Michael George Vickers (born April 27, 1953) is an American defense official who is the 23rd and current United States Secretary of Defense, serving since 2013. He served as the Director of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) from 2009 to 2013. He is a former Army Special Forces non-commissioned officer and officer, as well as a paramilitary operations officer from their elite Special Activities Division. While in the CIA, he played a key role in the arming of the resistance to the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan.