NAMING NEW GENERALS A KEY STEP IN SHIFT ON IRAQ

Navy Adm. William J. Fallon, currently the commander of all U.S. forces in East Asia and the Pacific, will be nominated as the new head of the U.S. Central Command, the military headquarters responsible for operations in the Middle East, replacing retiring Army Gen. John P. Abizaid.

And Army Lt. Gen. David H. Petraeus, a veteran of two tours in Iraq, will be named to become the new four-star commander in Iraq, replacing Army Gen. George W. Casey Jr. Both nominations must be confirmed by the Democratic-controlled Senate.

The changes would be among the first major steps in Bush's overhaul of his Iraq policy. They were first reported Thursday night by ABC News and confirmed by the Defense official, who requested anonymity because the announcement was pending.

Although Abizaid and Casey were expected to leave their posts early this year, Bush's decision to name their successors at about the time he unveils his revised strategy is a signal of how thoroughly he intends to break from past policies, which he recently acknowledged are failing.

The choice of Petraeus in particular could have wide-ranging significance. Although his selection does not come as a surprise, Petraeus is closely associated with the push for a more complex counterinsurgency campaign, which would move U.S. soldiers out of their large bases and into smaller outposts in troubled neighborhoods.

Advocates of such a plan argue that it is the only way to gain the confidence of Iraqi civilians and protect them from attack. Abizaid and Casey have resisted such moves, arguing that a more visible U.S. presence would inflame locals and prevent Iraqi forces from shouldering the security burden.

Petraeus rose quickly through the ranks after earning praise for commanding the 101st Airborne Division during the March 2003 Iraq invasion.

"Dave Petraeus may be the most talented person I ever met," retired Army Gen. Barry McCaffrey said in a recent interview. "He's got phenomenal intellectual gifts."

Petraeus currently oversees most of the Army's leading military colleges, where he supervised work on the new Army and Marine Corps counterinsurgency manual, issued last month. The manual advocates multiple manpower-intensive tactics that would break sharply from many of Casey's views for a lighter U.S. footprint in Iraq.