WEBVTT

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Good afternoon . Okay ,

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just a couple of things at the top .

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Yeah . Um

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I think you you probably all have heard

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today is the 385 , birthday

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of the US National Guard and I think

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there's just no more visible tangible

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way to acknowledge the contributions

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that the guard has made to our national

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security and our national defense is

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what you see them doing right now in

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response to the devastating tornadoes

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in the Ohio River valley this weekend .

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So far the Kentucky National Guard is

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Called more than 300 personnel to duty

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including 81 in law enforcement etienne

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Recovery support and 40 foreign debris

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clearance . Additionally , the US Army

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Corps of Engineers is responding to to

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fema . Mission assignments . One is for

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regional activate regional activation

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and temporary emergency power Under the

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regional activation mission assignment .

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They are deploying in support of debris

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removal , supporting critical public

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facilities , infrastructure assessment

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and engineering and public works under

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the temporary power mission assignment .

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They are mobilizing a temporary power

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planning and response team , the 249th

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Engineer Battalion and additional

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subject matter experts to assist with

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generators staging assessments and

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installation . We do not anticipate

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activations from other states with

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respect to this particular national

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disaster . Uh And of course the

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department I think you've seen , we are

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making available Fort Campbell Kentucky

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as an incident support base . Again .

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Our thoughts and prayers and deepest

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condolences go to all those who were

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affected by those devastating tornadoes

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and um and who will I have to

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deal with rebuilding and clearly the

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department uh stands but behind the

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interagency effort to do whatever we

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can do to to support them . Um And

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as has been typical I think no matter

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throughout the whole year , wherever

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you look , there's the National Guard ,

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whether it's helping vaccinate

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americans dealing with cleanup after a

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natural disaster to helping out uh

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customs and border officials down at

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the southwest border . Uh They have

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wildfires , they they have been

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literally woven into the fabric of this

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entire year in terms of response and

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assistance to their fellow citizens .

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Uh So as they celebrate their birthday

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today and I know for the guardsmen in

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Kentucky there's little to celebrate I

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understand that but as they marked the

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anniversary , I think they can do so

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with terrific pride . Um scheduling

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Secretary Austin spoke this morning

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with his indian counterpart . Uh

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Minister of Defense Sing . He spoke to

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him earlier this morning about 7 30

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this morning . The secretary offered

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his deepest condolences for the loss of

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general watt India's Chief of Defense

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staff . Mrs Rawat , his his spouse uh

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and all the other indian service

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members who were involved and killed in

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that helicopter accident on the eighth

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of december . He also of course

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reaffirmed the U . S . Commitment to

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strengthening us India ties and the

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deepening our defense partnership

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additionally today , I think you all

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know , he met with his counterpart ,

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the Lithuanian Minister of Defense uh

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dr a new shocks us at the pentagon

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today to reaffirm the strong bilateral

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relationship between our countries . A

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full readout of that will be posted on

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defense dot gov later today . And with

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that we'll take questions I think lita

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you're you're up first . Hi john thanks .

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Um a couple of things . Um One you said

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um no other additional states um for

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the National Guard will be responding .

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Do you see any need for any other

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active duty response for the tornadoes ,

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including any rescue efforts or

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anything like that in in order to help

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the guard ? And then I have I have a

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second question . We are not aware of

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any requests for assistance ,

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additional active duty other than the

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Army Corps of Engineers I talked about .

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But as I said at the outset , we stand

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by to support the uh the good people of

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Kentucky in any way that we can in any

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way they deem necessary . So will

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certainly be standing by should there

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be additional requests additional

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capabilities that they would require of

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the Active duty force . But but right

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now that's what I just briefed is what

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is what we know they have asked for and

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what we're providing . And then

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secondarily , um do you know if there's

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still yet any progress on getting

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reparations and or an exit out of

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Afghanistan for the family members of

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those killed in the august strikes . Um

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Yeah , we talked about this a little

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bit last week . Uh lida , I don't have

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any updates to give you today . We

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continue to work closely with any eye .

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Mr Ahmadi's former employer . Um dr

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Kwan , who is the ceo of any , I we're

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working directly with him by

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undersecretary of Defense for policy

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Colin call has actually been taking

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point on this um , to try to get uh

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the information that we need , The

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identifying information that we need to

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help move family members out of

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Afghanistan as expeditiously

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expeditiously as we can . Uh and of

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course to better and safely affect the

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the ex gratia payments . I don't have

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any updates today , but I can assure

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you that we continue to stay in close

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touch with dr Kwan and his team . And

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um as the secretary made clear , we

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want to affect this as soon as possible .

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Did you have a question just to follow

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up ? Can you , do you have any

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announcements in terms of any

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punishments , judicial punishments for

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those who were responsible for the

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drone strike to begin with ? And

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secondly , what is the status of , what

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is the department planning to do again

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to help with the hawaii residents who

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are suffering from a lack of water ?

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And in terms of cleaning it up ? It's

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not just about , I mean , this doesn't

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seem like it would be a quick process .

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How are you going to protect those

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people on your first question , which

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I'm presuming is uh emanating Anderson

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press reporting just recently . Uh

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there I do have no announcements or

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decisions to make with respect to

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accountability . But let me , but let

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me , but let me , let me level set . I

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know , let me , let me level set . Um

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you remember when general side came and

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briefed you on his findings , he found

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nobody was criminally negligent or or

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that he found would rise to the level

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of accountability at that level and he

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said to you that um that should there

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be any additional lower level

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accountability would be up to the

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commanders . You know that the

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Secretary asked General Mackenzie and

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General Clark to come back to him

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within about a week's time of that That

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review , three star review being done

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uh and let him know what their

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recommendations were . Um they did that

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and they did it on time and None of

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their recommendations dealt

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specifically with issues of

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accountability . Secretary reviewed

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their recommendations . I won't get

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into all of them . Some of them are

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understandably classified but he

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approved their recommendations . So I

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do not anticipate there being issues of

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personal accountability to be had with

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respect to the August 29 Airstrike .

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Now your second question was on the red

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hill bulk fuel facility out in Hawaii .

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Um Secretary remains in close touch

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with Navy leaders . In fact , he got an

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update again this morning uh from from

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the Secretary of the Navy and from the

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Chief of Naval Operations . He is

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receiving daily updates from the Navy

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Department about their efforts and

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their efforts are really um along three

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lines right now , jen one is obviously

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taking care of the families , several

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1000 have been relocated out of their

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homes , their their base housing . Um

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and they're in temporary lodging ,

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mostly hotels . Uh and the Navy is

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looking after them , making sure that

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they have uh that they're obviously

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they're not paying for that lodging and

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that they're , they're getting uh food

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and fresh water and sustenance . Um

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also looking after their medical care .

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Uh as I understand it , several 1000

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have been evaluated for health care and

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they will continue to be evaluated for

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whatever health needs they have . So

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the Navy's first concern is , is the ,

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the families and the affected

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individuals and uh and they're working

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that very hard secondly , it's going to

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be restoring the fresh water to housing

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and to the base facilities that have

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been , that have been affected . And

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they're working closely with the hawaii

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state officials , the , the uh the

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Department of Public Health out there

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and water safety to do this in a

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collaborative cooperative way to get

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fresh water back in place and again ,

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make these homes safe to go back to as

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well as the affected affected

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facilities on base . So they're very

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focused on trying to get that water

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system uh clean and safe for use , They

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are flowing in additional filtration

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equipment um and there again , working

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closely with state authorities on how

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to best do that . And then thirdly ,

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it's um it's clean up . It's making

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sure that to your question that um that

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we know the extent of where the where

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the leak came from or leaks came from

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as it may be . Um And then how to clean

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that up . And uh I don't have an update

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for you on that . The investigation is

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still ongoing that the Navy is running .

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Um and they're still working our way

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through um exactly what happened and

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that will help guide them as to what

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the cleanup ought to look like . But

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they are very focused on that and again

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will be working in lockstep with um

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state and local authorities about how

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that how that cleanup is best done . Um

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As I said , the secretary is monitoring

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this personally and very closely . Um

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And and uh and he might have additional

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things that we might be putting out

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this afternoon . I just don't

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understand one thing . You just said

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that none of the recommendations from

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Mackenzie and Clark dealt with

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accountability , do you mean ? No , no ,

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they didn't recommend . You don't mean

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that . Can you explain what that means ?

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Because I can I can and maybe I didn't

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put it as well as I should have when

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they listed their recommendations .

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There was no recommendation by either

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of them about accountability . So there

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was not an overt line in there that

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said we don't recommend accountability .

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There certainly was no line in there

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that we recommend accountability .

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Their recommendations were more about

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procedure and process and the secretary

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reviewed them has accepted them . Um

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And again , most of them are of a

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classified nature , so we won't be

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talking about the specifics , but there

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was no overt recommendation made by

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either specific to accountability ,

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recommend any punishment for anyone

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correct . And then the second thing is

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there's been some reporting that out of

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South Korea , that there's been some

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sort of agreement in principle for a

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declaration end of the war declaration .

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I'm wondering what the what you're ,

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what you know about that is it is there

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actually some sort of an agreement ?

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And he tells me , I'm referring to the

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our State Department colleagues about

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those kinds of discussions court . But

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I would just go back to what we said in

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the past here . We at the Department

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continue to support uh diplomatic

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measures and efforts to denuclearize

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north Korea , we still believe that's

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the right course . And for our part

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we're going to continue to make sure

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that we that we maintain the proper

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level of military readiness . But the

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issue of um that and I saw the press

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reporting you're talking to that really

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is better put to the to the State

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Department . Yeah , Travis , thank you ,

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john um the House january 6th committee

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has obtained emails that apparently

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show that former White House Chief of

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Staff . Mark Meadows had said ahead of

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january 6th that National Guard would

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be there to protect trump supporters .

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Does the pentagon have any idea what Mr

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Meadows might have been talking about ,

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I've seen the press reporting Travis

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and I don't have anything um specific

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to add to that . Um beyond saying that .

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And I think you guys know this the D .

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C . National Guard did activate roughly

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300 personnel On five January to

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provide traffic control and crowd

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management during expected

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demonstrations . That was the task that

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they were assigned . But beyond that

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I'm I'm not going to speculate or speak

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to the work of the committee just

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follow up the is there any concern in

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the pentagon that things like this

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um Risk politicizing the guard that

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there's going to be a perception that

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somehow the guard was a political actor

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in the January six events . Yeah I

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think you know this goes back to what

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we were talking about a week or so ago .

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Um You know with the recent polls and

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surveys that talk about trust and

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confidence by the american people in

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the military , we're obviously

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concerned about that and and we're not

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immune to what's going on . As I said

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last week in american society . And um

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we certainly are concerned about

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external comments ,

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external initiatives , external

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um proclamations that make it

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seem like the U . S . Military is

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somehow a political organization . It

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is not . We pride ourselves on being

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a political , we served to

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defend the entire american

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population regardless of who they are ,

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who they decided to vote for if they

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decide to vote . Uh So when there's

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comments like that made , um it

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certainly does very little um to help

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reinforce and for the american people ,

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how seriously we take our obligations

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uh and the oath that we take to to uh

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to support and defend the constitution

14:34.257 --> 14:38.120
um and the the non spoken commitment

14:38.130 --> 14:40.670
that anybody who has served in uniform

14:40.680 --> 14:43.650
uh shares which is to to stay as an

14:43.650 --> 14:47.150
institution to stay a political jenny .

14:48.240 --> 14:51.950
Mhm . Thank you , john the South

14:51.950 --> 14:54.520
korean Ministry of Defense announced

14:54.520 --> 14:57.460
the last weekend , The Defense

14:57.460 --> 15:01.340
Secretary Austin has ordered a review

15:01.340 --> 15:04.860
of the 2nd step . The variation of the

15:05.510 --> 15:09.270
con transition in the spring next

15:09.280 --> 15:12.810
year . Is it for the transition

15:12.810 --> 15:16.060
of the early transition of all kinds ?

15:16.540 --> 15:18.762
No jenny . We we've talked about this ,

15:19.440 --> 15:21.650
the the

15:23.140 --> 15:25.140
what and the Secretary talked about

15:25.140 --> 15:27.760
this woman in South Korea , that um

15:28.640 --> 15:31.650
that uh that both sides agreed to

15:31.660 --> 15:35.220
assess the fo c the full operational

15:35.230 --> 15:38.300
capability uh sometime in the summer

15:38.300 --> 15:41.950
and then um um and to keep on track

15:41.950 --> 15:45.390
with um with progress towards a

15:45.490 --> 15:48.070
con uh and to reassess that in the fall .

15:48.080 --> 15:50.280
Um So I I don't have anything new or

15:50.280 --> 15:52.610
additional to speak to . We've already

15:52.620 --> 15:54.731
talked about this and he talked about

15:54.731 --> 15:56.898
this quite some length when we were in

15:56.898 --> 15:58.970
Seoul the second question , You have

15:58.970 --> 16:02.860
seen this report listening that North

16:02.860 --> 16:06.530
Korea criticized the new strategic

16:06.530 --> 16:10.370
plan guideline recently agreed

16:10.370 --> 16:13.140
upon by the United States and South

16:13.140 --> 16:16.780
Korea calling it aggression

16:16.790 --> 16:20.050
plan , how did you experience this

16:20.940 --> 16:23.810
are ? I mean we've said this

16:24.740 --> 16:26.740
numerous times , we have no hostile

16:26.740 --> 16:29.450
intent towards the DpRK and

16:29.770 --> 16:33.460
we're obviously prepared to meet

16:33.940 --> 16:37.170
uh without preconditions and we

16:37.170 --> 16:39.170
continue to hope that the Dprk will

16:39.170 --> 16:41.281
respond positively to that outreach .

16:41.281 --> 16:43.560
The administration's outreach . Um our

16:43.570 --> 16:46.630
presence on the peninsula is robust but

16:46.630 --> 16:49.420
it is of a defensive nature in keeping

16:49.420 --> 16:51.587
with our alliance commitments to South

16:51.587 --> 16:53.850
Korea . You're welcome .

16:55.730 --> 16:57.841
Sorry about last week when I couldn't

16:57.841 --> 16:59.952
get online paul from a F . P . Yeah ,

16:59.952 --> 17:02.174
no I know who you are . I was wondering

17:02.174 --> 17:02.030
if you were apologizing for . Well

17:02.030 --> 17:04.030
anyway , it gave everyone a laugh I

17:04.030 --> 17:07.190
guess . Um Look uh why is it that the U .

17:07.190 --> 17:09.600
S . Can't sell or won't sell anti

17:09.600 --> 17:11.544
aircraft and anti ship missiles to

17:11.544 --> 17:14.790
Ukraine ? Why is that ? We can't sell

17:14.790 --> 17:17.200
or won't sell for them ? They keep

17:17.200 --> 17:19.311
talking about them . They keep asking

17:19.311 --> 17:21.478
the U . S . Is not doing it . Look , I

17:21.478 --> 17:23.533
think I would point to , I mean just

17:23.533 --> 17:26.010
recently completed a $60 million

17:26.530 --> 17:28.530
security assistance package , we've

17:28.530 --> 17:32.190
provided more than $450 million On top

17:32.190 --> 17:34.570
of the 2.5 billion that's been provided

17:34.570 --> 17:37.220
to them since 2014 . The United States

17:37.220 --> 17:38.998
is committed and this is across

17:38.998 --> 17:41.300
administrations committed to assisting

17:41.300 --> 17:43.680
Ukraine with their self defense needs .

17:43.690 --> 17:47.150
This is also the subject of Uh constant

17:47.150 --> 17:48.706
dialogue with our Ukrainian

17:48.706 --> 17:51.410
counterparts um about what they need

17:51.410 --> 17:54.100
and about uh what what we can provide

17:54.100 --> 17:56.267
to help them with that . I'm not gonna

17:56.267 --> 17:58.322
get into specific articles , we just

17:58.322 --> 18:00.489
completed a $60 million dollar package

18:00.489 --> 18:02.656
that and that was I think we completed

18:02.656 --> 18:04.878
the last delivery , I think it was last

18:04.878 --> 18:07.156
week of some small arms and ammunition ,

18:07.156 --> 18:09.156
but they were patrol class . Uh I'm

18:09.156 --> 18:11.390
sorry , um small patrol boats as part

18:11.390 --> 18:13.500
of that , there was Javelin missiles

18:13.500 --> 18:16.300
that were a part of that . Um so we are

18:16.300 --> 18:19.410
willing to consider a spate of

18:19.410 --> 18:21.243
capabilities to help them defend

18:21.243 --> 18:23.410
themselves . But again , I'm not gonna

18:23.410 --> 18:25.410
get ahead of decisions that haven't

18:25.410 --> 18:27.632
been made yet and I'm I'm certainly not

18:27.632 --> 18:29.521
going to get into a an individual

18:29.521 --> 18:31.410
articulation of of all of all the

18:31.410 --> 18:33.188
points they need those kinds of

18:33.188 --> 18:34.966
articles that again , this is a

18:34.966 --> 18:34.660
discussion that we are constantly

18:34.660 --> 18:37.010
having with Ukraine about about how

18:37.010 --> 18:39.232
best to meet their self defense needs .

18:40.640 --> 18:43.970
The report that Iran is preparing a

18:43.970 --> 18:46.200
missile launch of some type . Does the

18:46.200 --> 18:48.033
pentagon have anything on that ?

18:48.033 --> 18:50.311
Whether that could be an I . C . B . M .

18:50.311 --> 18:52.550
Or it's just a satellite launch missile

18:53.140 --> 18:55.150
seen reports on this . Not going to

18:55.150 --> 18:57.372
talk about intelligence assessments . I

18:57.372 --> 19:00.310
would just say that we were mindful

19:00.310 --> 19:02.530
that Iran's ballistic missile program

19:02.530 --> 19:05.770
has improved over recent years .

19:06.140 --> 19:08.251
There's no question about that and it

19:08.251 --> 19:10.990
remains that capability remains a

19:10.990 --> 19:13.460
threat to our interests and the

19:13.460 --> 19:15.571
interests , the security interests of

19:15.571 --> 19:17.516
our partners in the region . We're

19:17.516 --> 19:19.890
gonna watch us closely And paul more

19:19.890 --> 19:22.112
critically , we're gonna make sure just

19:22.112 --> 19:24.168
when the Secretary was out there not

19:24.168 --> 19:26.334
long ago , I want to make sure that we

19:26.334 --> 19:28.446
have the capabilities that we need to

19:28.446 --> 19:30.557
defend our interests in the region uh

19:30.557 --> 19:29.970
and to assist our allies and partners

19:29.970 --> 19:33.920
doing the same . Thanks , john , good

19:33.920 --> 19:36.031
afternoon . Over the weekend , one of

19:36.031 --> 19:38.500
your Kremlin counterparts , Dmitry

19:38.510 --> 19:41.450
Peskov uh said there were quote very

19:41.450 --> 19:43.730
serious conceptual differences ,

19:43.740 --> 19:46.020
conceptual differences john between

19:46.020 --> 19:48.187
Russia and the United States regarding

19:48.187 --> 19:50.409
Moscow's red lines and NATO's red lines

19:50.480 --> 19:52.790
in the Ukraine . Now , I'm not asking

19:52.790 --> 19:56.050
you to get into the head Mr Peskov ,

19:56.060 --> 19:59.650
but I'm asking you do you think the

19:59.650 --> 20:01.817
United States and the Pentagon and our

20:01.817 --> 20:04.039
allies have been clear to Russia as the

20:04.039 --> 20:05.928
regard of red lines or where they

20:05.928 --> 20:09.000
should not be going in Ukraine , couple

20:09.000 --> 20:11.167
of thoughts there . Tom First of all ,

20:11.167 --> 20:13.333
I wouldn't speak for our allies . They

20:13.333 --> 20:15.444
can speak for themselves and whatever

20:15.444 --> 20:17.722
messages they've delivered to Mr Putin ,

20:17.722 --> 20:20.320
um I would point you back to President

20:20.320 --> 20:23.000
biden's conversation last week and the

20:23.010 --> 20:25.790
readout of that by my colleagues at the

20:25.790 --> 20:29.460
White House uh in which it was made

20:29.460 --> 20:32.020
clear , National Security adviser ,

20:32.020 --> 20:33.853
Jake Sullivan said this that the

20:33.853 --> 20:35.798
President was very direct and very

20:35.798 --> 20:37.853
candid about our concerns about what

20:37.853 --> 20:41.570
we're seeing there and and and

20:41.580 --> 20:44.090
the lack of clarity by Russia , in

20:44.090 --> 20:46.034
terms of what they're what they're

20:46.034 --> 20:47.812
intending to do and the kind of

20:47.812 --> 20:49.701
consequences that would come as a

20:49.701 --> 20:52.260
result of any another incursion by by

20:52.260 --> 20:54.810
Mr Putin saying there's a lack of

20:54.820 --> 20:57.140
clarity by Moscow on this , you said

20:57.140 --> 20:59.362
that several times , would that perhaps

20:59.362 --> 21:01.251
be the source of these conceptual

21:01.251 --> 21:03.584
differences ? You have to ask Mr Peskov ,

21:03.584 --> 21:05.696
that I think the President was very ,

21:05.696 --> 21:08.350
very clear with Mr Putin about what our

21:08.350 --> 21:10.620
concerns were and about the kinds of

21:10.620 --> 21:12.620
consequences that would result from

21:12.620 --> 21:14.620
another incursion carla . It's just

21:14.620 --> 21:17.030
real quick clarification on Afghanistan .

21:17.040 --> 21:19.400
So , following these questions to the

21:19.400 --> 21:21.511
Secretary , General Mackenzie did not

21:21.511 --> 21:23.780
recommend punishment after the errant

21:23.780 --> 21:25.800
strike , and Secretary Austin has

21:25.800 --> 21:27.856
concurred with that . So it would be

21:27.856 --> 21:29.911
accurate for us to go and report now

21:29.911 --> 21:32.022
that Secretary Austin is not going to

21:32.022 --> 21:33.911
issue any punishment for military

21:33.911 --> 21:35.800
service members involved would be

21:35.800 --> 21:38.210
accurate for you to report that uh that

21:38.220 --> 21:41.490
the Secretary approved the

21:41.500 --> 21:43.556
recommendations made by both General

21:43.556 --> 21:45.820
clark and General Mackenzie as to how

21:45.820 --> 21:48.070
they were going to implement procedural

21:48.070 --> 21:50.200
changes . The kinds of changes that

21:50.200 --> 21:53.250
were recommended by general side in the

21:53.250 --> 21:55.530
recommendations proffered by General

21:55.530 --> 21:57.474
Mackenzie and General clark to the

21:57.474 --> 21:59.474
Secretary . There were none dealing

21:59.474 --> 22:01.474
with accountability . The Secretary

22:01.474 --> 22:03.641
accepted the recommendations that they

22:03.641 --> 22:05.752
did make . So you'd be okay to report

22:05.752 --> 22:09.040
that the secretaries , uh

22:09.050 --> 22:12.620
not approving or calling for additional

22:12.620 --> 22:14.980
accountability measures that does that

22:14.980 --> 22:18.620
help ? Okay . And then lastly , um just

22:18.620 --> 22:20.850
really quickly on this cyber concern

22:20.850 --> 22:22.850
that came out with a sizable issued

22:22.850 --> 22:25.017
over the weekend . What's d o d trying

22:25.017 --> 22:27.370
to do to counter this this um concerned

22:27.370 --> 22:29.592
with software usage that can be used to

22:29.592 --> 22:31.870
get into computers . Has has D . O . D .

22:31.870 --> 22:33.814
Already started working on this in

22:33.814 --> 22:35.926
coordination with Siza . I don't know

22:35.926 --> 22:38.037
anything specific on that . Obviously

22:38.037 --> 22:40.650
we are always mindful of the cyber

22:40.650 --> 22:44.270
threat . Um and our networks are are

22:44.270 --> 22:46.770
constantly assaulted by any means of

22:46.770 --> 22:49.290
cyber actors out there . So we work

22:49.290 --> 22:51.346
very very hard at our own resilience

22:51.346 --> 22:53.179
and making sure that we have the

22:53.179 --> 22:55.179
capabilities that we need to defend

22:55.179 --> 22:57.234
ourselves in the cyber realm . But I

22:57.234 --> 22:59.080
won't speak to specifics or on

22:59.080 --> 23:01.247
Afghanistan . It was about a month ago

23:01.247 --> 23:03.302
that Austin had said leaders in this

23:03.302 --> 23:05.358
department should be held to account

23:05.358 --> 23:04.800
for high standards of conduct and

23:04.800 --> 23:06.967
leadership that he has every intent to

23:06.967 --> 23:09.240
uphold that standard . Why not then

23:09.250 --> 23:11.028
push harder for some measure of

23:11.028 --> 23:13.194
accountability here ? And what message

23:13.194 --> 23:15.194
does it send to the family of those

23:15.194 --> 23:18.690
killed in the strike ? If the secretary

23:18.690 --> 23:22.530
believed that in the case of the 29

23:22.530 --> 23:25.510
August Airstrike , that accountability

23:25.510 --> 23:29.220
was was warranted and needed . Um He

23:29.230 --> 23:31.800
would certainly support those kinds of

23:31.800 --> 23:35.730
efforts . Um As general side briefed

23:35.730 --> 23:39.510
you and um and as we

23:39.520 --> 23:41.730
discovered when when again the two

23:41.740 --> 23:43.740
combatant commanders took a look at

23:43.740 --> 23:46.300
general sales report , what we saw here

23:46.300 --> 23:49.270
was a breakdown in process

23:49.940 --> 23:52.500
um and execution and procedural

23:52.510 --> 23:56.010
uh procedural

23:56.010 --> 23:58.960
events , not um

23:59.940 --> 24:02.850
not the result of negligence , not the

24:02.850 --> 24:05.070
result of misconduct , not the result

24:05.080 --> 24:08.560
of of of poor

24:08.560 --> 24:12.330
leadership . Um So I mean

24:12.330 --> 24:14.780
I I understand . Um and I believe dr

24:14.780 --> 24:17.850
Kwan has been quoted about this outcome

24:17.860 --> 24:20.310
in at least one press report and you

24:20.310 --> 24:23.170
know , we certainly understand the

24:23.180 --> 24:26.790
concerns that he expressed and and we

24:26.790 --> 24:29.630
know that there will be some who who

24:29.740 --> 24:32.110
don't like this particular decision ,

24:33.440 --> 24:36.560
but it wasn't an outcome that we came

24:36.560 --> 24:38.500
to without careful thought and

24:38.500 --> 24:41.830
consideration . Um That's why

24:42.340 --> 24:44.340
the Secretary wanted an independent

24:44.340 --> 24:46.451
review of the air strike in the first

24:46.451 --> 24:49.140
place . Um And Secretary Kendall tasked

24:49.140 --> 24:51.580
it to his Inspector General because

24:51.590 --> 24:53.534
specifically because the Air Force

24:53.534 --> 24:55.868
Inspector General has such independence .

24:55.868 --> 24:58.034
And you heard General say if if at any

24:58.034 --> 25:00.201
time in his review and investigation ,

25:00.201 --> 25:02.460
he would have found that there was a

25:02.640 --> 25:05.000
deliberate poor leadership . That there

25:05.000 --> 25:07.130
was negligence , that there was a

25:07.140 --> 25:08.973
criminal conduct , he would have

25:08.973 --> 25:11.084
started yet another investigation . I

25:11.084 --> 25:13.196
mean , that was one of the advantages

25:13.196 --> 25:15.307
of having the Air Force I . G look at

25:15.307 --> 25:17.251
this . And then when the Secretary

25:17.251 --> 25:19.362
transmitted that investigation to the

25:19.362 --> 25:21.196
to four stars uh relevant here .

25:21.196 --> 25:23.307
General Clark and General Mackenzie ,

25:23.307 --> 25:25.362
they too looked at the full spate of

25:25.362 --> 25:27.362
general sides work . And uh and the

25:27.362 --> 25:29.584
Secretary invited them to to look at it

25:29.584 --> 25:31.696
uh in in the broadest sense that they

25:31.696 --> 25:33.696
could to include if if they believe

25:33.696 --> 25:35.696
there were issues of accountability

25:35.696 --> 25:37.751
that needed to be needed to be had .

25:37.751 --> 25:39.918
And both of them came back without any

25:39.918 --> 25:42.084
such recommendation . So it's it's not

25:42.084 --> 25:44.130
that this wasn't That the issue of

25:44.130 --> 25:46.650
accountability was was not looked at

25:46.650 --> 25:48.960
seriously and considered seriously . It

25:48.960 --> 25:51.740
absolutely was . But in this case and

25:51.740 --> 25:53.629
in the context of this particular

25:53.629 --> 25:55.796
strike , just a few days after we lost

25:55.796 --> 25:57.980
13 service members at Abbey gate and

25:57.980 --> 26:00.202
just a few days before we were going to

26:00.202 --> 26:01.813
complete our withdrawal from

26:01.813 --> 26:03.924
Afghanistan . The context of the very

26:03.924 --> 26:06.300
real threats that we faced . In fact

26:06.310 --> 26:09.480
quite tangible threats by ISIS uh in

26:09.480 --> 26:12.010
Afghanistan . Um all of that factored

26:12.010 --> 26:14.700
into to the decision that that yes

26:14.700 --> 26:16.922
there were procedural changes that need

26:16.922 --> 26:18.811
to occur and will occur . Process

26:18.811 --> 26:20.867
improvements absolutely will occur .

26:20.867 --> 26:23.310
But in this particular case uh that

26:23.310 --> 26:26.040
there was not a strong enough case to

26:26.040 --> 26:28.840
be made for personal accountability .

26:29.170 --> 26:31.392
But that doesn't mean that , you know ,

26:31.392 --> 26:34.300
and that uh that the department is

26:34.300 --> 26:36.890
turning a blind eye to a high standard

26:36.890 --> 26:38.668
of conduct and leadership . The

26:38.668 --> 26:41.001
secretary was earnest when he said that .

26:41.001 --> 26:43.168
And it's just that you have to look at

26:43.168 --> 26:45.334
it in time and space . And you have to

26:45.334 --> 26:47.501
look at this particular strike and not

26:47.501 --> 26:49.780
draw broader wider conclusions about

26:49.790 --> 26:51.846
accountability and high standards of

26:51.846 --> 26:54.730
conduct Based on this one outcome . It

26:54.730 --> 26:57.063
was thought through very very carefully .

26:58.620 --> 27:00.676
Could you please give us some update

27:00.676 --> 27:02.676
about afghan refugees . How many of

27:02.676 --> 27:04.898
them still in the military camps at the

27:04.898 --> 27:07.550
United States and how many of them has

27:07.550 --> 27:08.883
been resettled ? Yeah .

27:09.640 --> 27:12.760
Um let's see .

27:17.540 --> 27:21.130
So We're currently hosting nearly

27:21.130 --> 27:24.960
31,000 Individuals at our seven

27:25.770 --> 27:29.620
domestic U . S . Bases . More than 30 .

27:29.630 --> 27:31.850
I'm gonna get my glasses here . It's

27:31.850 --> 27:35.460
not big enough guys . More than 38,000

27:35.460 --> 27:39.350
Afghans , american citizens and lawful

27:39.350 --> 27:41.572
permanent residents have been relocated

27:41.572 --> 27:43.406
from these military bases to new

27:43.406 --> 27:45.406
communities across the country . So

27:45.406 --> 27:48.910
more have been relocated than we now

27:48.910 --> 27:52.810
have at at our seven basis and we

27:52.810 --> 27:55.860
continue to work with with nonprofits

27:55.860 --> 27:57.916
and aid organizations as well as the

27:57.916 --> 27:59.971
State Department and DHS to continue

27:59.971 --> 28:02.130
the relocation of of the remaining

28:02.140 --> 28:04.560
afghans . You're welcome . Let me

28:05.930 --> 28:08.170
seven safe haven locations here in the

28:08.170 --> 28:10.226
United States . I should know this .

28:10.226 --> 28:12.337
But there's not an overseas anymore .

28:12.337 --> 28:16.020
Not anymore . Okay ,

28:16.030 --> 28:18.086
thank you , pardon my interruption .

28:18.086 --> 28:19.697
And this is not gonna strike

28:19.697 --> 28:22.030
specifically . But you said in response ,

28:22.030 --> 28:23.641
you know , there was a , I'm

28:23.641 --> 28:25.419
paraphrasing you slightly and I

28:25.419 --> 28:27.586
apologize for that , that there was an

28:27.586 --> 28:29.752
imminent threat . And that was part of

28:29.752 --> 28:31.697
the reason why the drug strike was

28:31.697 --> 28:33.863
launched ? We've heard that many times

28:33.863 --> 28:37.090
of since the drone strike took out the

28:37.090 --> 28:41.080
wrong individuals . That threat

28:41.080 --> 28:43.191
should have still been existing . Did

28:43.191 --> 28:45.413
that threat never materialized ? And if

28:45.413 --> 28:47.358
so was it , what did I realize you

28:47.358 --> 28:49.413
can't talk about intelligence or did

28:49.413 --> 28:51.469
that threat never then materialize .

28:51.469 --> 28:53.524
That's a question that you all asked

28:53.524 --> 28:55.747
General Mackenzie and and I I'd have to

28:55.747 --> 28:57.969
go back and look at the transcript . So

28:57.969 --> 29:00.024
but my understanding was he told you

29:00.024 --> 29:01.858
there's no way they would know ,

29:01.858 --> 29:03.913
there's no way to know the answer to

29:03.913 --> 29:06.260
that question because there was now

29:06.260 --> 29:09.840
that later that night or the day after

29:09.840 --> 29:12.062
there were rocket attacks on the on the

29:12.062 --> 29:14.173
airfield . But they weren't just that

29:14.173 --> 29:16.340
wasn't the same kind of threat That we

29:16.340 --> 29:18.507
were dealing with on the 29th . Um and

29:18.507 --> 29:20.396
I you know , you can't disprove a

29:20.396 --> 29:22.562
negative here so I just don't know the

29:22.562 --> 29:25.570
answer to your question . Hey john

29:25.580 --> 29:27.802
thanks . You talked about regarding the

29:27.802 --> 29:29.913
drone strike , how we have to look at

29:29.913 --> 29:31.969
this one specific drone strike . But

29:31.969 --> 29:34.080
earlier this month there was a strike

29:34.080 --> 29:36.191
in Syria where centcom reported there

29:36.191 --> 29:38.191
were possible civilian casualties .

29:38.191 --> 29:40.191
Secretary Austin spoke agreed to an

29:40.191 --> 29:42.080
investigation into the March 2019

29:42.080 --> 29:43.969
strike in Syria . Can you speak a

29:43.969 --> 29:47.360
little bit about sort of these ongoing

29:47.370 --> 29:49.460
occurrences of investigations into

29:49.470 --> 29:51.670
strike mishaps and talk about the

29:51.670 --> 29:55.370
broader conception ? Yeah . And I'll

29:55.370 --> 29:58.450
try if I don't get it to you , you let

29:58.450 --> 30:01.030
me know um I won't speak to what he's

30:01.030 --> 30:03.030
already ordered in terms of reviews

30:03.030 --> 30:05.197
investigations on March 2019 19 that's

30:05.197 --> 30:08.450
ongoing . So I can't speak to that . Um

30:08.840 --> 30:11.960
uh Mhm . There there

30:11.960 --> 30:15.460
was potential for the one that was just

30:15.470 --> 30:17.920
just occurred I think december 3rd and

30:17.930 --> 30:20.152
uh saying com is still reviewing that .

30:20.152 --> 30:22.350
So I won't get ahead of that . But

30:23.340 --> 30:25.530
broadly speaking and you heard the

30:25.530 --> 30:27.641
secretary when he was up here talking

30:27.641 --> 30:29.870
about this not long ago , um we take

30:29.880 --> 30:32.050
issues of civilian harm very seriously

30:32.060 --> 30:35.050
and as the secretary said himself , um

30:35.060 --> 30:38.800
we're not gonna be above or afraid to

30:38.800 --> 30:42.460
make changes to the way we analyze

30:42.460 --> 30:44.540
information and intelligence act on

30:44.540 --> 30:47.840
that intelligence target and actually

30:47.840 --> 30:50.640
the actual execution procedures of a

30:50.640 --> 30:52.751
strike . We're not gonna be afraid to

30:52.751 --> 30:54.751
make changes Now . I don't have any

30:54.751 --> 30:56.807
changes to speak to today . Um but I

30:56.807 --> 30:58.862
can assure you that the secretary is

30:58.862 --> 31:01.910
taking this very seriously and uh he

31:01.910 --> 31:05.840
will be informed um whatever whatever

31:05.840 --> 31:07.784
outcomes come of this , whether he

31:07.784 --> 31:09.396
makes changes or not or what

31:09.396 --> 31:11.618
improvements might be made , he will be

31:11.618 --> 31:13.840
informed by what happened on the 29th .

31:13.840 --> 31:15.618
He will be informed by whatever

31:15.618 --> 31:17.562
centcom's finds as a result of the

31:17.562 --> 31:19.784
strike that just occurred And certainly

31:19.784 --> 31:22.450
informed by the review that he's asked

31:22.450 --> 31:24.670
for into the March 2019 . I think he

31:24.670 --> 31:28.530
will also be informed by uh

31:28.540 --> 31:30.910
the work that ran did on behalf of the

31:30.910 --> 31:34.440
department as a result of uh national

31:34.440 --> 31:36.760
defense legislation that required a

31:36.760 --> 31:38.770
study and an assessment of the

31:38.770 --> 31:40.937
department's efforts to avoid civilian

31:40.937 --> 31:42.937
harm . He's working his way through

31:42.937 --> 31:45.159
that right now . I think that will also

31:45.159 --> 31:47.390
inform a lot . So um I think you'll

31:47.390 --> 31:49.557
continue to hear from the secretary on

31:49.557 --> 31:51.668
this issue . Again , I don't have any

31:51.668 --> 31:53.723
specifics to say today , but this is

31:53.723 --> 31:55.723
something he's very mindful of . We

31:55.723 --> 31:57.890
know , we have to as he said himself ,

31:57.890 --> 31:59.946
you know , we we worked very hard to

31:59.946 --> 32:02.710
avoid civilian harm . Obviously there's

32:02.710 --> 32:04.766
gonna be ways we have to work harder

32:04.766 --> 32:06.932
and and he's willing to admit that and

32:06.932 --> 32:09.040
um and as we can talk about those

32:09.040 --> 32:11.096
things and not everything will we be

32:11.096 --> 32:13.318
able to speak to ? We certainly will be

32:13.318 --> 32:15.900
as transparent about it as we can . The

32:15.910 --> 32:17.810
head of any I the nutrition and

32:17.810 --> 32:20.800
educational international Dr steven

32:20.800 --> 32:24.580
Kwan is quoted as saying that the US

32:24.580 --> 32:27.630
military is not fulfilling his promise

32:27.630 --> 32:29.741
with regards to express your payments

32:29.741 --> 32:31.950
and removing this family . He says

32:31.950 --> 32:34.228
quote , I've been beseeching the U . S .

32:34.228 --> 32:36.006
Government to evacuate directly

32:36.006 --> 32:37.894
impacted family members and any I

32:37.894 --> 32:39.839
employees for months because their

32:39.839 --> 32:42.390
security situation is so dire . Why are

32:42.390 --> 32:45.100
those family members members of any I

32:45.110 --> 32:47.166
why have they not been evacuated and

32:47.166 --> 32:49.277
why have the payments not been made ?

32:49.277 --> 32:51.388
We are working very hard with him and

32:51.388 --> 32:53.110
his organization to affect the

32:53.110 --> 32:56.070
relocation of the family members .

32:56.590 --> 33:00.050
And I think as you I can understand

33:00.830 --> 33:03.440
with respect to an ex gratia payment

33:03.500 --> 33:05.778
which we're absolutely willing to make .

33:05.890 --> 33:08.020
We want to make sure that we do it in

33:08.020 --> 33:10.890
the most safe and responsible way so

33:10.890 --> 33:14.600
that we know it's getting to the right

33:14.600 --> 33:16.711
people and only to the right people .

33:16.720 --> 33:20.210
So as I said at the outset uh doctor

33:20.210 --> 33:22.700
call uh the undersecretary of Defense

33:22.700 --> 33:24.860
for policy is personally working this

33:24.860 --> 33:27.270
with dr Kwan and his team . Um and he

33:27.270 --> 33:29.603
continues to stay at it very diligently .

33:29.610 --> 33:32.270
Uh Believe me , we

33:33.640 --> 33:36.210
we share the concern very much

33:36.370 --> 33:39.790
that that these family

33:39.790 --> 33:42.160
members can leave Afghanistan as

33:42.160 --> 33:44.327
quickly as possible , but we also want

33:44.327 --> 33:46.549
to make sure it's as safe as possible .

33:47.140 --> 33:49.140
Uh Paul already got you . I haven't

33:49.140 --> 33:51.362
gotten hardly anybody on the phone . So

33:51.362 --> 33:53.362
let me just take a few on the phone

33:53.362 --> 33:57.200
here , joe Talbot Sky News . Yeah . Hi

33:57.210 --> 33:59.377
john , thanks for taking my question .

33:59.440 --> 34:01.690
So I would like to get an update from

34:01.690 --> 34:05.530
you about ap story that thousands of

34:05.540 --> 34:08.630
military explosives From the US

34:08.630 --> 34:11.080
military has been stolen over the last

34:11.090 --> 34:13.257
10 years . I don't know if you have an

34:13.257 --> 34:16.750
update on that for that . We

34:16.750 --> 34:19.080
commented for that story , joe I mean

34:19.090 --> 34:22.610
uh obviously we don't want to see any

34:23.330 --> 34:27.150
stolen explosives end up outside of our

34:27.150 --> 34:30.750
control . We're not um disputing

34:31.140 --> 34:34.690
uh that uh that there have been losses

34:34.690 --> 34:36.912
of that kind . They are very very small

34:36.912 --> 34:38.857
in number . That doesn't mean that

34:38.857 --> 34:41.023
we're minimizing it don't I don't want

34:41.023 --> 34:43.301
anybody taking anything away from that ,

34:43.301 --> 34:45.523
but they're small in number . Um and uh

34:45.523 --> 34:48.100
and again we recognize that uh um uh

34:48.110 --> 34:52.020
that that any any loss is an issue .

34:52.020 --> 34:54.242
And and we take it seriously and we are

34:54.242 --> 34:56.464
constantly reviewing and continue to do

34:56.464 --> 34:58.540
so uh constantly reviewing our

34:58.540 --> 35:00.596
procedures and our protocols to make

35:00.596 --> 35:02.762
sure that we can minimize those losses

35:02.762 --> 35:05.470
as much as possible . Kaunda martian

35:05.780 --> 35:09.500
martian post . Hi john . Um So could

35:09.500 --> 35:11.667
you go into any more detail about what

35:11.667 --> 35:13.840
the recommendations from Mackenzie and

35:13.840 --> 35:15.990
and they actually were , I mean if if

35:15.990 --> 35:17.934
there's no recommendation , it was

35:17.934 --> 35:19.934
silent on accountability . What did

35:19.934 --> 35:22.046
Mackenzie and Clark actually say that

35:22.046 --> 35:24.101
they did recommend either in lieu of

35:24.101 --> 35:25.879
that or instead of that ? Their

35:25.879 --> 35:27.823
recommendations were largely along

35:27.823 --> 35:31.570
improving um uh processes that get

35:31.570 --> 35:35.510
to uh the analysis of intelligence that

35:35.510 --> 35:37.510
goes into conducting these kinds of

35:37.510 --> 35:39.510
strikes . And again , this wasn't a

35:39.510 --> 35:41.732
what we call a classic over the horizon

35:41.732 --> 35:44.960
strike on 29 August where you have time

35:44.960 --> 35:47.127
to soak a target with intelligence and

35:47.127 --> 35:49.349
time to determine pattern of life of an

35:49.349 --> 35:52.200
individual or individuals uh and

35:52.200 --> 35:55.420
threats . Um This was a dynamic

35:55.420 --> 35:57.730
situation in which we were uh we

35:57.730 --> 35:59.786
believed we were dealing with a very

35:59.786 --> 36:03.440
active uh tangible threat on that day

36:03.440 --> 36:05.440
to our people and to afghans at the

36:05.440 --> 36:07.180
airport . So they recommended

36:07.180 --> 36:09.380
procedural changes for how the

36:09.380 --> 36:11.630
intelligence is gathered , analyzed ,

36:11.630 --> 36:14.440
shared , assessed and and developed

36:14.440 --> 36:18.300
into uh targeting solutions and

36:18.300 --> 36:20.280
how the process of communication

36:20.280 --> 36:22.840
between all the nodes is done . I I

36:22.840 --> 36:25.110
really can't go into more detail than

36:25.110 --> 36:26.999
that Karun because as I mentioned

36:26.999 --> 36:29.240
earlier , uh their recommendations were

36:29.240 --> 36:31.296
of a classified nature as you as you

36:31.296 --> 36:33.920
can imagine , we don't exactly want to

36:33.920 --> 36:36.800
be telegraphing all the changes that

36:36.800 --> 36:39.022
we're going to try to put in place here

36:39.022 --> 36:41.189
to avoid civilian harm in the future ,

36:42.130 --> 36:43.241
jennifer steinhauer

36:50.630 --> 36:53.900
going once . Okay , we'll move on ,

36:53.900 --> 36:56.110
jennifer if we get you back , jump on

36:56.110 --> 37:00.110
in Caitlin from stars and stripes . Hi

37:00.110 --> 37:02.850
john um , the on back to the

37:02.850 --> 37:04.990
Afghanistan thing um , it said that

37:04.990 --> 37:07.157
commanders would be the ones to decide

37:07.157 --> 37:09.950
whether or not um , people will be held

37:09.950 --> 37:12.330
accountable . Now that Mackenzie and

37:12.330 --> 37:14.490
Clark has , has essentially not said

37:14.490 --> 37:16.601
anything whether or not people can be

37:16.601 --> 37:18.823
held accountable . Can commanders lower

37:18.823 --> 37:20.879
than them hold troops accountable in

37:20.879 --> 37:23.040
that strike . That's a question that

37:23.040 --> 37:24.984
you probably should put to General

37:24.984 --> 37:28.010
Mackenzie and General Clark Caitlin .

37:28.020 --> 37:31.280
Um , it was , it was up to them to make

37:31.280 --> 37:33.447
recommendations based on general sides

37:33.447 --> 37:35.850
investigation . Um , and they did that

37:35.860 --> 37:38.027
they did not make recommendations with

37:38.027 --> 37:40.082
respect to accountability . And as I

37:40.082 --> 37:41.971
said , the secretary accepted the

37:41.971 --> 37:44.193
recommendations that they did make . Um

37:44.193 --> 37:46.360
whether or not there could be anything

37:46.360 --> 37:48.471
additional below General Mackenzie or

37:48.471 --> 37:50.638
General Clark is really a question for

37:50.638 --> 37:52.804
General Mackenzie and General Clark to

37:52.804 --> 37:54.971
speak to . Yeah , paul , Hi , you said

37:54.971 --> 37:57.290
the pentagon takes civilian casualty

37:57.300 --> 37:59.370
risks seriously . But the new york

37:59.370 --> 38:03.000
Times is depicted a secret unit uh ,

38:03.010 --> 38:05.260
launching drone strikes in Syria . That

38:05.260 --> 38:08.420
was absolutely callous toward civilian

38:08.430 --> 38:11.840
casualties and those things don't seem

38:11.840 --> 38:14.007
to jive . And then when you have these

38:14.007 --> 38:17.940
multiple cases of where civilians

38:17.940 --> 38:19.884
have been killed , Where there are

38:19.884 --> 38:22.840
questions , what do you say ? The new

38:22.840 --> 38:25.010
york Times report that the pentagon

38:25.010 --> 38:27.370
actually had a unit that didn't really

38:27.370 --> 38:29.703
care about civilian casualties in Syria ,

38:29.703 --> 38:31.926
I'm not going to speak to that specific

38:31.926 --> 38:35.870
report , paul , I'm not going to speak

38:35.870 --> 38:38.770
to that specific report . But I will

38:38.770 --> 38:40.880
tell you that when we say we take it

38:40.880 --> 38:43.800
seriously , we mean it um , it doesn't

38:43.800 --> 38:45.856
mean we're perfect , it doesn't mean

38:45.856 --> 38:48.890
that we always get it right . Um , and

38:48.890 --> 38:51.250
when we don't get it right , we want

38:51.250 --> 38:53.990
those mistakes investigated . We want

38:53.990 --> 38:56.212
to learn more about how it happened and

38:56.212 --> 38:58.434
how we can prevent it from happening in

38:58.434 --> 39:01.010
the future . We try very hard to avoid

39:01.010 --> 39:03.121
civilian harm . But clearly , and the

39:03.121 --> 39:05.232
secretary said this himself , we have

39:05.232 --> 39:07.566
to do a better job . We understand that .

39:07.566 --> 39:09.732
Which is why he's going to be informed

39:09.732 --> 39:11.788
by uh , the investigations that have

39:11.788 --> 39:13.899
been conducted , the ones that he has

39:13.899 --> 39:15.954
asked to be conducted and about this

39:15.954 --> 39:18.177
rand study coming out . So , um , we're

39:18.177 --> 39:20.177
gonna keep at this to try to do the

39:20.177 --> 39:22.400
best we can to avoid civilian harm . I

39:22.400 --> 39:25.240
mean , nobody wants to see that happen .

39:25.250 --> 39:27.930
Nobody wants to be responsible for

39:27.930 --> 39:31.450
taking innocent lives and to the degree

39:31.920 --> 39:34.140
we can do better . We will try to do

39:34.140 --> 39:36.307
better . But I'm not going to speak to

39:36.307 --> 39:39.070
that specific report . Okay . Thanks

39:39.070 --> 39:40.950
everybody , appreciate it