Four years removed from the onset of the coronavirus pandemic, a pair of Defense Department health officials testified that DOD remains committed to protecting service members’ health, while also continuing to monitor and learn from the effects of COVID-19.
The Defense Department will undertake an emergency mission to establish a temporary pier on the coast of Gaza to deliver up to 2,000,000 humanitarian aid meals per-day, Pentagon officials announced.
A congressionally chartered commission has recommended changes to bring DOD’s planning, programming, budgeting and execution process into the 21st century.
While anticipating future requirements remains essential, the ability to prepare for rapidly emerging threats is critical, William A. LaPlante, undersecretary of defense for acquisition and sustainment, said.
Operating under a series of stopgap spending measures year after year poses risks to the defense industrial base and to the military’s ability to meet its mission, Michael J. McCord, undersecretary of defense, comptroller and chief financial officer, said.
The situation in Gaza has created the conditions for malign actors to sow instability throughout the region and beyond, Army Gen. Michael E. Kurilla, commander of U.S. Central Command, said.
The Space Development Agency has been incredibly disruptive to the Pentagon’s traditional acquisition approach, but in a way that’s good for the warfighter, the agency’s director said.
A combined effort by U.S. Central Command and the Royal Jordanian Air Force provided additional humanitarian aid to northern Gaza.