The American Defence Secretary, Donald Rumsfeld, is spending his last day in office.
Mr Rumsfeld announced his resignation after the Republicans suffered heavy losses in last month's mid-term elections.
His successor, Robert Gates, will be sworn in tomorrow.
Last Friday, Mr Rumsfeld closed six tumultuous years at the helm of the US military with an appeal to Americans not to lose heart in a long and difficult struggle against extremism.
Seen off with military fanfare at a Pentagon ceremony, Rumsfeld was showered with praise and hailed as a great defence secretary who rose to the challenge of 11 September 2001 attacks.
In a cautionary farewell speech, Rumsfeld said the threat had not passed and America had to invest more in defending itself and not let down its guard.
He said: 'This is a time of great consequence. Our task is to make the right decisions today so that future generations will not have to make much harder decisions tomorrow.'
