Obama second term to see changes, but same defence strategy

US President Barack Obama was re-elected on 6 November and his national security team - which is likely to see changes - is expected to codify plans for a 'leaner but more agile' military and a strategic 'rebalancing' towards the Asia-Pacific region.

The most notable security change following the election could come at the top of the US Department of Defense (DoD), as Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta is widely believed to be mulling retirement within the year.

Panetta does not speak as publically about retirement as his predecessor, Robert Gates, who often reminded reporters that he had a clock counting down to the time he could leave Washington.

However, it is understood that the now 74-year-old Panetta was, like Gates, a somewhat reluctant appointee to the Pentagon's top position. He was sought for his experience leading the CIA and for his budgeting experience in Congress and the White House.

It unclear when he might retire or who might replace him, but potential candidates for the job could be found in Michèle Flournoy, a staunch Obama supporter who led the DoD's powerful policy office, and Deputy Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter, who previously ran Pentagon acquisitions.