WEBVTT 00:03.150 --> 00:06.159 Good afternoon , everyone . A few 00:06.170 --> 00:08.226 things at the top and then we'll get 00:08.226 --> 00:09.892 right to your questions . The 00:09.892 --> 00:12.114 Department of Defense continues to work 00:12.114 --> 00:14.059 closely with FEMA and the state of 00:14.059 --> 00:16.170 Hawaii to support the ongoing federal 00:16.170 --> 00:17.892 and state response to the Maui 00:17.892 --> 00:20.370 wildfires . Nearly 700 dod personnel 00:20.379 --> 00:22.690 and 157 coast guardsmen are currently 00:22.700 --> 00:25.190 engaged and the US Army Pacific Command 00:25.200 --> 00:27.889 and joint task force . 50 are actively 00:27.899 --> 00:30.010 conducting the eight approved mission 00:30.010 --> 00:32.177 assignments they've received from FEMA 00:32.389 --> 00:34.529 in the past 24 hours . Search and 00:34.540 --> 00:36.650 recovery operations continue with 00:36.659 --> 00:39.590 Hawaii National Guard teams . The FBI 00:39.599 --> 00:41.599 and anthropologist from the defense 00:41.599 --> 00:44.279 Powmi , a accounting agency , the US 00:44.290 --> 00:46.900 Army's 25th Infantry Division , heavy 00:46.909 --> 00:48.853 expanded mobility , tactical truck 00:48.853 --> 00:50.720 fuelers began fuel distribution 00:50.729 --> 00:53.009 operations yesterday providing 00:53.020 --> 00:55.409 approximately 1500 gallons of fuel 00:55.419 --> 00:58.439 daily in support of 18 US army corps of 00:58.450 --> 01:01.279 engineer generators operating along the 01:01.290 --> 01:04.120 west coast of Maui . Meanwhile US 01:04.129 --> 01:06.073 Pacific fleet has deployed a three 01:06.073 --> 01:08.296 person mobile diving salvage unit which 01:08.296 --> 01:10.351 is scheduled to arrive later today . 01:10.559 --> 01:12.726 Also our coast guard partners continue 01:12.726 --> 01:14.448 their work minimizing maritime 01:14.448 --> 01:16.839 environmental impacts coast guardsmen . 01:16.849 --> 01:19.110 Recently partnered with Maui fire dive 01:19.120 --> 01:21.250 teams in Lahaina Harbor and that 01:21.260 --> 01:23.538 operation is scheduled to resume today . 01:24.260 --> 01:26.204 Separately . I also want to take a 01:26.204 --> 01:28.093 moment to highlight last Friday's 01:28.093 --> 01:29.927 announcement following President 01:29.927 --> 01:31.871 Biden's meeting at Camp David with 01:31.871 --> 01:33.760 Prime Minister Shida of Japan and 01:33.760 --> 01:36.038 President Nun of the Republic of Korea . 01:36.038 --> 01:37.871 As you all saw our three nations 01:37.871 --> 01:39.593 committed to several important 01:39.593 --> 01:41.816 agreements that will strengthen peace , 01:41.816 --> 01:44.038 peace and security for our people , the 01:44.038 --> 01:46.093 Indo Pacific region and the world on 01:46.093 --> 01:48.260 exercises . Our leaders committed to a 01:48.260 --> 01:50.316 multi year trilateral framework that 01:50.316 --> 01:52.538 includes annual multi domain trilateral 01:52.538 --> 01:54.538 exercises . And this follows recent 01:54.538 --> 01:56.760 successful trilateral ballistic missile 01:56.760 --> 01:58.704 defense and anti submarine warfare 01:58.704 --> 02:00.871 exercises . Among our three militaries 02:01.180 --> 02:03.124 on ballistic missile defense , our 02:03.124 --> 02:05.180 three countries will activate by the 02:05.180 --> 02:07.069 end of this year , a data sharing 02:07.069 --> 02:09.291 mechanism to exchange real time missile 02:09.291 --> 02:11.402 warning data that will improve mutual 02:11.402 --> 02:14.210 detection and assessment of D PR K 02:14.220 --> 02:16.690 missile launches . This follows the 02:16.699 --> 02:18.588 commitments that our leaders made 02:18.588 --> 02:21.369 together in November of last year as 02:21.380 --> 02:23.158 well as an important meeting by 02:23.158 --> 02:25.324 Secretary Austin with his Japanese and 02:25.324 --> 02:27.547 Rok counterparts in Singapore in July . 02:27.547 --> 02:30.720 This July or excuse me , this June on 02:30.729 --> 02:32.673 enhanced information sharing , our 02:32.673 --> 02:34.840 three countries will leverage existing 02:34.840 --> 02:36.951 secure lines of communications and we 02:36.951 --> 02:38.173 continue building and 02:38.173 --> 02:40.062 institutionalizing our respective 02:40.062 --> 02:42.007 communication channels . This will 02:42.007 --> 02:43.785 enhance our trilateral security 02:43.785 --> 02:45.896 cooperation in the region in the face 02:45.896 --> 02:47.729 of North Korean provocations and 02:47.729 --> 02:49.896 improve information sharing and policy 02:49.896 --> 02:51.929 coordination in the future . All of 02:51.940 --> 02:53.996 these agreements underscore that our 02:53.996 --> 02:56.051 relationships with Japan and the rok 02:56.051 --> 02:58.130 are stronger than ever . That's why 02:58.139 --> 03:00.139 Secretary Austin issued a statement 03:00.139 --> 03:02.306 last week celebrating what he called a 03:02.350 --> 03:04.979 historic day for the United States and 03:04.990 --> 03:07.589 two of our closest allies . And it's 03:07.600 --> 03:09.711 why the department is looking forward 03:09.711 --> 03:11.767 to continue to work closely with our 03:11.767 --> 03:13.767 Japanese and rok counterparts as we 03:13.767 --> 03:15.711 keep delivering results together . 03:15.820 --> 03:17.820 Finally , us , Indo Pacific Command 03:17.820 --> 03:21.139 concluded exercise Malabar 2023 03:21.149 --> 03:23.260 yesterday , which ran 10 through 21 . 03:23.260 --> 03:25.770 August . This annual exercise is a 03:25.779 --> 03:27.479 surface air and sub surface 03:27.490 --> 03:29.546 multilateral exercise with the Royal 03:29.546 --> 03:32.350 Australian Navy , Indian Navy , Japan 03:32.360 --> 03:34.639 Maritime Self Defense Force and the US 03:34.649 --> 03:37.039 Navy . This year's exercise was 03:37.050 --> 03:39.161 comprised of a harbor phase and a sea 03:39.161 --> 03:41.217 phase encompassing a wide variety of 03:41.217 --> 03:42.772 mission sets to develop the 03:42.772 --> 03:45.419 participants capabilities in integrated 03:45.429 --> 03:47.679 air and missile defense , combined 03:47.690 --> 03:49.679 undersea warfare , anti submarine 03:49.690 --> 03:52.020 warfare , combined strike , maritime 03:52.029 --> 03:54.140 interdiction operations , visit board 03:54.149 --> 03:56.205 search and seizure and combined live 03:56.205 --> 03:59.250 fire . Since 1992 exercise , Malabar 03:59.259 --> 04:01.699 has provided participating nations the 04:01.710 --> 04:03.877 opportunity to enhance and demonstrate 04:03.877 --> 04:06.099 interoperability while furthering peace 04:06.099 --> 04:07.988 and stability in the Indo Pacific 04:07.988 --> 04:10.229 region . If you have more questions on 04:10.240 --> 04:12.351 that or for more information , please 04:12.351 --> 04:14.296 reach out to us indo paycom public 04:14.296 --> 04:16.462 affairs with that . Happy to take your 04:16.462 --> 04:18.684 questions . We'll start with Associated 04:18.684 --> 04:21.730 Press on the line . Hi , General Ryder . 04:21.739 --> 04:24.660 Thanks for doing this . Um I was 04:24.670 --> 04:26.559 wondering if you could give us an 04:26.559 --> 04:28.559 update on the status of fighting in 04:28.559 --> 04:30.781 Ukraine's counteroffensive . We haven't 04:30.781 --> 04:33.149 heard much about that recently . Um Are 04:33.160 --> 04:35.216 there any concerns that there hasn't 04:35.216 --> 04:37.049 been a lot of progress or enough 04:37.049 --> 04:39.019 progress , especially as the 04:39.029 --> 04:41.251 administration has now put in a request 04:41.251 --> 04:43.940 for another $24 billion in aid to 04:43.950 --> 04:46.839 Ukraine . And then on a separate topic , 04:46.850 --> 04:49.899 um Maui , if uh you could give us any 04:49.910 --> 04:52.390 details on what the DP A team is doing 04:52.399 --> 04:54.621 on the ground , whether they're helping 04:54.621 --> 04:56.788 with collection or how they're helping 04:56.788 --> 04:58.843 with identification . Thanks a lot . 04:58.843 --> 05:00.899 Yeah , thanks Tara . Uh On the first 05:00.899 --> 05:02.843 question in terms of operations in 05:02.843 --> 05:04.955 Ukraine . Uh I'd I'd refer you to the 05:04.955 --> 05:06.843 Ukrainians really to go into more 05:06.843 --> 05:09.010 details on their specific operations , 05:09.010 --> 05:11.066 largely speaking . Uh We continue to 05:11.066 --> 05:13.288 see fighting all along the forward line 05:13.288 --> 05:15.510 of troops with the Ukrainians making uh 05:15.510 --> 05:18.320 some forward movement . And again , our 05:18.329 --> 05:20.440 focus is going to be on continuing to 05:20.440 --> 05:22.551 communicate closely with them and our 05:22.551 --> 05:24.773 allies and partners to ensure that they 05:24.773 --> 05:26.885 have what they need to continue to be 05:26.885 --> 05:28.996 able to defend their country and take 05:28.996 --> 05:31.040 back sovereign territory uh as it 05:31.049 --> 05:34.670 relates to Maui . Um as you probably 05:34.679 --> 05:38.649 heard on Friday , we had the um uh 05:38.660 --> 05:42.559 the joint task force 50 Commander 05:42.570 --> 05:46.359 provide a briefing uh in terms of what 05:46.369 --> 05:48.799 DPA A is being asked to provide . As I 05:48.809 --> 05:50.779 understand it , they are sending 05:50.790 --> 05:53.239 subject matter experts to assist uh the 05:53.250 --> 05:56.750 the civilian uh authorities there 05:57.299 --> 05:59.519 in terms of uh recovery ops and 05:59.529 --> 06:01.640 identification . Um But I'd refer you 06:01.640 --> 06:03.918 to them for , for more details on that . 06:03.918 --> 06:06.251 All right , let's go into the room here , 06:06.251 --> 06:08.790 sir . Hi , Pa Tucker didn't recognize 06:08.850 --> 06:10.906 you . I know . I know it very , very 06:10.906 --> 06:14.320 hard um , new uh profile out in the New 06:14.329 --> 06:17.160 Yorker on Elon Musk uh cooperates what 06:17.549 --> 06:19.605 the Wall Street Journal has reported 06:19.605 --> 06:21.771 over the summer . Basically , a lot of 06:21.771 --> 06:23.882 people around him uh suggest that his 06:23.882 --> 06:25.660 growing erratic behavior can be 06:25.660 --> 06:27.882 attributed to ketamine abuse . Is there 06:27.882 --> 06:29.882 going to be a review of Elon Musk's 06:29.882 --> 06:32.160 security clearance ? Yeah , thanks Pat . 06:32.160 --> 06:34.493 Um So a couple of things . First of all , 06:34.493 --> 06:37.109 um we're for privacy reasons . Uh you 06:37.119 --> 06:39.459 know , uh per policy , we don't discuss 06:39.470 --> 06:42.519 particular individuals . Um security 06:42.529 --> 06:44.799 clearances . I'd refer you to , to Mr 06:44.809 --> 06:47.087 Musk's company to , to talk about that . 06:47.119 --> 06:49.869 Um Broadly speaking , kind of behind 06:49.880 --> 06:52.559 your question is uh will the Department 06:52.570 --> 06:54.403 of Defense continue to work with 06:54.403 --> 06:57.230 companies like spacex ? Um I , what I 06:57.239 --> 06:59.350 would tell you is that we work with a 06:59.350 --> 07:01.517 wide variety of companies . Uh We have 07:01.517 --> 07:04.290 well developed processes and procedures 07:04.299 --> 07:06.521 uh to look at things like contracts and 07:06.521 --> 07:09.380 services uh that are person , uh 07:09.390 --> 07:11.730 independent , personality , independent . 07:11.739 --> 07:14.179 So , uh again , we'll continue to uh 07:14.190 --> 07:16.412 conduct business with a wide variety of 07:16.412 --> 07:18.579 partners in industry . I just leave it 07:18.579 --> 07:21.079 at that . Thank you very much . Thank 07:21.089 --> 07:23.160 you . Uh North Korea is planning a 07:23.170 --> 07:25.829 military satellite launch as early as 07:25.839 --> 07:28.500 this week . What is the , what is the 07:28.510 --> 07:31.519 level on concerns about this launch ? 07:31.750 --> 07:34.170 Yeah , thanks . So certainly seeing 07:34.179 --> 07:36.401 those reports I'm not going to get into 07:36.401 --> 07:38.709 specifics in terms of intelligence on , 07:38.720 --> 07:40.942 on what we may or may not be tracking . 07:40.942 --> 07:43.130 I will say that as always , we will 07:43.140 --> 07:45.859 stand with our Japanese and our Rok 07:45.869 --> 07:48.529 allies in the face of North Korea's 07:48.540 --> 07:50.950 continued provocations to include their 07:51.119 --> 07:54.079 claimed space program . So we're going 07:54.089 --> 07:55.978 to take all necessary measures to 07:55.978 --> 07:57.756 ensure that the security of our 07:57.756 --> 07:59.922 homeland and the defense of our allies 07:59.922 --> 08:02.329 continues and we will continue working 08:02.339 --> 08:05.809 closely with Japan and Rok to promote 08:05.820 --> 08:07.931 peace , security and stability in the 08:07.931 --> 08:10.098 region are preparing a strong response 08:10.098 --> 08:13.119 to such including the additional assets 08:13.160 --> 08:15.271 to the region . Again , I'm not going 08:15.271 --> 08:17.140 to get ahead of any particular 08:17.230 --> 08:19.619 potential response . Other than to say 08:19.630 --> 08:21.630 again , we as always will remain in 08:21.630 --> 08:24.140 close contact with our Japanese and Rok 08:24.149 --> 08:26.739 allies . Thank you very much . OK , and 08:26.750 --> 08:30.630 go to the other Rio . So in 08:30.640 --> 08:32.862 June , Pentagon said North Korea's Sair 08:32.862 --> 08:34.950 plant is a clear violation of Un 08:34.960 --> 08:38.880 Security Council . So I can I 08:38.890 --> 08:41.150 ask your stance on potential North 08:41.159 --> 08:45.020 Korea's ? Well , I just answered that 08:45.030 --> 08:47.086 question again , I I am not going to 08:47.086 --> 08:49.141 get into at this point other than to 08:49.141 --> 08:51.719 say again , where those reports will 08:51.729 --> 08:54.039 continue to remain in close contact and 08:54.049 --> 08:56.105 communication with our allies in the 08:56.105 --> 08:58.160 region . Thank you very much . Thank 08:58.160 --> 09:00.160 you . I have two questions . I mean 09:00.160 --> 09:02.160 previously , when , when Ukrainians 09:02.160 --> 09:04.216 were able to push Russians away from 09:04.216 --> 09:06.271 Kiev , the Pentagon was very keen on 09:06.271 --> 09:08.271 sharing information and perspective 09:08.271 --> 09:10.327 from this building on how successful 09:10.327 --> 09:14.065 the the defense of was . Um 09:14.395 --> 09:16.304 Now you always refer us to the 09:16.315 --> 09:18.984 Ukrainians . However , the US American 09:18.994 --> 09:22.065 taxpayers putting big money to help 09:22.075 --> 09:24.297 Ukrainians in this fight . What is your 09:24.297 --> 09:26.715 assessment of the counter offensive so 09:26.724 --> 09:28.891 far ? Have you seen any breakthrough ? 09:28.965 --> 09:31.104 And is it succeeding in achieving its 09:31.114 --> 09:33.336 goals ? That's the first question . The 09:33.336 --> 09:35.392 second question is on , is there any 09:35.392 --> 09:37.724 contingency planning in the Pentagon uh 09:37.734 --> 09:41.590 for maybe future 09:41.599 --> 09:44.210 decision to pull out troops ? And is 09:44.219 --> 09:46.380 there any talks with partners in , in 09:46.390 --> 09:49.039 on the continent in Africa to find 09:49.049 --> 09:51.559 other alternatives in the counter 09:51.570 --> 09:53.681 terrorism operation ? Yeah , thanks . 09:54.289 --> 09:56.289 Um So a couple of things there . So 09:56.289 --> 09:59.099 first of all , when it comes to Ukraine , 09:59.109 --> 10:01.331 um and , and I mean , this with all due 10:01.331 --> 10:03.409 respect , I'm a US Department of 10:03.419 --> 10:05.641 Defense spokesperson . So I'm not gonna 10:05.641 --> 10:07.863 provide an operational update from this 10:07.863 --> 10:10.929 podium on Ukrainian combat operations . 10:10.940 --> 10:12.773 Other than to say again , we are 10:12.773 --> 10:14.884 committed to supporting them in their 10:14.884 --> 10:16.969 fight . Uh We've said from the very 10:16.979 --> 10:19.035 beginning that this is going to be a 10:19.035 --> 10:21.950 very tough and difficult uh operation 10:21.960 --> 10:25.169 and a difficult fight for them . Um And , 10:25.179 --> 10:27.179 and I know you've heard me say this 10:27.179 --> 10:29.068 before , but Secretary Austin has 10:29.068 --> 10:31.068 highlighted the fact that this is a 10:31.068 --> 10:33.068 marathon and it's not a sprint . So 10:33.068 --> 10:35.179 there should be no uh illusions about 10:35.179 --> 10:37.940 that . That fact , I will also say uh 10:37.950 --> 10:41.400 that that this is a Ukrainian operation . 10:41.409 --> 10:43.465 They are leading it . Uh , our , our 10:43.465 --> 10:45.687 focus is on supporting them in terms of 10:45.687 --> 10:47.809 what they need to be successful . 10:48.099 --> 10:50.440 Because the implications if Ukraine is 10:50.450 --> 10:53.200 not successful transcend just Ukraine , 10:53.210 --> 10:55.599 it has implications for Europe and the 10:55.609 --> 10:58.520 world when it comes to Russia's 10:58.530 --> 11:01.239 unprovoked invasion . The last thing 11:01.250 --> 11:03.472 I'll say on this and , and , you know , 11:03.472 --> 11:05.194 I think it's very important to 11:05.194 --> 11:07.417 understand and I know that , you know , 11:07.417 --> 11:10.099 this , um , having watched and , and 11:10.109 --> 11:11.887 observed and reported on combat 11:11.887 --> 11:14.429 operations around the world is that 11:14.440 --> 11:16.329 combat by its very nature is very 11:16.329 --> 11:18.273 dynamic . It's very fluid and it's 11:18.273 --> 11:20.107 unpredictable and any student of 11:20.107 --> 11:23.450 history would know uh that um the 11:23.460 --> 11:25.682 battle is not over until it's over . Uh 11:25.682 --> 11:28.020 And so our focus is going to continue 11:28.030 --> 11:30.700 to be , as I've said on helping them uh 11:30.710 --> 11:33.260 have the training and the equipment and 11:33.270 --> 11:35.381 the resources they need to be able to 11:35.381 --> 11:37.530 be victorious on the battlefield to 11:37.539 --> 11:39.483 defend their country and take back 11:39.483 --> 11:41.650 sovereign territory . So I'm not gonna 11:41.650 --> 11:43.650 get into providing scores uh in the 11:43.650 --> 11:45.820 middle of their fight again , that 11:45.830 --> 11:47.830 would be inappropriate . What we're 11:47.830 --> 11:50.052 gonna do is we're gonna keep supporting 11:50.052 --> 11:52.108 them for as long as it takes on . Um 11:52.979 --> 11:55.146 You know , look , uh we are a planning 11:55.146 --> 11:57.257 organization , I'm not gonna get into 11:57.257 --> 12:00.729 specifics of any potential actual or um 12:00.750 --> 12:02.806 speculate on any future plan . I say 12:02.806 --> 12:05.280 that's , that's what we do . Um We are 12:05.289 --> 12:08.099 an organization that uh plans and 12:08.109 --> 12:09.831 prepares for a wide variety of 12:09.831 --> 12:11.998 contingencies as of right now . Uh The 12:11.998 --> 12:15.030 number of us forces uh that we have in 12:15.690 --> 12:17.579 remain the same . There's been no 12:17.579 --> 12:20.000 change in our force posture broadly 12:20.010 --> 12:22.066 speaking , the US government remains 12:22.066 --> 12:24.380 focused on diplomacy and that will 12:24.390 --> 12:27.369 continue to be our , our focus . Uh And , 12:27.409 --> 12:29.700 and uh if we have any updates to 12:29.710 --> 12:31.543 provide on the dod front , we'll 12:31.543 --> 12:33.877 certainly do that . Thank you very much . 12:33.877 --> 12:35.988 Let me go to or , and then I'll go to 12:35.988 --> 12:38.154 the phone . Uh I just wanted to update 12:38.154 --> 12:40.266 on , on Travis King first . Has there 12:40.266 --> 12:39.669 been any additional communication with 12:39.679 --> 12:41.846 the North Koreans , either through the 12:41.846 --> 12:43.957 US or through UN command about Travis 12:43.957 --> 12:46.068 King ? And as of the last check , his 12:46.068 --> 12:48.179 status was a but if you're a for more 12:48.179 --> 12:50.235 than 30 days , you're a deserter and 12:50.235 --> 12:52.235 you're dropped from the rolls . Has 12:52.235 --> 12:51.229 that happened ? And has there been a 12:51.239 --> 12:53.350 decision made on whether to designate 12:53.350 --> 12:56.219 king ? A pow ? Yeah , thanks or so , um 12:56.229 --> 12:58.285 the , the army can certainly provide 12:58.285 --> 13:00.729 you more detail and uh in terms of his 13:00.739 --> 13:02.850 status , I will tell you , uh there's 13:02.850 --> 13:05.500 been no change in status for private 13:05.510 --> 13:09.119 king right now . Um And um you know , 13:09.130 --> 13:12.710 tho those uh regulations that you refer 13:12.719 --> 13:16.510 to are regulations that pertain to 13:16.719 --> 13:18.830 your normal situation . This is not a 13:18.830 --> 13:21.359 normal situation clearly . So from a 13:21.369 --> 13:23.599 dod , from a US government standpoint , 13:23.609 --> 13:26.830 our focus remains on the safety and 13:26.840 --> 13:29.429 security of private king and trying to 13:29.440 --> 13:32.200 get him home . Um , but , you know , 13:32.210 --> 13:34.321 again , I'd refer to the army to talk 13:34.321 --> 13:36.210 about his , uh , specifics from a 13:36.210 --> 13:39.200 personnel status going forward . Um , 13:39.210 --> 13:41.359 we have not , uh , I don't have any 13:41.369 --> 13:43.313 updates to provide in terms of any 13:43.313 --> 13:45.258 communication , not nothing new to 13:45.258 --> 13:47.480 report on that front , but again , uh , 13:47.480 --> 13:49.536 we will continue to do everything we 13:49.536 --> 13:51.480 can to , to , uh , learn about his 13:51.480 --> 13:54.640 status and bring him home safely . Is a 13:54.650 --> 13:58.650 pow or not a again . Um I refer to the 13:58.659 --> 14:00.770 army but right now his status has not 14:00.770 --> 14:02.992 changed . Ok . All right . Let me go to 14:02.992 --> 14:05.048 the phone here real quick . And then 14:05.048 --> 14:07.103 I'll come to Tony . Uh wait , Mike , 14:07.103 --> 14:08.992 you're in the room here . It says 14:08.992 --> 14:12.099 you're on the phone . So , wow . All 14:12.109 --> 14:14.276 right . Well , let me go to Carl Bab . 14:14.276 --> 14:16.331 Then who's on the phone ? Vo A Hey , 14:16.331 --> 14:18.750 thanks Pat . Um So the Pentagon this 14:18.760 --> 14:20.816 week had said that it would consider 14:20.816 --> 14:23.320 training Ukrainian pilots stateside on 14:23.330 --> 14:25.219 F-16s if the training capacity is 14:25.219 --> 14:27.386 reached in Europe , uh can you tell us 14:27.386 --> 14:29.608 what locations are being considered for 14:29.608 --> 14:31.608 training F-16 pilots here ? And can 14:31.608 --> 14:33.719 video journalists have access to this 14:33.719 --> 14:35.941 training ? And then I , I have one more 14:35.941 --> 14:38.052 question . Also . Uh can the Pentagon 14:38.052 --> 14:40.274 confirm that Russian military deaths in 14:40.274 --> 14:42.497 the war against Ukraine are now as many 14:42.497 --> 14:45.075 as 100 and 20,000 troops and that the 14:45.085 --> 14:47.724 Ukrainian figures are closer to 70,000 14:47.734 --> 14:49.845 deaths on the Ukrainian side . That's 14:49.845 --> 14:51.901 what the new York Times is reporting 14:51.901 --> 14:54.400 from US officials . Thanks . Yeah , 14:54.409 --> 14:56.353 thanks , Carla on , on your second 14:56.353 --> 14:58.580 question as it pertains to casualties . 14:58.590 --> 15:00.534 Um I , I don't have any numbers to 15:00.534 --> 15:03.000 provide . Clearly this , this war has 15:03.010 --> 15:05.419 uh resulted in significant casualties 15:05.429 --> 15:07.485 on both sides , but I , I just don't 15:07.485 --> 15:09.707 have any numbers to pass along um as it 15:09.707 --> 15:13.609 relates to um Ukrainian pilot 15:13.950 --> 15:17.679 uh F-16 training in the US . Um 15:17.919 --> 15:20.700 We are prepared to support a training 15:20.710 --> 15:22.821 effort here in the continental United 15:22.821 --> 15:26.000 States . Uh If capacity is reached in 15:26.010 --> 15:28.299 Europe , um I don't have any specifics 15:28.309 --> 15:30.476 to provide right now in terms of which 15:30.476 --> 15:32.698 bases that training could occur at . Um 15:32.698 --> 15:34.920 But certainly , if the decision is made 15:34.920 --> 15:37.087 to do that and we move forward , we'll 15:37.087 --> 15:39.253 be sure to provide you with updates on 15:39.253 --> 15:42.289 that . Ok . Let me go to Nancy . I 15:42.299 --> 15:44.243 wanted to follow up on a couple of 15:44.243 --> 15:46.466 things you said earlier . You mentioned 15:46.466 --> 15:48.743 that there are eight specific missions . 15:48.743 --> 15:50.966 Um And Maui can you , can we get a list 15:50.966 --> 15:53.299 of those ? Absolutely . Um Yeah , there , 15:53.299 --> 15:55.840 there's quite a few . Um Well , let me 15:55.849 --> 15:57.960 just go ahead and , and read them out 15:57.960 --> 16:00.016 for you here right now . Um So we've 16:00.016 --> 16:01.682 got um establishing a defense 16:01.682 --> 16:03.682 Coordinating element office , Inter 16:03.682 --> 16:06.190 Island Air Sea Transportation , um 16:06.200 --> 16:09.349 providing scofield barracks and Oahu to 16:09.359 --> 16:12.520 assist with um federal responders . So 16:12.530 --> 16:14.586 things like billeting life support , 16:14.586 --> 16:16.808 hygiene , uh strategic transportation , 16:16.808 --> 16:19.000 aerial fire suppression capabilities , 16:19.210 --> 16:23.059 uh FEMA incident support base at uh 16:23.099 --> 16:26.289 uh uh fuel dis 16:26.419 --> 16:28.475 operations in support of the US Army 16:28.475 --> 16:30.530 Corps of Engineers and then mortuary 16:30.530 --> 16:32.641 fair support . Thank you . And then , 16:32.641 --> 16:34.859 um , can you tell us how many times 16:34.869 --> 16:37.091 Secretary Austin , top civilian leaders 16:37.091 --> 16:40.590 here have spoken to , um , the governor , 16:40.599 --> 16:44.000 um , quite about supporting , um , 16:44.440 --> 16:47.159 their efforts . Sure . Um , so , uh , 16:47.169 --> 16:51.099 shortly after the president 16:51.109 --> 16:53.331 declared it a federal emergency shortly 16:53.331 --> 16:55.619 after the wildfires , uh , the 16:55.630 --> 16:57.463 secretary spoke with both of the 16:57.463 --> 17:00.090 senators . Uh , and then last week , 17:00.099 --> 17:01.988 the deputy secretary spoke to the 17:01.988 --> 17:04.266 governor and I wanna come back to , um , 17:04.266 --> 17:07.050 Pat's question about um , Elon Musk . 17:07.060 --> 17:10.020 You said that um , any review of his 17:10.030 --> 17:13.810 classification is um private , but um 17:13.819 --> 17:15.763 it's not classified whether he has 17:15.763 --> 17:17.819 security clearance . And I wonder if 17:17.819 --> 17:19.819 you would take the question to just 17:19.819 --> 17:21.541 answer whether he has security 17:21.541 --> 17:23.430 clearance on what level given how 17:23.430 --> 17:25.597 extensive um SpaceX contracts are with 17:25.597 --> 17:27.597 the US government . I will take the 17:27.597 --> 17:29.652 question . Thank you very much . All 17:29.652 --> 17:31.819 right . Let me go back to the , well , 17:31.819 --> 17:31.798 let me go back to the phone room here , 17:31.808 --> 17:35.069 Mike Washington examiner . Did you have 17:35.079 --> 17:37.301 a question ? I'm Washington Times . Not 17:37.301 --> 17:39.301 the Washington examiner you talking 17:39.301 --> 17:42.599 about ? Is that Mike Bres ? I apologize . 17:42.609 --> 17:44.831 We are two different people . I do have 17:44.831 --> 17:47.053 a question though . Tell me , can you , 17:47.053 --> 17:49.220 what does the administration think the 17:49.220 --> 17:51.331 long term implications of the F-16 uh 17:51.331 --> 17:54.160 delivery to Ukraine is gonna be ? What , 17:54.170 --> 17:56.959 what's the ultimate uh uh long term 17:56.969 --> 17:59.119 goal that the Pentagon wants out of 17:59.130 --> 18:02.650 this in terms of for Ukraine . 18:03.079 --> 18:05.390 Yeah . So when , when the decision was 18:05.400 --> 18:08.209 announced in May , uh in terms of 18:08.219 --> 18:12.020 providing Ukraine with the F-16 , um we 18:12.030 --> 18:14.086 highlighted that this is part of our 18:14.086 --> 18:16.619 long term commitment to Ukraine's uh 18:16.630 --> 18:20.140 security and defense . And so , um 18:20.540 --> 18:22.969 I mean , we , we have clearly a focus 18:22.979 --> 18:24.989 on the near term the battlefield 18:25.000 --> 18:28.689 situation , uh which is what our PDAs 18:28.699 --> 18:30.890 and USA I have really been focused on 18:31.050 --> 18:33.859 uh the F-16 is really intended to be 18:33.869 --> 18:35.980 part of that longer term commitment . 18:36.489 --> 18:38.489 Ok . Now , let me go to Mike Breast 18:38.489 --> 18:41.300 Washington examiner and uh I apologize , 18:41.310 --> 18:44.079 Mike . Not a problem , not the first 18:44.089 --> 18:46.200 time it's happened . Uh I'm hoping to 18:46.200 --> 18:49.719 get an update on uh Russia's attempts 18:49.729 --> 18:52.530 to build Iranian drones in Russian 18:52.540 --> 18:55.260 territory . Uh We've heard that that it 18:55.270 --> 18:56.937 could be operational or fully 18:56.937 --> 18:59.219 operational by early next year . Uh Has 18:59.229 --> 19:01.489 dog seen them already begin to produce 19:01.500 --> 19:04.280 drones ? Yeah . Thanks for the , the 19:04.290 --> 19:06.290 question , Mike . I'm gonna , I , I 19:06.290 --> 19:08.512 don't want to uh give you some bad data 19:08.512 --> 19:10.512 here . So let me , let me take that 19:10.512 --> 19:12.679 question and we'll come back to you on 19:12.679 --> 19:14.734 that . We do know uh as we've spoken 19:14.734 --> 19:17.069 about before , uh that Iran and Russia 19:17.180 --> 19:19.347 uh clearly have a relationship when it 19:19.347 --> 19:21.458 comes to , to drones . We've seen the 19:21.458 --> 19:23.291 Iranian drones being used on the 19:23.291 --> 19:25.347 battlefield . Uh But let me , let me 19:25.347 --> 19:27.650 come back to you with that . Thank you . 19:27.770 --> 19:31.739 OK , Janie . And then we'll go excuse 19:31.750 --> 19:34.790 me on North Korea regarding the North 19:34.800 --> 19:38.400 Korean leader Kim Jong Un's reaction to 19:38.410 --> 19:42.000 the camp . The three other summit 19:42.010 --> 19:44.130 talks , North Korea Kim jong-un 19:44.140 --> 19:47.925 mentions they preempted use of nuclear 19:47.935 --> 19:50.645 weapons saying that the specific 19:50.655 --> 19:54.364 discussions for provoking nuclear war 19:54.494 --> 19:56.645 had taken place at the 19:58.334 --> 20:01.194 summit . What do you think about the 20:01.204 --> 20:04.795 North Korea's preemptive use of nuclear 20:04.805 --> 20:08.030 weapons ? Well , again , uh our , our 20:08.040 --> 20:11.510 focus is on security and stability in 20:11.520 --> 20:14.209 the Indo Pacific region uh ensuring 20:14.219 --> 20:16.680 that , that we can work together for 20:16.689 --> 20:20.030 our mutual defense . Um And so any 20:20.109 --> 20:23.020 exercises , any summits are predicated 20:23.030 --> 20:26.069 towards those efforts . Um The 20:26.079 --> 20:28.060 provocative language coming out of 20:28.069 --> 20:30.125 North Korea is of course dangerous . 20:30.125 --> 20:33.199 And as you've heard this building and 20:33.209 --> 20:35.431 others to include the White House say , 20:35.431 --> 20:38.489 we certainly would be willing to engage 20:38.500 --> 20:40.556 in dialogue with North Korea with no 20:40.556 --> 20:43.349 preconditions . And so we'll continue 20:43.359 --> 20:45.530 to maintain that stance . But to this 20:45.540 --> 20:47.873 point , they have not agreed to do that , 20:47.873 --> 20:50.420 but North Korea warned that it would 20:50.430 --> 20:54.079 take a physical response if the 20:54.089 --> 20:57.800 US , reconnaissance aircraft crosses 20:58.199 --> 21:02.150 the economic zones , how again the 21:02.160 --> 21:04.390 US will continue to fly , operate and 21:04.400 --> 21:07.130 sail in international airspace and 21:07.140 --> 21:09.029 waters wherever international law 21:09.029 --> 21:11.479 allows . So let me go ahead and move on . 21:11.510 --> 21:15.430 Yes , ma'am . So another North Korea 21:15.439 --> 21:18.550 question here , um North Korea has 21:18.560 --> 21:20.671 threatened , they are going to launch 21:20.671 --> 21:23.619 an ICBM this week but during last 21:23.630 --> 21:25.819 week's trilateral , there was where 21:25.829 --> 21:27.940 they state there is a hotline that is 21:27.940 --> 21:30.920 going to be set up . The first one is , 21:30.930 --> 21:33.189 has the hotline already been set up 21:33.199 --> 21:35.760 since this North Korea has already 21:35.770 --> 21:38.040 stated that they were threatening to 21:38.050 --> 21:40.810 launch a missile . And number two , how 21:40.819 --> 21:43.041 would it work in a scenario like this ? 21:44.180 --> 21:46.347 Yeah , and well , clearly , you know , 21:46.347 --> 21:48.569 as it relates to the , the items that I 21:48.569 --> 21:50.569 read out at the top , we'll , we'll 21:50.569 --> 21:52.791 have more details to follow uh on those 21:52.791 --> 21:55.013 in the days ahead . Uh How does it work 21:55.013 --> 21:57.124 right now ? Uh We have multiple means 21:57.124 --> 21:59.236 of communication with uh the Republic 21:59.236 --> 22:01.458 of Korea and Japan and our other allies 22:01.458 --> 22:03.750 in the region . Uh and so maintaining 22:03.760 --> 22:05.927 those and , and many of those are long 22:05.927 --> 22:08.149 standing . Um But as you heard me say , 22:08.149 --> 22:10.316 you know , the , the intent here is to 22:10.316 --> 22:12.619 ensure that we can um increase and 22:12.630 --> 22:15.010 expedite any communication in the , in 22:15.020 --> 22:17.839 the event that there is a potential 22:17.849 --> 22:20.469 crisis situation , most notably from a 22:20.479 --> 22:22.689 trilateral standpoint , uh which I 22:22.699 --> 22:24.709 think is , is significant . So , uh 22:24.719 --> 22:26.886 again , we'll have more details in the 22:26.886 --> 22:29.163 days ahead . Thank you very much . Yes , 22:29.163 --> 22:31.163 sir . Uh Returning to the F-16s , I 22:31.170 --> 22:33.226 know a lot of the work that's taking 22:33.226 --> 22:35.448 place right now is going on in Europe . 22:35.448 --> 22:37.559 So I just wanted to step back and ask 22:37.559 --> 22:39.614 what the administration's role right 22:39.614 --> 22:41.837 now is in that process . Uh Sure . So a 22:41.837 --> 22:43.892 couple of things , first of all , we 22:43.892 --> 22:46.130 are very grateful to our European 22:46.140 --> 22:48.469 allies , Denmark and the Netherlands uh 22:48.479 --> 22:50.829 in particular for leading this effort . 22:50.839 --> 22:54.390 And so , because this is a US system , 22:54.680 --> 22:57.209 uh there are certain uh laws and , and 22:57.219 --> 22:59.380 regulations in place in terms of how 22:59.390 --> 23:01.979 that equipment can be used uh by third 23:01.989 --> 23:04.250 parties . And so , uh as you recently 23:04.260 --> 23:06.219 saw State Department uh publicly 23:06.229 --> 23:09.329 announce uh our intent to support any 23:09.339 --> 23:11.172 requests . So that's part of the 23:11.172 --> 23:13.228 process . Um Again , we'll have much 23:13.228 --> 23:15.339 more details to provide in the future 23:15.339 --> 23:17.395 as uh Denmark and the Netherlands uh 23:17.395 --> 23:20.609 kick off this program . And um we'll , 23:20.619 --> 23:22.841 we'll be able to illuminate some of our 23:22.841 --> 23:24.786 additional support on that front . 23:24.786 --> 23:26.952 Thank you . Ok . Time for a few more . 23:26.952 --> 23:28.786 Yes , sir . Yeah . Um I was just 23:28.786 --> 23:31.008 curious , you said that the Coast Guard 23:31.008 --> 23:30.640 is working to mitigate environmental 23:30.650 --> 23:32.761 impacts . What exactly are they doing 23:32.761 --> 23:34.983 and what impacts is dod concerned about 23:35.020 --> 23:37.131 in terms of the environment and why ? 23:37.131 --> 23:39.187 Yeah . So I'd , I'd refer you to the 23:39.187 --> 23:41.353 Coast Guard to speak uh uh about their 23:41.353 --> 23:43.131 efforts broadly speaking , as I 23:43.131 --> 23:46.589 understand it uh given the uh the scope 23:46.599 --> 23:49.099 of the disaster and , and how that 23:49.109 --> 23:52.000 impacted the harbor there . Um You know , 23:52.010 --> 23:54.288 clearly you had some vessels that were , 23:54.288 --> 23:56.670 were damaged . Um And , and again , I 23:56.680 --> 23:58.791 don't want to speculate and just make 23:58.791 --> 24:00.847 things up from the podium here , but 24:00.847 --> 24:02.847 they're going to be looking at that 24:02.847 --> 24:04.958 from an environmental safety , from a 24:04.958 --> 24:07.069 human safety standpoint . Um which as 24:07.069 --> 24:09.124 I'm sure you can appreciate would be 24:09.124 --> 24:11.347 significant given the importance of any 24:11.347 --> 24:13.458 harbor . Uh So , but I'd refer you to 24:13.458 --> 24:15.680 them . Let me go to Tony on the Persian 24:15.680 --> 24:17.979 issue . What's the status of us os D 24:17.989 --> 24:20.100 policy review in terms of whether the 24:20.100 --> 24:21.989 secretary is going to sign off on 24:21.989 --> 24:25.020 allowing marines and sailors to go on 24:25.030 --> 24:26.920 commercial vessels if requested ? 24:27.130 --> 24:29.186 Thanks , Tony . So I don't , I don't 24:29.186 --> 24:31.130 have anything to announce today in 24:31.130 --> 24:33.520 terms of any changes to our force 24:33.530 --> 24:35.880 posture in the Middle East . Uh Nor do 24:35.890 --> 24:38.229 I want to get into or speculate about 24:38.239 --> 24:40.719 potential uh areas that are under 24:40.729 --> 24:43.359 consideration . Um Or , or that are 24:43.369 --> 24:46.380 precision could commit to announce if 24:46.390 --> 24:48.446 in fact , the secretary signs off on 24:48.446 --> 24:50.510 such an a policy to announce that 24:50.520 --> 24:53.170 publicly , I think if there's anything 24:53.180 --> 24:55.013 significant from a force posture 24:55.013 --> 24:57.199 standpoint , uh you know , within the 24:57.209 --> 24:59.380 bounds of operation security , uh We 24:59.390 --> 25:01.557 will certainly look to keep the public 25:01.557 --> 25:03.723 informed on the New Yorker article . I 25:03.723 --> 25:05.890 don't want to hype it up too much here 25:05.890 --> 25:07.890 but buried in there is a discussion 25:07.890 --> 25:11.020 Colin Colin had with Musk about the 25:11.030 --> 25:13.719 need to , to get spacex O contract to 25:13.729 --> 25:16.050 provide Starling for Ukraine . So they 25:16.060 --> 25:18.060 just couldn't pull out , you know , 25:18.060 --> 25:19.782 summarily the the contract was 25:19.782 --> 25:21.893 announced in June , you guys have not 25:21.893 --> 25:24.060 announced any details of even the cost 25:24.060 --> 25:26.329 of it . Uh The the of it . Can you give 25:26.339 --> 25:28.450 some kind of detail in terms of , you 25:28.450 --> 25:30.339 know , bound the dollars at least 25:30.339 --> 25:32.450 involved ? Yeah , thanks Tony . I , I 25:32.450 --> 25:34.561 do appreciate the question . Um And , 25:34.561 --> 25:36.339 and in this particular case for 25:36.339 --> 25:38.561 operation security reasons , we're just 25:38.561 --> 25:40.810 really not able to go into details 25:40.819 --> 25:42.986 about this particular contract as , as 25:42.986 --> 25:45.439 you know , um , satellite communication 25:45.449 --> 25:47.689 is an important aspect of the fight 25:47.699 --> 25:49.921 that's occurring in Ukraine right now . 25:49.921 --> 25:53.439 Um And we are working with 25:53.449 --> 25:55.540 Starlink and others , of course , on 25:55.550 --> 25:57.606 that front , but I just not gonna be 25:57.606 --> 25:59.890 able to , I got one , there's one quote 25:59.900 --> 26:02.839 in this article by Ronan Farrow that if 26:02.849 --> 26:04.905 it's true , it's somewhat outrageous 26:04.905 --> 26:06.905 and I need you to rent to this . He 26:06.905 --> 26:09.127 said , one Pentagon spokesman said that 26:09.127 --> 26:11.071 he was keeping Musk apprised of my 26:11.071 --> 26:13.293 inquiries about his role in Ukraine and 26:13.293 --> 26:15.127 would grant an interview with an 26:15.127 --> 26:17.127 official about the matter only with 26:17.127 --> 26:19.349 Musk's permission . Yeah , well , might 26:19.349 --> 26:21.571 have said that , yeah , as a , as a dod 26:21.579 --> 26:23.912 spokesperson , uh , I think that's , uh , 26:24.030 --> 26:26.560 ludicrous , um , the anonymous 26:26.569 --> 26:28.839 spokesperson , uh , is not speaking on 26:28.849 --> 26:30.960 behalf of the Department of Defense . 26:30.960 --> 26:33.238 That's not the way we do business . Uh , 26:33.238 --> 26:35.460 we make our own determinations in terms 26:35.460 --> 26:37.516 of the release of information to the 26:37.516 --> 26:40.199 public . Uh , and so , um , that , that 26:40.209 --> 26:43.180 is patently false statement is false 26:43.189 --> 26:45.599 and he's making , this is not true that 26:45.609 --> 26:47.276 that is not the policy of the 26:47.276 --> 26:49.479 Department of Defense . Um , you all 26:49.489 --> 26:51.489 work with us here on a , on a daily 26:51.489 --> 26:53.656 basis and know that that's not the way 26:53.656 --> 26:55.719 we operate and , and , um , uh , an 26:55.729 --> 26:57.869 individual , um , that you're 26:57.880 --> 26:59.824 referencing is not going to make a 26:59.824 --> 27:01.880 determination on whether we do or do 27:01.880 --> 27:04.300 not answer questions . That does that 27:04.310 --> 27:06.790 answer . This is award winning 27:06.800 --> 27:09.410 journalist and I , I can't speak to his 27:09.420 --> 27:11.839 sources . I'm just , yeah , and the New 27:11.849 --> 27:14.071 Yorker fact checks the living daylights 27:14.071 --> 27:16.293 out of there . They're reporters that's 27:16.293 --> 27:18.349 good for them . So when I saw this , 27:18.349 --> 27:20.571 you know , this is fairly outrageous if 27:20.571 --> 27:22.793 it's true . And I'm asking if you did , 27:22.793 --> 27:24.793 you canvass your eyes , your people 27:24.793 --> 27:26.960 saying , did anybody say this to him ? 27:26.960 --> 27:29.016 Um I did not canvass my guys , but I 27:29.016 --> 27:30.627 can tell you as the Pentagon 27:30.627 --> 27:32.516 spokesperson that that is not our 27:32.516 --> 27:34.682 policy and that person is not speaking 27:34.682 --> 27:36.960 on behalf of the Department of Defense . 27:36.960 --> 27:39.127 There's a lot of people in the dod , I 27:39.127 --> 27:41.293 don't know who it is . I don't know if 27:41.293 --> 27:43.405 it's real . I'm not gonna question uh 27:43.405 --> 27:45.682 this particular reporter . Uh You know , 27:45.682 --> 27:47.905 I , but I will tell you right here from 27:47.905 --> 27:49.905 this podium that that is uh not our 27:49.905 --> 27:52.016 policy and that person's not speaking 27:52.016 --> 27:54.071 for the dod , whoever that is . Ok . 27:54.099 --> 27:57.339 And you had a , you , you just uh on 27:57.349 --> 28:00.510 the point about um us troops going on 28:00.520 --> 28:02.742 um civilian ships in the Persian Gulf . 28:02.742 --> 28:04.576 He said , if there's significant 28:04.576 --> 28:06.687 movement on that , it strikes me that 28:06.687 --> 28:08.798 any us personnel on the civilian ship 28:08.798 --> 28:08.439 would be significant . So I just want 28:08.449 --> 28:10.449 to make the plea for any release if 28:10.449 --> 28:12.671 that happens however small , the number 28:12.819 --> 28:14.979 of appreciate that Thank you . All 28:14.989 --> 28:17.119 right , do uh one more here , Heather 28:17.130 --> 28:20.089 from us . And I , I also wanted to ask 28:20.099 --> 28:23.170 about the , the marines out there . Uh 28:23.180 --> 28:25.430 Can you tell us , you know , if they're 28:25.439 --> 28:27.606 not going on the ships right now ? Are 28:27.606 --> 28:29.661 they , is their presence alone being 28:29.661 --> 28:31.883 any kind of deterrent ? Do you have any 28:31.883 --> 28:34.106 information about what is going on with 28:34.106 --> 28:36.217 those marines ? Um , or anything that 28:36.217 --> 28:38.272 you can say it's an update on a , on 28:38.272 --> 28:40.328 the force posture right now ? Yeah , 28:40.328 --> 28:42.606 thanks Heather . Um So , you know , we , 28:42.606 --> 28:45.449 we recently announced uh the arrival of 28:45.459 --> 28:48.369 the amphibious readiness group uh and 28:48.380 --> 28:50.547 the marine expeditionary unit uh which 28:50.547 --> 28:52.380 you're tracking . Um But for any 28:52.380 --> 28:54.269 further details , in terms of the 28:54.269 --> 28:56.547 individual dispositions of those units , 28:56.709 --> 28:58.890 um I , I'd refer you to NASA and they 28:58.900 --> 29:01.067 should be able to give you an update . 29:01.067 --> 29:03.067 Ok ? Thanks very much , everybody . 29:03.067 --> 29:02.869 Appreciate it .