LJUBLJANA, Slovenia (AP) — Slovenia's government has appointed a female officer as the army's chief of staff, a first for the small country which is a member of NATO and the European Union

Maj. Gen. Alenka Ermenc, 55, was appointed at a government session on Tuesday. She will formally take up her post at a ceremony on Wednesday.

The British-educated Ermenc replaces Maj. Gen. Alan Geder, who took over Slovenia's military earlier this year after his predecessor was sacked over poor results in a NATO test.

Slovenian President Borut Pahor has expressed hope that Ermenc's appointment will help improve the performance of Slovenia's military. Ermenc was promoted to the rank of major general last week.

Slovenia is the home country of U.S. first lady Melania Trump.