Keith Dayton
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Keith W. Dayton (born March 7, 1949) is a retired
lieutenant general Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the battlefield, who was norma ...
in the
United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...
who currently serves as the director of the
George C. Marshall European Center for Security Studies The George C. Marshall European Center for Security Studies is a bi-national United States Department of Defense and Federal Ministry of Defence (Germany) security and defense studies institute. When the Marshall Center was founded in 1993, its ...
in
Garmisch-Partenkirchen Garmisch-Partenkirchen (; ) is an Northern Limestone Alps, Alpine mountain resort, ski town in Bavaria, southern Germany. It is the seat of government of the Garmisch-Partenkirchen (district), district of Garmisch-Partenkirchen (abbreviated ...
, Germany. Dayton served as the U.S. security coordinator for Israel-Palestinian Authority in
Tel Aviv Tel Aviv-Yafo ( or , ; ), sometimes rendered as Tel Aviv-Jaffa, and usually referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the Gush Dan metropolitan area of Israel. Located on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline and with a popula ...
,
Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...
from December 2005 to October 2010. He has also served as the director of the Iraq Survey Group, as a senior member of the Joint Staff, and as U.S. defense attaché in the U.S. Embassy in
Moscow Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...
,
Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...
.


Career

After graduating from the
College of William & Mary The College of William & Mary (abbreviated as W&M) is a public university, public research university in Williamsburg, Virginia, United States. Founded in 1693 under a royal charter issued by King William III of England, William III and Queen ...
in 1970, Dayton was immediately commissioned as an artillery officer through the Reserve Officer Training Corps. He received Russian language training at the Defense Language Institute and trained as a foreign area officer (FAO) with an emphasis on the former Soviet Union. Prior to his current assignment, he spent 37 years in a variety of command and staff assignments, most recently serving as the director of the Iraq Survey Group (responsible for finding evidence of alleged WMD) during
Operation Iraqi Freedom The Iraq War (), also referred to as the Second Gulf War, was a prolonged conflict in Iraq lasting from 2003 to 2011. It began with the invasion by a United States-led coalition, which resulted in the overthrow of the Ba'athist governm ...
and as Director of Strategy, Plans and Policy, Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff, G-3, United States Army, before his assignment as U.S. Security Coordinator for Israel and the Palestinian Authority. Other key assignments include deputy director for Politico-Military Affairs, Joint Staff; United States Defense Attaché, Moscow, Russia; senior Army fellow on the
Council on Foreign Relations The Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) is an American think tank focused on Foreign policy of the United States, U.S. foreign policy and international relations. Founded in 1921, it is an independent and nonpartisan 501(c)(3) nonprofit organi ...
, New York; commander, Division Artillery, 3rd Infantry Division (Mechanized), Germany; and commander, 4th Battalion, 29th Field Artillery; 8th Infantry Division (Mechanized), Germany. He has written many technical articles over the course of his career, as well as was one of the co-authors of ''The Future of NATO: Facing an Unreliable Enemy in an Uncertain Environment'', a study on the future of NATO published in 1991. Lt. Gen. Dayton served five years as the United States Security Coordinator (USSC) for Israel and the Palestinian Authority. His leadership of the USSC team included overseeing the training of Palestinian Authority forces. Lt. General Dayton was widely lauded for his "rebuilding" of the Palestinian National Security Service, with thousands of members training in neighboring
Jordan Jordan, officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, is a country in the Southern Levant region of West Asia. Jordan is bordered by Syria to the north, Iraq to the east, Saudi Arabia to the south, and Israel and the occupied Palestinian ter ...
. He left Israel in October 2010 and retired from the military in December 2010. In 2018, Defense Secretary
James Mattis James Norman Mattis (born September 8, 1950) is an American military officer who served as the 26th United States secretary of defense from 2017 to 2019. A retired Marine Corps four-star general, he commanded forces in the Persian Gulf War, th ...
appointed Dayton to serve as the senior U.S. defense advisor to Ukraine. In December 2019,
Politico ''Politico'' (stylized in all caps), known originally as ''The Politico'', is an American political digital newspaper company founded by American banker and media executive Robert Allbritton in 2007. It covers politics and policy in the Unit ...
reported that the administration of U.S. President
Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...
was considering Dayton to be the nominee for U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine. On May 1, 2020, President Trump announced his intent to nominate Dayton to the position."President Donald J. Trump Announces Intent to Nominate and Appoint Individuals to Key Administration Posts" White House, May 1, 2020
On May 14, 2020, his nomination was sent to the
United States Senate The United States Senate is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the United States House of Representatives, U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and ...
. On January 3, 2021, his nomination was returned to the President under Rule XXXI, Paragraph 6 of the
United States Senate The United States Senate is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the United States House of Representatives, U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and ...
. In May 2021, Dayton retired as director of the George C. Marshall European Center for Security Studies. He was awarded the Department of Defense Medal for Distinguished Civilian Service on May 3, 2023.


Dates of rank

* Second Lieutenant (June 3, 1970) *
First Lieutenant First lieutenant is a commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces; in some forces, it is an appointment. The rank of lieutenant has different meanings in different military formations, but in most forces it is sub-divided into a se ...
(June 3, 1971) *
Captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...
(June 3, 1974) *
Major Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...
(May 6, 1981) * Lieutenant Colonel (September 1, 1987) *
Colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...
(June 1, 1992) * Brigadier General (June 1, 1998) * Major General (October 1, 2001) *
Lieutenant General Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the battlefield, who was norma ...
(December 10, 2005)


Medals and decorations

*  
Defense Distinguished Service Medal The Defense Distinguished Service Medal is a military decoration of the United States Department of Defense, which is presented to United States Armed Forces service members for exceptionally distinguished performance of duty contributing to the ...
with 2 Oak Leaf Clusters *  
Army Distinguished Service Medal The Distinguished Service Medal (DSM) is a military decoration of the United States Army that is presented to soldiers who have distinguished themselves by exceptionally meritorious service to the government in a duty of great responsibility. ...
*  
Defense Superior Service Medal The Defense Superior Service Medal (DSSM) is a military decoration of the United States Department of Defense, which is presented to United States Armed Forces service members who perform superior meritorious service in a position of significant ...
*  
Legion of Merit The Legion of Merit (LOM) is a Awards and decorations of the United States military, military award of the United States Armed Forces that is given for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services and achievemen ...
with 1 Oak Leaf Cluster *   Meritorious Service Medal *  
Army Commendation Medal The Commendation Medal is a mid-level Awards and decorations of the United States Armed Forces, United States military decoration presented for sustained acts of heroism or meritorious service. Each branch of the United States Armed Forces issu ...
* Basic Parachutist Badge * Ranger Tab * Joint Chiefs of Staff Identification Badge * Army Staff Identification Badge *
Department of Defense Distinguished Civilian Service Award The Department of Defense Distinguished Civilian Service Award is the highest civilian award given by the United States Department of Defense. This award and accompanying Distinguished Civilian Service Medal is the department's highest award given ...


Formal education

*
College of William & Mary The College of William & Mary (abbreviated as W&M) is a public university, public research university in Williamsburg, Virginia, United States. Founded in 1693 under a royal charter issued by King William III of England, William III and Queen ...
– B.S. - History (1970) *
Cambridge University The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...
– M.A. - History *
University of Southern California The University of Southern California (USC, SC, or Southern Cal) is a Private university, private research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Founded in 1880 by Robert M. Widney, it is the oldest private research university in ...
– M.A. - International Relations


Military education

*Field Artillery Officer Basic Course – Ft. Sill, Oklahoma *Infantry Officer Advanced Course – Ft. Benning, Georgia (June 1977 – December 1977) *U.S. Army Command & General Staff College – Ft. Leavenworth, Kansas (August 1981 – June 1982) *Senior Service College Fellowship – Harvard University – Cambridge, Massachusetts (August 1989 – June 1990) * Foreign area officer Course – Ft. Bragg, North Carolina (January 1978 – June 1978) *Basic Russian Language Course – Defense Language Institute, Presidio of Monterey, California (June 1978 – June 1979) *Soviet Union Foreign Area Officer Overseas Training Program – U.S. Army Russian Institute, Germany (June 1979 – July 1981)


See also

* Peace Valley plan


References



*Roy J. Panzarella, Ph.D. dissertation, University of Oklahoma (2006), ''Strategic Beacon in the Fog of Leadership: A Case Study of the Executive Military Leadership of the Iraq Study Group'' (which includes the official U.S. Army career summary of LTG Dayton to 2006)


Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dayton, Keith 1949 births Living people College of William & Mary alumni Harvard University alumni Alumni of the University of Cambridge USC School of International Relations alumni Recipients of the Distinguished Service Medal (US Army) Recipients of the Legion of Merit United States Army generals United States Army personnel of the Iraq War People of the Defense Intelligence Agency Defense Language Institute alumni Recipients of the Defense Superior Service Medal Recipients of the Defense Distinguished Service Medal United States military attachés Ambassadors of the United States to Ukraine