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Washington, Apr. 28 (ANI): Among President Barack Obama’s greatest national security challenges has been deciding who will replace Defense Secretary Robert Gates.

According to the Christian Science Monitor (CSM), coming to that decision has involved a delicate confluence of considerations.

Who is suitably steeped in defense policy matters? Who will have credibility both with the White House and within the halls of the Pentagon? And equally important, how will a new Defense secretary affect the balance of power within Obama’s cabinet?

With the White House confirming that Leon Panetta, currently director of the Central Intelligence Agency, will be the next Defense Secretary, it remains to be seen whether he will align closely with Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton in defense policy debates, or with Vice President Joe Biden, who has lobbied hard to step up the pace of the departure of US troops from Afghanistan.

The CSM quotes Lt. Col. John Nagl (retired), who heads the Center for a New American Security, a Washington think tank, as saying that Clinton and outgoing Defense Secretary Robert Gates have been both powerful and pragmatic, and therefore, it would be interesting to see how the Clinton-Panetta partnership works out.

“They’ve gained strength from reinforcing each other and from developing what appears to be a very genuine rapport,” Nagl said.

On the other hand, Obama’s aim has always been to facilitate debate “by bringing people together who weren’t likely to agree with each other, and didn’t have much of a relationship with him,” says Stephen Biddle, an adviser to senior military officials.

He adds: “In the next round, he may want to bring in people he has had more of a relationship with.”

This could, in turn, portend policy changes.

“The power narrative of this administration on security issues has been an alliance between Clinton and Gates against the vice president and the national security adviser,” Dr. Biddle says.

“From what I can tell, neither of the camps has ever persuaded the other of its views, and neither one has made much effort at breaking into the other’s fortress. What you get is a series of compromised stalemates.”

For now, the role of the next Defense secretary looms largest.

Someone more closely aligned with Vice-President Joseph Biden, analysts point out, could conceivably spur a renewed push for a speedier withdrawal from Afghanistan.

Panetta’s experience as former director of the Office of Management and Budget is likely to be “his single most important skill set,” Nagl says.

He adds: “It’s hard to imagine someone better for the job on paper.” (ANI)