General Stanley McChrystal, commander of US forces in Afghanistan, has been called to the White House to explain disparaging remarks he made in a magazine article.
The future of the top US general in Afghanistan hung in the balance tonight as the White House summoned him back to Washington to explain remarks critical of President Barack Obama and his top advisors.
Defence Secretary Robert Gates said General Stanley McChrystal had "made a significant mistake and exercised poor judgment" after a magazine article in which aides called one top Obama official a "clown" and another a "wounded animal" and the general himself made disparaging remarks about officials.
But Mr Gates offered no clue as to whether Gen McChrystal, the commander of US and Nato forces in Afghanistan, would stay in his job.
"Gen McChrystal has apologised to me and is similarly reaching out to others named in this article to apologise to them as well," Mr Gates said in a statement. The article is to be published in Rolling Stone magazine on Friday.
Comments in the article included gen McChrystal's own belittling of vice president Joe Biden and the US special envoy to Afghanistan and Pakistan, Richard Holbrooke.
Aides offered more biting views of Obama administration officials, with one calling White House national security adviser Jim Jones a "clown" who was "stuck in 1985".
Senior US officials did not rule out that Gen McChrystal could offer his resignation, but said it was still unclear whether Mr Obama would accept it.
Still, other officials expressed guarded optimism that Gen McChrystal would survive in his job because his comments - while embarrassing - did not challenge Mr Obama's policies.
“There's only one person who can answer that question - the commander-in-chief," a defence official said.
Admiral Mike Mullen, who as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff is the top US military officer, expressed in a call to Gen McChrystal his "deep disappointment" with the article "and with the comments expressed therein," a spokesman said.
An Obama administration official said Gen McChrystal had been directed to appear in person at Wednesday's Afghanistan meeting at the White House to explain to the Pentagon and the commander-in-chief his quotes in the piece.
"I extend my sincerest apology for this profile. It was a mistake reflecting poor judgment and should never have happened," Gen McChrystal said in a statement on last night.
Just six months ago, Mr Obama backed Gen McChrystal's request for more troops, escalating an unpopular conflict in which costs and casualties are rising.
The article portrays a split between the US military and Mr Obama's advisers at an extremely sensitive moment for the Pentagon, which is fending off criticism of its strategy to turn around the Afghanistan war.
Gen McChrystal took command of all US and Nato forces in Afghanistan in June 2009 after his predecessor, General David McKiernan, was removed for what most experts interpreted as a sign Washington was losing patience with conventional tactics that failed to quell mounting violence.
Mr Obama is already dealing with the huge BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, trying to get financial industry reform legislation through Congress and hoping to prevent Republicans from taking back control of Congress from his fellow Democrats in November elections.