Kathleen Hicks

DEPSECDEF Hicks: DoD Wants Thousands of Drones to Counter China’s Military Mass Advantage

A Saildrone Explorer unmanned surface vessel (USV) operates with guided-missile destroyer USS Delbert D. Black (DDG-119) in the Arabian Gulf during exercise Phantom Scope, Oct. 7, 2022. US Navy Photo

The Pentagon is betting that by fielding thousands of attritable autonomous systems across domains in fewer than two years, the United States can overcome China’s advantage of mass in manpower, ships, aircraft and missiles, Deputy Defense Secretary Kathleen Hicks said in a Monday speech.

Speaking at...

https://news.usni.org/2023/08/28/depsecdef-hicks-dod-wants-thousands-of-drones-to-counter-chinas-military-mass-advantage

Navy: OSD Directed Amphib Procurement Pause, Joint Staff Says Current Amphib Force ‘Sufficient’

A CH-53E Super Stallion helicopter, assigned to Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron (VMM) 263 (Rein.), flies over the San Antonio-class amphibious transport dock ship USS Arlington (LPD-24) on May 3, 2022. US Navy Photo

THE PENTAGON – A new study directed by the Office of the Secretary of Defense led to the halt in amphibious ship procurement so the Navy can evaluate requirements and cost efficiencies, a Navy official said Monday.

“We received direction from OSD, but this will be an integrated team...

https://news.usni.org/2023/03/13/navy-osd-directed-amphib-procurement-pause-dod-says-current-amphib-force-sufficient

U.S. Carrier Reagan to Visit Busan, Drill with South Korean Navy as Tensions with North Korea Increase

Cmdr. Nick Cunningham, commanding officer of the ‘Saberhawks’ of Helicopter Maritime Strike Squadron (HSM) 77 flies over USS Ronald Reagan (CVN-76) in an MH-60R Sea Hawk during a change of command ceremony in the Philippine Sea on Aug. 1, 2022. US Navy Photo

The Ronald Reagan Carrier Strike Group will arrive in South Korea on Friday in preparation for large-scale joint naval exercises with Seoul amid concerns mount over North Korea’s likely resumption of nuclear weapons testing, according to...

https://news.usni.org/2022/09/19/u-s-carrier-reagan-to-visit-busan-drill-with-south-korean-navy-this-week-as-tensions-with-north-korea-increase

Pentagon Wants Delay in Draining Red Hill in Interest of National Security, DoD Leaders Say

Lt. Cmdr. Travis Myers, Red Hill Recovery Filtration System lead, Naval Facilities Engineering Systems Command, gives media a tour of the Red Hill on Jan. 28, 2022. US Navy Photo

The Pentagon wants more time to weigh its options before it complies with an order from the Hawaii state government to drain the fuel out of a strategically important resupply hub at Red Hill, department officials said this week.

The Hawaii Department of Health issued an emergency order in December to drain the tanks of...

https://news.usni.org/2022/02/01/pentagon-wants-delay-in-draining-red-hill-in-interest-of-national-security-dod-leaders-say

Biden Administration Should Make Guam’s Defense Center of Indo-Pacific Strategy, Expert Says

USS Nimitz (CVN 68) enters Apra Harbor prior to mooring at Naval Base Guam for a scheduled port visit on June 24, 2020. US Navy Photo

The defense of Guam should be the centerpiece of the Biden administration’s focus on countering threats from China in the Indo-Pacific, an expert on missile defense said Wednesday.

“Make the main thing the main thing,” Thomas Karako, director of the missile defense project at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said. He stressed the island’s...

https://news.usni.org/2021/10/07/biden-administration-should-make-guams-defense-center-of-indo-pacific-strategy-expert-says

Department of Defense Updated COVID-19 Mask Guidelines

The following is the July 28, 2021 memo from Deputy Defense Secretary Kathleen H. Hicks updating the guidelines from the Department of Defense on wearing masks. 

From the memo

MEMORANDUM FOR SENIOR PENTAGON LEADERSHIP
COMMANDERS OF THE COMBATANT COMMANDS
DEFENSE AGENCY AND DOD FIELD ACTIVITY DIRECTORS
SUBJECT: Updated Mask Guidance for all DoD installations and Other Facilities
Reference: Deputy Secretary of Defense Memorandum “Updated Mask Guidelines for Vaccinated Persons,” May 13, 2021

In...

https://news.usni.org/2021/07/28/department-of-defense-updated-covid-19-mask-guidelines

Hicks: DoD Budget Designed to Deter Chinese Aggression; Pentagon Issues New China Policy Directive

Chinese president Xi Jinping tours People’s Liberation Army Navy warship. Xinhua Photo

The Pentagon drew up its $715 billion budget request with a clear-eyed approach on how to “deter military aggression” when it comes to China, the Defense Department’s number two civilian said on Tuesday.

Kathleen Hicks, deputy secretary of defense, said she sees “threads of continuity” in the Biden administration approach in its strategic guidance as they look at the emerging threat from Beijing as a “pacing”...

https://news.usni.org/2021/06/09/hicks-dod-budget-designed-to-deter-chinese-aggression-pentagon-issues-new-china-policy-directive

Dual Letters From Congress Signal Hill Headed for Defense Spending Showdown

NASA Photo

A debate between lawmakers over defense spending is brewing, as a group of progressive House members push for cuts to the defense budget while others argue for a boost to shipbuilding.

In a March 16 letter to President Joe Biden, 50 Democratic members of Congress argued for a decreased budget for the Defense Department.

“Recent reporting indicates that your first budget request to Congress will recommend the same level of Pentagon spending as the last fiscal year. While we are heartened...

https://news.usni.org/2021/03/16/dual-letters-from-congress-signal-hill-headed-for-defense-spending-showdown

Berger Reaffirms Commitment to Force Design 2030 Overhaul In Memo to New SECDEF

Gen. David H. Berger addresses an audience of senior enlisted Marines and Sailors about Force Design at the Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps Symposium in Quantico, Va. on Oct. 17, 2019. US Marine Corps Photo

Marine Corps Commandant Gen. David Berger is emphasizing his commitment to the service’s force design initiative in a recent memo to the new defense secretary, USNI News has learned.

In the late February memo, reviewed by USNI News, Berger stressed that the service will not ask for more...

https://news.usni.org/2021/03/01/berger-reaffirms-commitment-to-force-design-2030-overhaul-in-memo-to-new-secdef

Pentagon Conducting ‘Relook’ of FY-22 Budget; Directive Targets Shipbuilding

In this aerial photograph, the aircraft carrier John F. Kennedy (CVN 79) sits at Pier 3 at Newport News Shipbuilding division. The ship is approximately 76 percent complete and is progressing through final outfitting and testing. Huntington Ingalls Industries photo.

The Pentagon is performing a “budget relook” of the Trump administration’s Fiscal Year 2022 proposal, with Navy shipbuilding topping the list of items for reassessment, USNI News has learned.

The directive, issued on Feb. 17, calls...

https://news.usni.org/2021/02/24/pentagon-conducting-relook-of-fy-22-budget-directive-targets-shipbuilding

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