The US Senate today voted overwhelmingly to approve the nomination of General David Petraeus as commander of international forces in Afghanistan, according to dpa. Senators voted 99-0 in confirming Petraeus to replace General Stanley McChrystal, who was ousted last week following a magazine report critical of the White House. Petraeus has been widely credited for turning around the war in Iraq and opening the way for the departure of US combat forces by the end of August. He was the top commander in Iraq before moving to chief of Central Command. During pre-vote testimony on Tuesday, Petraeus said he was focused on closely coordinating the diplomatic and military efforts in Afghanistan and stood behind President Barack Obama's strategy. McChrystal was summoned to Washington last week and removed from his post after the appearance of a Rolling Stone article in which he and his staff were critical of the White House and Obama's special envoy for Afghanistan and Pakistan, Richard Holbrooke.
