Canada's next Chief of the Defence Staff will be former Kandahar operation commander Lt.-Gen. Jonathan Vance, CTV News has learned.

The appointment has not been made official yet but sources have confirmed it to CTV News.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper selected Vance for the position after meeting with him late last month, CTV's Mercedes Stephenson reported on Friday.

The Prime Minister's Office and the office of Defence Minister Jason Kenney have not confirmed the appointment, telling The Canadian Press only that an "announcement will come in due course."

Vance served with the Canadian Forces in Afghanistan and currently oversees Canada's military efforts against the Islamic State as Commander of Canadian Joint Operations Command.

Vance will replace Gen. Tom Lawson, who will leave his post in the fall after a three-year term. Lawson announced earlier this year that he intends to retire.

The transition is expected to happen sometime in the summer, ahead of the upcoming federal election.

Vance joined the Canadian Forces in 1982, following in the footsteps of his late father, former Lt.-Gen. Jack Vance. The elder Vance once served as vice-chief of defence staff.

Jonathan Vance commanded ground troops in Afghanistan from 2009 to 2010 before taking a post as deputy commander of NATO's Allied Joint Force Command in Naples, Italy. He is credited with pioneering the counterinsurgency strategies used by Canadian and allied troops during the Afghan War.

He was named Commander of the Canadian Joint Operations Command last September.

With files from the Canadian Press