dept. photo by U.S. Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Chad J. McNeeley
"[The Middle East] is the most unstable part of the world, and it's a part of the world that continues to create great uncertainty and great unpredictability."
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Adm. Mike Mullen
U.S Navy Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, addresses former Secretary of State George Shultz and Hoover Institution members at Stanford University in Palo Alto, Calif., Sept. 24, 2008. Defense Dept. photo by U.S. Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Chad J. McNeeley
U.S. Navy Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and Chief of the Turkish General Staff Gen. Ilker Basburg take part in a farewell ceremony in Ankara, Turkey. Defense Dept. photo by Air Force Master Sgt. Adam M. Stump
From left, U.S. Ambassador to Turkey Ross Wilson and U.S. Navy Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, meet with Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Istanbul, Turkey, Sept. 14, 2008. Defense Dept. photo by Air Force Master Sgt. Adam M. Stump
U.S. Navy Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, thanks soldiers for their service during a visit to Baghdad, Iraq, Sept. 16, 2008. Defense Dept. photo by Air Force Master Sgt. Adam M. Stump
Navy Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, addresses students, parents and faculty at his alma mater, Notre Dame High School, Sherman Oaks, Calif., Sept. 19, 2008. Defense Dept. photo by U.S. Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Chad J. McNeeley