The USS Sampson, one of the Navy's 74 Arleigh Burke-class destroyers, joined the effort to secure the southern border this week.
"On Tuesday, the USS Sampson deployed to the U.S. Northern Command area of responsibility to support the [Defense Department's] national security objectives along the U.S. southern border," said Pentagon Press Secretary Kingsley Wilson during the Weekly Sitrep video. "Border security is national security. We are not going to stop until we have 100% operational control of our border."
The destroyer departed Naval Base San Diego, June 3, 2025, and is conducting operations in direct support of Northcom's mission to protect the homeland by enhancing maritime domain awareness and deterring illicit activities with U.S. interagency and law enforcement coordination.
Back on land, the Army, for the second time this year, demonstrated top-notch efforts in military recruiting and retention.
"Young people are excited to serve again under President [Donald J.] Trump and [Defense] Secretary [Pete] Hegseth's leadership," Wilson said. "We are happy to report that the U.S. Army surpassed its fiscal [year] 2025 recruiting goal four months ahead of schedule."
The Army signed contracts with more than 61,000 future soldiers. This year's recruiting goal is 10% higher than the 55,000 recruits targeted in fiscal year 2024.
"I'm incredibly proud of our U.S. Army recruiters and drill sergeants," said Army Secretary Dan Driscoll, adding that their "colossal efforts" and dedication to duty helped the U.S. Army accomplish its recruiting goals this year.
Also this week, the defense secretary traveled to Brussels to attend a NATO defense ministerial meeting.
"[He] urged our NATO allies to heed President Trump's call to spend 5% of their [gross domestic product] on defense," Wilson said.
While at the meeting, Hegseth stated that he has made it his mission to ensure every NATO member contributes enough to the common defense.
"The reason I'm here is to make sure every country in NATO understands every shoulder has to be to the plow; every country has to contribute — at that level of 5% [of each country's GDP] — as a recognition of the nature of the threat," he said.
Today, June 6, marks the 81st anniversary of the D-Day landings during World War II, part of the Allied efforts to liberate occupied France.
"While in Europe, the secretary ... joined D-Day commemorations in Normandy, France, to honor the heroism of the men who gave their lives to secure a future for the free world," Wilson said. "Every day at the DOD, we remember their courage and strive to be worthy of their sacrifice."
At the Normandy American Cemetery in Colleville-sur-Mer, France, Hegseth recalled the history of the invasion and the men who helped free France from Nazi occupation as part of the largest amphibious assault in history.
"Our men pushed through the waves and flung themselves upon the sand. The courage it took to do this is unfathomable," he said. "The first groups were decimated. Thousands of young men lost their lives, cut down by the barrage of machine guns and mortars.
"They never let up. Our warriors never faltered, God at their backs. As they forced their way inland, the Atlantic Wall began to crumble. It is these men and their bravery whom we are here to celebrate and remember: a generation of farmhands and city kids, baseball players and shopkeepers, big towns, small towns, rich, poor, who were forged and hardened in the Great Depression — hard men forged for hard times."
More than 150,000 Allied troops landed on the shores of Normandy during the D-Day invasion, as did some 6,000 ships and landing craft, 50,000 vehicles and 11,000 aircraft. During the invasion, 8,230 American troops lost their lives.
The U.S. Army predates the United States itself, having been formed as the Continental Army, June 14, 1775, just a year before the Declaration of Independence was ratified, July 4, 1776.
This year, the Army commemorates 250 years of defending the nation.
"We are just a week away from the U.S. Army's 250th birthday celebration and parade right here in our nation's capital," Wilson said. "Make sure you sign up — you won't want to miss celebrating the greatest Army the world has ever seen."
On June 14, 2025, the Army Birthday Festival begins on the National Mall in Washington. The event will give Americans the opportunity to meet soldiers, watch military demonstrations and explore Army hardware on display. There will also be an Army birthday parade, which will include 6,600 soldiers in historic and present-day uniforms.