WEBVTT 00:00.009 --> 00:02.779 One quick item to pass along at the top 00:02.789 --> 00:04.789 and then I'll be happy to take your 00:04.789 --> 00:06.567 questions in recognition of the 00:06.567 --> 00:08.400 Thanksgiving holiday today . And 00:08.400 --> 00:10.567 tomorrow , Secretary Austin will reach 00:10.567 --> 00:12.733 out to speak with service members from 00:12.733 --> 00:14.956 each branch of the armed forces to wish 00:14.956 --> 00:16.956 them well and all those serving our 00:16.956 --> 00:19.178 country . A happy Thanksgiving . During 00:19.178 --> 00:21.345 these calls , the secretary will speak 00:21.345 --> 00:23.456 directly with service members who are 00:23.456 --> 00:25.511 forward deployed or supporting major 00:25.511 --> 00:27.733 operations throughout the world . He'll 00:27.733 --> 00:29.956 thank them and their families for their 00:29.956 --> 00:32.178 service , sacrifice and professionalism 00:32.178 --> 00:34.345 in defense of our nation . He'll speak 00:34.345 --> 00:36.567 with service members from the following 00:36.567 --> 00:38.845 units . The US Army's second battalion , 00:38.845 --> 00:40.622 12th cavalry regiment currently 00:40.622 --> 00:42.622 deployed to Poland in support of us 00:42.622 --> 00:44.845 European command and NATO the US Marine 00:44.845 --> 00:47.011 Corps combat logistics battalion 31 in 00:47.011 --> 00:49.011 Okinawa supporting combat logistics 00:49.011 --> 00:51.990 within the US indo paycom A or US navy 00:52.000 --> 00:54.056 destroyer US . S Stockdale currently 00:54.056 --> 00:56.056 deployed to the fifth fleet A or in 00:56.056 --> 00:58.167 support of operations in US . Central 00:58.167 --> 01:00.500 command , the US Air Forces . 3 79th 01:00.509 --> 01:02.731 expeditionary medical squadron deployed 01:02.731 --> 01:05.139 to all airbase cutter , delivering care 01:05.150 --> 01:07.039 to us , service members in the US 01:07.039 --> 01:09.269 Central Command A or , and the US Space 01:09.279 --> 01:11.112 Forces . Fourth Space Operations 01:11.120 --> 01:13.231 squadron at Schriver Space Force Base 01:13.231 --> 01:15.398 in Colorado , which operates the Space 01:15.398 --> 01:17.398 Forces protected military satellite 01:17.398 --> 01:19.453 communication system . A read out of 01:19.453 --> 01:21.453 the calls will be made available on 01:21.453 --> 01:23.453 defense.gov . And on that note , on 01:23.453 --> 01:25.398 behalf of Secretary Austin and the 01:25.398 --> 01:27.564 entire Department of Defense , I wanna 01:27.564 --> 01:29.731 wish everyone a safe restful and happy 01:29.731 --> 01:29.080 Thanksgiving holiday . And with that , 01:29.430 --> 01:31.652 I will thankfully take your questions . 01:31.652 --> 01:33.730 We'll start with A P Thanks General 01:33.739 --> 01:36.040 Ryder . Um Jordan announced today that 01:36.050 --> 01:38.169 it's restarted airdrops in northern 01:38.180 --> 01:42.150 Gaza to uh to send food . Um Is the US 01:42.160 --> 01:44.327 going to also start airdrops given how 01:44.327 --> 01:46.327 unsuccessful the ground routes have 01:46.327 --> 01:47.827 been ? Uh I don't have any 01:47.827 --> 01:49.993 announcements to make Tara in terms of 01:49.993 --> 01:52.049 uh any US airdrops . Of course , you 01:52.049 --> 01:54.216 know , the US government writ large uh 01:54.216 --> 01:57.150 continues to remain focused on ensuring 01:57.160 --> 01:58.938 and enabling the conditions for 01:58.938 --> 02:01.339 humanitarian assistance into Gaza . Um 02:01.519 --> 02:03.241 You know , of course , this is 02:03.241 --> 02:05.241 something that USA ID has been very 02:05.241 --> 02:07.408 focused on as well as Secretary Austin 02:07.408 --> 02:09.519 in his conversations with his Israeli 02:09.519 --> 02:11.630 counterparts . But uh when , when and 02:11.630 --> 02:13.686 if we have any updates , of course , 02:13.686 --> 02:13.539 we'll let you know , given all of those 02:13.550 --> 02:15.661 conversations , has any progress been 02:15.661 --> 02:17.830 made in getting additional land routes 02:17.839 --> 02:20.061 open or getting assistance with all the 02:20.061 --> 02:22.228 looting that's been going on ? Uh As I 02:22.228 --> 02:24.450 understand it , you know , and , and as 02:24.450 --> 02:26.617 we previously discussed , uh there has 02:26.617 --> 02:28.783 been an increase uh by the Israelis in 02:28.783 --> 02:31.059 terms of enabling aid obviously much 02:31.070 --> 02:33.500 more needs to be done . Uh This has 02:33.509 --> 02:35.679 been a topic again of discussion to 02:35.690 --> 02:38.740 include uh security for those aid 02:38.750 --> 02:41.460 convoys that are going into Gaza . So 02:41.649 --> 02:43.880 uh we'll continue for our part uh here 02:43.889 --> 02:45.556 at the dod to , to have those 02:45.556 --> 02:47.278 conversations with our Israeli 02:47.278 --> 02:49.389 counterparts . Natasha , thanks Pat . 02:49.389 --> 02:51.556 Um The White House confirmed yesterday 02:51.556 --> 02:53.667 that Ukraine has begun using the long 02:53.667 --> 02:55.778 range attacking systems inside Kirk . 02:55.778 --> 02:57.778 And so I'm wondering if there's any 02:57.778 --> 02:59.945 more information you can provide about 02:59.945 --> 03:02.167 what they're targeting , how successful 03:02.167 --> 03:04.111 those strikes have been . And then 03:04.111 --> 03:06.222 separately on the potential ceasefire 03:06.222 --> 03:08.389 deal between Israel and Lebanon . What 03:08.389 --> 03:10.611 role if any is the US military going to 03:10.611 --> 03:12.556 have in enforcing that ? Yeah , on 03:12.556 --> 03:14.333 attack comes as the White House 03:14.333 --> 03:16.500 highlighted yesterday , there has been 03:16.500 --> 03:18.222 a shift in policy and that the 03:18.222 --> 03:20.330 Ukrainians may employ uh attack in 03:20.350 --> 03:23.869 defense of their nation focus right now . 03:23.880 --> 03:26.190 Of course , on the KK region , I'll let 03:26.199 --> 03:27.880 the Ukrainians speak to their 03:27.889 --> 03:29.759 operations in terms of their uh 03:29.770 --> 03:32.220 targeting and their operations . I just 03:32.229 --> 03:34.451 won't get ahead of them on that . Um As 03:34.451 --> 03:36.562 far as the cease fire goes , we're of 03:36.562 --> 03:38.673 course strongly supportive of a cease 03:38.673 --> 03:40.896 fire . Um We're consulting closely with 03:40.899 --> 03:43.529 our interagency partners uh in terms of 03:43.539 --> 03:45.595 what potential contributions the dod 03:45.595 --> 03:47.595 can make . I don't have anything to 03:47.595 --> 03:49.317 announce from here , but we'll 03:49.317 --> 03:51.539 certainly keep you updated . Um General 03:51.539 --> 03:53.372 Ryder , there's been a number of 03:53.372 --> 03:55.372 incidents in England um with drones 03:55.372 --> 03:57.679 targeting us bases a kind of swarming 03:57.690 --> 04:00.460 us bases , challenging security . Do 04:00.470 --> 04:02.637 you believe they have hostile intent ? 04:02.637 --> 04:04.581 Do you believe they were sent by a 04:04.581 --> 04:06.692 foreign adversary ? What is happening 04:06.692 --> 04:06.660 with , what can you tell us about these 04:06.669 --> 04:09.009 drones ? Um What I would tell you , uh 04:09.020 --> 04:11.570 Jennifer is that they are uh being 04:11.580 --> 04:14.649 actively monitored . Um Installation 04:14.660 --> 04:16.771 leaders have determined so far that , 04:16.771 --> 04:19.529 that none of these incursions impact uh 04:19.540 --> 04:21.707 the base residents , the facilities or 04:21.707 --> 04:23.984 the assets that we have on those bases . 04:24.140 --> 04:26.362 Um We're , of course continuing to work 04:26.362 --> 04:28.584 with host nation authorities uh and our 04:28.584 --> 04:30.959 mission partners to ensure the safety 04:30.970 --> 04:33.026 of our personnel or facilities and , 04:33.026 --> 04:36.049 and the equipment . Um , you know , the 04:36.059 --> 04:38.281 bottom line is , uh it's something that 04:38.281 --> 04:40.226 we're gonna take seriously , we're 04:40.226 --> 04:42.392 continuing to look into it . Um But as 04:42.392 --> 04:44.003 of right now has not had any 04:44.003 --> 04:46.226 significant mission impact , shoot them 04:46.226 --> 04:48.337 down . Well , I , I won't get into uh 04:48.337 --> 04:50.337 force protection measures . We , of 04:50.337 --> 04:52.448 course , always maintain the right to 04:52.448 --> 04:54.281 defend ourselves . Uh If we deem 04:54.281 --> 04:56.615 something to be a threat . Um But again , 04:56.615 --> 04:58.726 we'll continue to work with the local 04:58.726 --> 05:00.892 host nation authorities there . Do you 05:00.892 --> 05:02.948 think it's linked to the drones that 05:02.948 --> 05:05.170 were cited three or four days locations 05:05.170 --> 05:07.281 back in December of last year that uh 05:07.281 --> 05:09.765 we reported on recently ? Yeah , I 05:09.774 --> 05:11.885 don't , I don't want to speculate and 05:11.885 --> 05:15.204 draw unnecessary uh connections . Um 05:15.255 --> 05:17.311 You know , again , this is something 05:17.311 --> 05:19.366 that , that we'll look into as , you 05:19.366 --> 05:22.165 know , uh small uass drones , um , have 05:22.174 --> 05:24.230 become something that's , you know , 05:24.230 --> 05:26.915 relatively common now across the , the , 05:26.924 --> 05:29.299 the landscape . Uh , it's something 05:29.309 --> 05:31.365 that the department has been looking 05:31.365 --> 05:33.476 closely at in terms of how it applies 05:33.476 --> 05:35.753 to our facilities , our personnel , uh , 05:35.753 --> 05:37.976 whether it's in combat zones or outside 05:37.976 --> 05:40.142 of combat zones . Um , but in terms of 05:40.142 --> 05:42.920 the , these particular incidents in the 05:42.929 --> 05:45.200 UK versus the ones in the States , you 05:45.209 --> 05:46.931 know , again , I don't want to 05:46.931 --> 05:49.042 speculate that there's any connection 05:49.042 --> 05:51.098 appear to be those of hobbyists . Is 05:51.098 --> 05:53.431 that correct ? Again , it , it would be , 05:53.431 --> 05:55.542 uh , you know , premature to draw any 05:55.542 --> 05:57.487 conclusions . We've gotta see what 05:57.487 --> 05:57.315 these are . I mean , it's entirely 05:57.325 --> 05:59.658 possible that it , it could be hobbyist , 05:59.658 --> 06:01.825 um , or something else , we just gotta 06:01.825 --> 06:03.940 look into it . So , come over here . 06:03.950 --> 06:06.006 Yes , sir . Thank you , General . My 06:06.006 --> 06:08.006 question will be about I CCS , uh , 06:08.006 --> 06:11.309 arrest warrant for , uh , Israeli Prime 06:11.320 --> 06:13.570 Minister Netanyahu and his previous , 06:13.769 --> 06:16.549 uh , defense Minister , Mr Galland . Um , 06:16.559 --> 06:19.660 so far , most of the European countries , 06:19.890 --> 06:22.549 uh , have accepted the decision , uh , 06:22.559 --> 06:25.119 despite that you are rejecting it , uh , 06:25.140 --> 06:28.359 under these circumstances . Um , do you 06:28.369 --> 06:31.260 think that this will create a duality 06:31.269 --> 06:34.519 between NATO members in this specific 06:34.529 --> 06:38.239 and , uh , sensitive issue ? All right . 06:38.510 --> 06:41.299 Yes , ma'am . Thank you . Thank you , 06:41.309 --> 06:43.198 General . Uh , I have a couple of 06:43.198 --> 06:46.130 occasions about the Russia , Ukraine 06:46.140 --> 06:49.000 and North Korea . According to the 06:49.010 --> 06:52.230 Ukraine Defense Intelligence , North 06:52.239 --> 06:55.260 Korea has provide Russia with 06:55.269 --> 06:59.119 KN 23 KN 24 and 06:59.130 --> 07:02.184 about 100 shortly ballistic 07:02.345 --> 07:05.915 missiles . And Russia is expanding its 07:05.924 --> 07:09.595 ballistic missile manufacturing plant 07:09.605 --> 07:13.035 in North Korea . North Korea and 07:13.045 --> 07:16.934 Russia are providing full scale weapons 07:16.945 --> 07:20.625 and tech technical support . What are 07:20.635 --> 07:23.475 your concerns about it ? Well , Jeanie , 07:23.484 --> 07:25.706 I mean , we've talked about this in the 07:25.706 --> 07:27.873 past . We're of course concerned about 07:27.873 --> 07:29.873 the developing relationship between 07:29.873 --> 07:31.706 North Korea and Russia , uh , as 07:31.706 --> 07:33.651 evidenced by the fact that they've 07:33.651 --> 07:35.873 deployed , you know , upwards of 12,000 07:35.873 --> 07:38.420 troops into Russia to support their 07:38.519 --> 07:41.170 invasion of Ukraine . And so it's 07:41.179 --> 07:43.346 something that we're going to continue 07:43.346 --> 07:45.457 to take seriously , keep an eye on um 07:45.457 --> 07:47.401 and work closely with our regional 07:47.401 --> 07:49.679 partners to , to address those threats . 07:49.679 --> 07:51.730 Russian criminal wonder that South 07:51.739 --> 07:55.200 Korea is being used by the United 07:55.209 --> 07:58.679 States and the West and the what 07:59.299 --> 08:02.480 and that South Korea will be targeted 08:02.489 --> 08:06.480 as an accomplish with the West , which 08:06.489 --> 08:10.359 will lead to very bad resort . It 08:10.369 --> 08:14.019 also said that if South Korea provide 08:14.029 --> 08:17.149 additional weapons to Ukraine , the war 08:17.160 --> 08:21.109 will be prolonged . How do you 08:21.250 --> 08:25.000 assess this ? How do I assess North 08:25.010 --> 08:27.299 Korea's claims that the war would be 08:27.309 --> 08:29.320 prolonged ? The criminal . 08:31.260 --> 08:34.239 I think Russia obviously invaded 08:34.559 --> 08:36.780 Ukraine . It's a little bit of gasol 08:37.000 --> 08:39.330 there . They could end this war today 08:39.349 --> 08:42.200 by withdrawing their troops from 08:42.210 --> 08:45.450 Ukrainian territory and restoring peace 08:45.460 --> 08:47.793 and stability to the region . All right , 08:47.793 --> 08:50.016 you got to fight and then we've got the 08:50.016 --> 08:52.127 fire and welcome back . Um Channel 12 08:52.127 --> 08:54.349 in Israel is reporting that the Israeli 08:54.349 --> 08:56.516 cabinet just approved the ceasefire in 08:56.516 --> 08:58.627 Lebanon . There's been reporting that 08:58.627 --> 09:00.293 the US will contribute to the 09:00.293 --> 09:02.989 monitoring mechanism maybe through uh 09:03.000 --> 09:05.179 uh being represented by general . Is 09:05.190 --> 09:07.023 this one of the ideas that being 09:07.023 --> 09:09.079 discussed in the US government about 09:09.080 --> 09:11.413 potential role for the Pentagon in this ? 09:11.413 --> 09:13.909 Well again , as I mentioned to Natasha , 09:13.919 --> 09:16.141 um you know , we are consulting closely 09:16.141 --> 09:18.363 with our interagency partners and , and 09:18.363 --> 09:20.475 looking at what the potential uh role 09:20.475 --> 09:22.669 of the dod could be . I don't have any 09:22.679 --> 09:24.623 updates to provide from the podium 09:24.623 --> 09:26.790 right at this moment . But certainly , 09:26.790 --> 09:28.957 you know , as we have more to share on 09:28.957 --> 09:30.989 that front , we will is the dod dod 09:31.000 --> 09:33.820 open to playing a role in monitoring 09:33.830 --> 09:35.830 the mechanism to make sure that the 09:35.830 --> 09:37.830 cease fire holds . Well , I don't , 09:37.830 --> 09:39.886 again , I don't want to get ahead of 09:39.886 --> 09:41.909 the process here . We are certainly 09:41.919 --> 09:44.229 very supportive of the cease fire and 09:44.239 --> 09:46.183 the Department of Defense plays an 09:46.183 --> 09:48.350 important role within our inter agency 09:48.350 --> 09:51.539 uh here in the US , uh and on working 09:51.549 --> 09:54.500 with partners in the region to prevent 09:54.510 --> 09:56.739 uh a wider conflict . And so again , 09:56.859 --> 09:59.026 Fadi um we'll keep you updated on that 09:59.026 --> 10:01.380 one follow up . How do you see uh 10:01.390 --> 10:05.229 potentially um the impact of 10:05.239 --> 10:07.489 the ceasefire on what's been happening 10:07.500 --> 10:09.869 in Gaza in terms of the war , in terms 10:09.880 --> 10:12.250 of the potential famine and in terms of 10:12.260 --> 10:15.630 the deal over ceasefire and the release 10:15.640 --> 10:17.640 of hostages . Sure . And this is 10:17.650 --> 10:19.650 something that Secretary Austin has 10:19.650 --> 10:22.659 talked about quite a bit is that for a 10:22.669 --> 10:25.859 while , we've seen uh diplomatic uh 10:25.869 --> 10:29.349 means as key to enabling both uh 10:29.369 --> 10:31.840 Lebanese and Israeli citizens to 10:31.849 --> 10:34.016 returning to their homes on both sides 10:34.016 --> 10:36.238 of the blue line . And so that , that's 10:36.238 --> 10:38.238 probably the most significant uh as 10:38.238 --> 10:40.880 well as , uh you know , just the simple 10:40.890 --> 10:44.390 fact of uh reducing uh the amount of 10:44.400 --> 10:46.456 violence that we're seeing and , and 10:46.456 --> 10:50.260 the um the destruction and death on 10:50.270 --> 10:52.539 both sides of the border . So , um I , 10:52.549 --> 10:54.438 I think that is probably the most 10:54.438 --> 10:56.929 prominent . Um Certainly we still want 10:56.940 --> 11:00.059 to see a situation in Gaza where 11:00.070 --> 11:02.099 there's a cease fire so that we can 11:02.109 --> 11:03.998 increase the flow of humanitarian 11:03.998 --> 11:07.859 assistance uh and restore a sense of 11:07.869 --> 11:10.091 stability and security in that region . 11:10.091 --> 11:13.330 Uh And , and see an end to the conflict 11:13.340 --> 11:16.039 between Israel and Hamas . And so um a 11:16.049 --> 11:18.520 a lot of potential good uh could come 11:18.530 --> 11:20.641 out of this cease fire . Let me go to 11:20.641 --> 11:22.641 the phone here real quick . Um Jeff 11:22.641 --> 11:24.780 Shole task and purpose . Well , thank 11:24.789 --> 11:26.789 you very much . Have there been any 11:26.789 --> 11:28.733 attacks on us , troops in Iraq and 11:28.733 --> 11:30.845 Syria or elsewhere in the Middle East 11:31.179 --> 11:33.580 in the past week or so ? And also the 11:33.590 --> 11:36.039 um summary that OS D provided mentioned 11:36.049 --> 11:38.840 two attacks in Jordan . Uh I , I can 11:38.849 --> 11:40.969 recall the tower 22 attack . Is it 11:40.979 --> 11:43.201 possible to find out when the other one 11:43.201 --> 11:45.368 was ? Thank you . Yeah , thanks Jeff . 11:45.368 --> 11:48.030 Um I , I do , I am aware of uh 11:48.039 --> 11:51.729 another uh I believe rocket attack 11:51.739 --> 11:54.969 against a facility in Syria . No , us 11:54.979 --> 11:57.750 injuries or , or uh facilities damaged . 11:57.760 --> 12:00.030 But let me take that question . Uh and 12:00.039 --> 12:02.039 we'll come back to you in the group 12:02.039 --> 12:04.206 here in terms of uh any specifics that 12:04.206 --> 12:06.428 we're able to provide on that . Ok . Uh 12:06.428 --> 12:08.372 Let me go to Mike Glenn Washington 12:08.372 --> 12:10.428 Times . Uh Thanks Pat , my questions 12:10.428 --> 12:12.539 already been answered . You can go on 12:12.539 --> 12:15.369 Constantine military.com . Thanks , Pat . 12:15.380 --> 12:18.150 Um Yesterday , Elon Musk uh said that 12:18.159 --> 12:19.937 he was in a meeting with senior 12:19.937 --> 12:22.190 military officers and they discussed 12:22.200 --> 12:24.510 sort of Pentagon procurement and , and 12:24.559 --> 12:26.726 bureaucratic sort of snafus . And what 12:26.726 --> 12:29.750 have you um is Mr Musk uh holding 12:29.760 --> 12:31.649 transition meetings with military 12:31.649 --> 12:33.869 officials . I'm not aware of any uh 12:33.880 --> 12:37.140 transition meetings uh Constantine as 12:37.150 --> 12:40.380 you know , um the , the uh President 12:40.390 --> 12:44.000 elect's transition team has not um 12:44.130 --> 12:46.359 contacted the department yet to conduct 12:46.369 --> 12:49.880 those transitions . Um So I'm not aware 12:49.890 --> 12:53.760 of any , any official meetings . Ok . 12:53.849 --> 12:55.960 Got it . Come back to the room here , 12:55.960 --> 12:58.182 brandy . Thank you . Um Following up on 12:58.182 --> 13:00.238 Jim's questions . Can you say on the 13:00.238 --> 13:02.405 record yet ? What the intent of any of 13:02.405 --> 13:04.489 these drones were ? Is it to collect 13:04.500 --> 13:06.849 data or signals ? Um Are they 13:06.859 --> 13:09.192 conducting surveillance ? Yeah , I mean , 13:09.192 --> 13:11.489 I don't want a drone on here but the 13:12.229 --> 13:14.530 bottom line is uh again , still 13:14.539 --> 13:17.489 assessing uh what these are . Um and 13:18.140 --> 13:20.140 you know , just don't have anything 13:20.140 --> 13:22.362 further to pass along . I'd refer to us 13:22.362 --> 13:24.473 air forces in Europe , which I'm sure 13:24.473 --> 13:24.349 you're in contact with , just to keep 13:24.359 --> 13:26.415 in touch on the latest on that . And 13:26.415 --> 13:28.470 can you share anything yet about how 13:28.470 --> 13:30.526 you guys are detecting or countering 13:30.526 --> 13:32.637 them ? Uh Again , I don't want to get 13:32.637 --> 13:34.915 into the specifics in terms of tactics , 13:34.915 --> 13:37.137 techniques and procedures as it relates 13:37.137 --> 13:39.192 to force protection . Certainly , we 13:39.192 --> 13:41.415 have a variety of means at our disposal 13:41.415 --> 13:43.526 and we will protect our personnel and 13:43.526 --> 13:45.692 our facilities . Um , but , you know , 13:45.692 --> 13:44.950 again , just to kind of put this into 13:44.960 --> 13:48.429 context , um , you know , he even here 13:48.440 --> 13:50.607 in the United States , right , if , if 13:50.607 --> 13:53.320 there are , um , drones , uh , that are 13:53.330 --> 13:56.049 being flown by hobbyists , um , or , or 13:56.059 --> 13:58.115 some other entity , um , you want to 13:58.115 --> 13:59.892 make sure that you're doing due 13:59.892 --> 14:01.670 diligence , not only to protect 14:01.670 --> 14:03.948 yourself , uh and the safety of others , 14:03.948 --> 14:05.837 but also , um , using appropriate 14:05.837 --> 14:09.179 measures in order to not inadvertently 14:09.190 --> 14:11.301 create 2nd and 3rd order effects in , 14:11.301 --> 14:13.710 in other words , potentially , um , 14:13.719 --> 14:15.719 harming the civilian communities in 14:15.719 --> 14:17.830 which we operate in and around . So , 14:17.880 --> 14:20.369 uh , again , right now , the assessment 14:20.380 --> 14:22.469 is that these drones have had no 14:22.479 --> 14:25.010 operational impact or safety impact on 14:25.020 --> 14:26.687 our personnel at any of these 14:26.687 --> 14:28.853 facilities . We're keeping a close eye 14:28.853 --> 14:30.409 on them . We're of course , 14:30.409 --> 14:32.520 communicating very regularly with the 14:32.520 --> 14:34.576 UK uh host nation authorities . Uh , 14:34.576 --> 14:36.576 and we'll take appropriate measures 14:36.576 --> 14:38.742 again to protect our personnel and our 14:38.742 --> 14:40.687 people . Have there been any drone 14:40.687 --> 14:43.109 incidents domestically since October ? 14:44.020 --> 14:46.242 Um , that's a hard question . To answer 14:46.242 --> 14:48.076 Jen because , I mean , the , the 14:48.076 --> 14:50.690 reality is on any given day , um , you 14:50.700 --> 14:54.520 know , Pat Ryder hobbyist drone pilot 14:54.530 --> 14:57.080 can fly my drone next to a base and 14:57.090 --> 14:59.034 it's in and it's out and is that a 14:59.034 --> 15:01.201 drone incident or are we talking about 15:01.201 --> 15:03.119 something , uh , you know , more 15:03.130 --> 15:05.539 serious where , like the Langley 15:05.549 --> 15:07.716 incident where there's multiple drones 15:07.716 --> 15:09.882 operating over a facility for multiple 15:09.882 --> 15:11.993 days . So , uh , you know , again , I 15:11.993 --> 15:14.105 don't have any statistics in front of 15:14.105 --> 15:16.327 me , but just the reality is that these 15:16.327 --> 15:18.216 small aircraft are now ubiquitous 15:18.216 --> 15:20.493 across the United States and the world . 15:20.493 --> 15:22.716 Um I have a very close relative of mine 15:22.716 --> 15:25.049 who's a drone pilot . Um , and you know , 15:25.049 --> 15:27.105 he flies his drone all over and does 15:27.105 --> 15:30.619 amateur uh photography . Um And you 15:30.630 --> 15:32.741 know what if that drone gets blown or 15:32.741 --> 15:34.686 carried by the wind too close to a 15:34.686 --> 15:36.686 facility or , you know , they don't 15:36.686 --> 15:38.852 understand the FAA rules , et cetera , 15:38.852 --> 15:40.963 et cetera . So this is something that 15:40.963 --> 15:43.186 the department , the FAA and others are 15:43.186 --> 15:45.352 looking at in this modern era of small 15:45.352 --> 15:47.352 aircraft . How do we make sure that 15:47.352 --> 15:49.686 we're responsibly protecting our assets ? 15:49.686 --> 15:51.519 Well , at the same time , um not 15:51.519 --> 15:53.741 assuming every single aircraft is gonna 15:53.741 --> 15:56.019 be a threat . So , thank you , Charlie . 15:56.320 --> 15:59.289 Welcome back . I hate to go on about it 15:59.299 --> 16:01.466 too . However , please do drone on . I 16:01.466 --> 16:04.169 have to drone on . This is the third 16:04.179 --> 16:07.330 time in , in two weeks , um that they 16:07.340 --> 16:09.429 appear to be coordinating persistent 16:09.440 --> 16:11.773 operations , not the work of a hobbyist . 16:11.773 --> 16:13.884 Uh , there are reports out of Britain 16:13.884 --> 16:16.159 that 60 military personnel have been 16:16.169 --> 16:18.869 deployed . 60 British personnel have 16:18.880 --> 16:21.047 been deployed . Does this come down to 16:21.047 --> 16:23.269 the mod ? Is it at your home office ? I 16:23.270 --> 16:26.599 mean , there are other ways of taking 16:26.609 --> 16:28.979 down drones without shooting them down . 16:29.320 --> 16:31.487 Yeah . And you're , you're right . And 16:31.487 --> 16:33.598 again , I won't speak for the mod and 16:33.598 --> 16:35.709 as I highlighted , of course , uh you 16:35.709 --> 16:37.931 know , the , the US military are guests 16:37.931 --> 16:40.150 uh in England , uh in the United 16:40.159 --> 16:42.619 Kingdom , uh at the invitation of the , 16:42.700 --> 16:44.867 the government of the United Kingdom . 16:44.867 --> 16:47.033 So certainly working very closely with 16:47.033 --> 16:49.144 the authorities there , we are taking 16:49.144 --> 16:51.200 it seriously . We're monitoring , uh 16:51.200 --> 16:53.869 taking appropriate measures . Um Again , 16:53.880 --> 16:56.047 I'm not gonna get into the specific TT 16:56.047 --> 16:58.539 PS in terms of when and if we feel that 16:58.549 --> 17:00.716 we need to take something down at this 17:00.716 --> 17:02.938 point , the assessment is that these do 17:02.938 --> 17:06.540 not pose , um , any type of , uh , you 17:06.550 --> 17:09.260 know , uh effect on our operations or 17:09.270 --> 17:12.300 safety of our personnel . Um , so 17:13.800 --> 17:15.967 I don't , I don't have an answer . I'd 17:15.967 --> 17:18.133 have to refer you to you safee . But I 17:18.133 --> 17:20.244 mean , it's not uncommon if we have , 17:20.244 --> 17:22.356 you know , small teams that go around 17:22.356 --> 17:24.522 the world that are specialists in , in 17:24.522 --> 17:26.633 various capabilities . So I , I don't 17:26.633 --> 17:29.010 have an answer to that question . Um 17:29.300 --> 17:31.949 But I mean , you've got Raf Mildenhall , 17:32.189 --> 17:34.869 Milton , Hall , Raf Lake and Heath Raf 17:34.880 --> 17:36.824 felt well , all those bases are in 17:36.824 --> 17:39.047 close proximity . Um I mean , literally 17:39.047 --> 17:41.300 minutes away from each other . So , you 17:41.310 --> 17:43.421 know , again , we'll continue to keep 17:43.421 --> 17:46.079 an eye on it . Um But as of right now , 17:46.089 --> 17:48.256 I would just , you know , uh , caution 17:48.256 --> 17:50.422 jumping to conclusions about what this 17:50.422 --> 17:53.359 is and who's doing it . Um , and we'll 17:53.369 --> 17:55.536 just , you know , continue to keep you 17:55.536 --> 17:57.813 updated . I have an unrelated question . 17:57.813 --> 17:59.869 There are reports that the Houthis , 17:59.869 --> 18:01.869 excuse me , the Russians have begun 18:01.869 --> 18:04.290 recruiting Yemenis to the fight 18:06.390 --> 18:09.319 that came out of Ukraine . However , 18:09.329 --> 18:11.609 are you monitoring any more , uh , 18:11.619 --> 18:13.841 cooper , operation between the Russians 18:13.849 --> 18:16.069 and the Houthis in the Yemen area ? 18:17.599 --> 18:19.932 What I would tell you , Charlie is , uh , 18:19.932 --> 18:23.780 nothing significant . Um , and that's 18:23.790 --> 18:25.679 just the bottom line . So nothing 18:25.679 --> 18:27.679 significant on that one you haven't 18:27.679 --> 18:29.901 seen ships going into . Yeah , I mean , 18:29.901 --> 18:31.957 you haven't seen because we , we saw 18:31.957 --> 18:34.179 that a few months ago . I mean , beyond 18:34.179 --> 18:33.260 that , nothing that I would 18:33.270 --> 18:35.214 characterize is significant . What 18:35.214 --> 18:37.839 about health ? Um , I , I don't have 18:37.849 --> 18:39.849 anything to provide from the podium 18:39.849 --> 18:42.579 here . Um , so again , I probably the 18:42.589 --> 18:44.533 best way to describe it is at this 18:44.533 --> 18:46.533 point , you know , we're aware that 18:46.533 --> 18:48.811 they , of course , uh , are in contact , 18:48.811 --> 18:48.680 have been in contact with each other , 18:48.689 --> 18:51.290 but nothing significant in terms of aid 18:51.300 --> 18:53.979 to operations in a handful of Yemeni 18:53.989 --> 18:55.933 soldiers in Ukraine . But what the 18:55.933 --> 18:57.989 Russians are providing the Houthis . 18:58.150 --> 19:00.483 Yeah . And it , and to this point again , 19:00.550 --> 19:02.606 um , I wouldn't say there's anything 19:02.606 --> 19:04.717 significant on that front and nothing 19:04.717 --> 19:06.828 significant in terms of what you were 19:06.828 --> 19:08.994 saying , something you didn't finish . 19:08.994 --> 19:10.994 No , I finished the sense . So , so 19:10.994 --> 19:13.161 nothing in terms of cooper or ? Yeah , 19:13.161 --> 19:15.272 I think the question was , are they , 19:15.272 --> 19:17.383 are they providing capabilities and , 19:17.383 --> 19:19.949 or , or are they providing ? Yeah . Is 19:19.959 --> 19:21.792 Russia providing anything to the 19:21.792 --> 19:23.969 Houthis in support of their efforts ? 19:23.979 --> 19:26.449 And no , not that I'm aware . Right . 19:27.060 --> 19:29.680 Ok . Let me just do a couple more here . 19:29.739 --> 19:31.850 Yes , sir . And then we'll go back to 19:31.850 --> 19:34.017 Tony now that this cease fire seems to 19:34.017 --> 19:36.750 be um achieved . Uh What kind of um 19:36.760 --> 19:39.650 cooper operational support the US is 19:39.660 --> 19:43.060 going to give to the unifil um um uh 19:43.069 --> 19:46.969 militaries in the blue zone between 19:46.979 --> 19:49.300 Israel and Lebanon . Is there some sort 19:49.310 --> 19:52.180 of talks or how you guys gonna ? Yeah , 19:52.189 --> 19:54.410 I , I just like I uh related to your 19:54.420 --> 19:56.587 colleagues . Um You know , again , I , 19:56.587 --> 19:58.753 I don't have any updates provide right 19:58.753 --> 20:00.920 now other than we've been having those 20:00.920 --> 20:02.976 discussions about the potential role 20:02.976 --> 20:05.142 for the Department of Defense . Uh And 20:05.142 --> 20:07.253 we'll certainly keep you updated when 20:07.253 --> 20:09.476 we have something along those lines . I 20:09.476 --> 20:09.369 have another question . Um Are you guys 20:09.380 --> 20:12.189 seeing uh um any potential 20:12.819 --> 20:15.520 threat from Iran coming up from 20:15.530 --> 20:18.689 different uh Israeli neighbors now that 20:18.699 --> 20:21.349 the expo are like blocked , what about 20:21.359 --> 20:23.550 the neighbors ? Um 20:25.069 --> 20:27.319 The Iranian allies , I mean , not 20:27.329 --> 20:30.300 nothing uh beyond what we've already 20:30.310 --> 20:33.209 seen from Iranian proxy groups . I mean , 20:33.219 --> 20:35.609 obviously still , they obviously still 20:35.619 --> 20:37.900 pose a significant threat to Israel in 20:37.910 --> 20:40.021 the region and we'll continue to work 20:40.021 --> 20:42.380 with our um , partners to include 20:42.390 --> 20:45.709 Israel to , to defend Israel from those 20:45.719 --> 20:47.941 kinds of attacks , but nothing new that 20:47.941 --> 20:50.275 you're not already tracking . All right . 20:50.275 --> 20:52.386 Last question , Tony , a couple , one 20:52.386 --> 20:54.330 housekeeping question . What's the 20:54.330 --> 20:54.290 status of the annual China Military 20:54.300 --> 20:56.356 Power report ? Is that going to come 20:56.356 --> 20:58.633 out before this administration changes ? 20:58.633 --> 21:00.633 Um Tony , I don't have an update to 21:00.633 --> 21:02.689 provide . I don't , I don't wanna uh 21:02.689 --> 21:04.744 give you bad information in terms of 21:04.744 --> 21:06.911 timeline , obviously . Uh that is uh a 21:06.911 --> 21:09.078 report that we continue to work on and 21:09.078 --> 21:11.244 we'll keep you updated in terms of the 21:11.244 --> 21:13.467 the release date . Elon Musk question , 21:13.467 --> 21:15.689 uh not related to a transition over the 21:15.689 --> 21:17.467 weekend . He used a potty mouth 21:17.467 --> 21:19.633 pejorative to describe the F 30 five's 21:19.633 --> 21:21.578 design you your largest program in 21:21.578 --> 21:23.800 history . What is your response ? His , 21:23.800 --> 21:26.022 has he implied that the Pentagon should 21:26.022 --> 21:29.219 buy more drones and not manned aircraft , 21:29.229 --> 21:31.949 but he really took a shot at the F-35 . 21:32.420 --> 21:34.642 Yeah , as I'm sure you can appreciate . 21:34.642 --> 21:36.809 Um you know , Mr Musk is a currently a 21:36.809 --> 21:38.976 private citizen and I'm not gonna make 21:38.976 --> 21:41.031 any comments about um what a private 21:41.031 --> 21:43.087 citizen uh may have to say about the 21:43.087 --> 21:45.198 F-35 . Thanks very much , everybody . 21:45.198 --> 21:44.089 Appreciate it .