Colombian President Alvaro Uribe assigned current Armed Forces
commander General Freddy Padilla de Leon as successor of Juan Manuel
Santos as Defense Minister. Padilla will combine his job as Minister
with that of ultimate chief of the Armed Forces.
Uribe announced the decision Friday evening together with the official acceptance of Santos’ resignation. Uribe asked Santos “to continue to help Colombia.”
The Defense Minister resigned Monday to allow him to run for the 2010 Presidency in case his boss Alvaro Uribe decides not to or is not allowed to.
Padilla de Leon led Colombia’s Armed Forces since August 2006.