General Michael Erik Kurilla
Commander, U.S. Central Command
Michael Erik Kurilla was born in 1966 in California. He grew up in Elk River, Minnesota. He earned his undergraduate degree in aerospace engineering from the U.S. Military Academy and an M.B.A. from Regis University. He received a master’s degree in national security studies from the National War College and was commissioned as an infantry officer in the U.S. Army after graduating from West Point.
He began his military career as an infantry officer. He served in the U.S. invasion of Panama, the Gulf War, and operations in Haiti, Kosovo, and Bosnia. He deployed to the region under U.S. Central Command, including Iraq, Afghanistan, and Syria. In Iraq, he commanded a Stryker battalion in the 25th Infantry Division and was awarded a Bronze Star after a battle in Mosul. He also commanded the 75th Ranger Regiment.
He then served as Assistant Commanding General of Joint Special Operations Command followed by command of the 82nd Airborne Division. He then commanded the XVIII Airborne Corps. In Germany, he oversaw U.S. troop deployments in response to the war in Ukraine.
General Kurilla assumed his role as Commander of the United States Central Command in April 2022.
In the News…
U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) announced earlier this week that they had conducted strikes against nine targets after attacks were made against U.S. military personnel in Syria.
The command stated, “U.S. CENTCOM forces conducted strikes against nine targets in two locations associated with Iranian groups in Syria in response to several attacks on U.S. personnel in Syria over the last 24 hours. These strikes will degrade the Iranian backed groups’ ability to plan and launch future attacks on U.S. and Coalition forces who are in the region to conduct D-ISIS operations.“
“Our message is clear. Attacks against U.S. and coalition partners in the region will not be tolerated,” said General Michael Erik Kurilla, CENTCOM commander. “We will continue to take every step necessary to protect our personnel and coalition partners and respond to reckless attacks.”
