Pentagon Press Secretary Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder Holds a Press BriefingReadout of Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III's Call With Ukrainian Minister of Defense Rustem[...]

PENTAGON PRESS SECRETARY MAJOR GENERAL PAT RYDER: All right. Good afternoon, everyone. Just a few things at the top and then we'll get right to your questions. First up, US Central Command forces executed a series of precise airstrikes November 9 through 10 on multiple Houthi weapons storage facilities situated within Houthi controlled territories in Yemen.

These facilities housed a variety of advanced conventional weapons used by the Iran backed Houthis to target U.S. and international military and civilian vessels navigating international waters in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden. The operation involved US Air Force and US Navy assets to include F-35C fighter aircraft.

This targeted operation was conducted in response to the Houthis repeated and unlawful attacks on international commercial shipping as well as U.S. coalition and merchant vessels in the Red Sea, Bab Al-mandeb Strait and the Gulf of Aden. It also aimed to degrade the Houthis ability to threaten regional partners.

As you've heard us say before, we will continue to make clear to the Houthis that there will be consequences for their illegal and reckless attacks. US Central Command will be issuing a press release shortly. Staying within the US Central Command area of responsibility. US CENTCOM forces conducted strikes yesterday against nine targets and two locations associated with Iranian groups in Syria in response to several attacks on US personnel in Syria over a 24-hour period.

These strikes will degrade the Iranian-backed group's ability to plan and launch future attacks on US and coalition forces who are in the region to conduct defeat ISIS operations. As CENTCOM commander General Kurilla stated in CENTCOM's press release, quote, we will continue to take every step necessary to protect our personnel and coalition partners and respond to reckless attacks, end quote.

Shifting gears, Secretary Austin spoke with Ukrainian Minister of Defense Rustam Umarov today to discuss battlefield dynamics and provide an update on US security assistance support for Ukraine. The secretary reaffirmed President Biden's commitment to surge security assistance to Ukraine and provide an update on the unprecedented scope and pace of US efforts to provide Ukraine with the capabilities it needs to fight Russian aggression.

The two leaders pledged to remain in close contact. A readout of the call will be available on defense.gov. And finally, this Friday, November 15, Secretary Austin will depart for a nine day trip to the Indo-Pacific region with stops in Australia, the Philippines, Laos and Fiji. This will mark Secretary Austin's 12th trip to the region and comes as the United States builds on unprecedented cooperation with like-minded countries to strengthen regional security.

The Secretary's trip's engagements include his participation in the ASEAN Defense Ministers, meeting ADMM-plus in Laos on November 21st, and will drive ongoing efforts to modernize our alliances and partnerships toward a shared vision for a free and open Indo-Pacific. A trip advisory will be available on defense.gov later today and readouts of the Secretary's meetings and engagements will be posted throughout the trip. And with that, happy to take your questions. We'll go to AP, Tara.

Q: Thank you, General Ryder. On the attacks on US service members in Syria, we haven't received any details on what personnel were attacked, where the attacks took place and it's been more than 48 hours since CENTCOM put out that release.

PENTAGON PRESS SECRETARY PENTAGON PRESS SECRETARY MAJOR GENERAL RYDER: Yeah. So what I can tell you, Tara, is that first of all, there are no US injuries associated with any of these attacks. They were at mission support site Green Village in northeast Syria. There were two separate attacks, one on both on Sunday, November 10th. One attack consisted of a UAV. The second was indirect fire comprised of two rockets.

Q: OK. So with these the UAV and the indirect fire, then it prompted it seems like a much larger response to nine different targets at two locations by US forces. Why the stronger response? Has this been, like, a repeat? Is this just the latest in a bunch of harassing moves?

PENTAGON PRESS SECRETARY MAJOR GENERAL RYDER: Well, you know, as I highlighted there in General Kurilla's quote, we are going to protect our forces. We're going to take the necessary steps to send a message. But importantly, as we've said before, we will reserve the right to respond in a time and place of our choosing. And so, Central Command took appropriate action, again, to protect our forces and send a clear message that attacks against our forces won't be tolerated.

Q: And do you have any assessment on enemy fighters, on any of their losses?

PENTAGON PRESS SECRETARY MAJOR GENERAL RYDER: I do not have anything to provide on that. I do not, no.

Q: Ok.

PENTAGON PRESS SECRETARY MAJOR GENERAL RYDER: Ok. Let me go - Constantine.

Q: Thanks, Pat. So, just sort of following up on that line of questioning, you know, CENTCOM announced these injuries as part of a strike. In late October, we found out that service members were injured only when we directly asked you. CENTCOM didn't announce it. Thinking back to like the JLOTS mission, three sailors - or three service members were injured. We found out through Israeli media and had to ask CENTCOM to confirm. Why is CENTCOM not proactively announcing when service members are injured in the theater?

PENTAGON PRESS SECRETARY MAJOR GENERAL RYDER: Well, again, in this case, there were no service members injured. So, again, these CENTCOM strikes were in response to several attacks within a 24-hour period.

And again, you know, Constantine, it's a fair point. It's something that we're going to continuously look at and make sure that we're being as transparent as possible, oftentimes balancing operational security with the public's right to know. So, again, we've taken that feedback into account, and we'll do everything we can to make sure that the public is aware when US forces are in harm's way or when service members are injured. Thanks.

Q: Have there been any attacks today against U.S. forces?

PENTAGON PRESS SECRETARY MAJOR GENERAL RYDER: I'm not aware of any.

Q: And then the State Department said that they haven't made a determination whether Israel is in violation of US law when it comes to humanitarian aid into Gaza. What's the secretary's perspective on this? And, you know, it was supposed to be a 30 day deadline essentially. They haven't met the conditions. So, why not impose the restrictions that the Secretary wrote about?

PENTAGON PRESS SECRETARY MAJOR GENERAL RYDER: Yeah. So, a few things on that, Idris. So first of all, as recently as last week when Secretary Austin spoke to the new Israeli defense minister, he did underscore the importance of ensuring that humanitarian assistance can get - can get to the people who need it most in Gaza.

And when it comes to - I'm assuming you're referring to the letter, the 30 day letter, from a US government standpoint, we believe that Israel has taken steps to address some of the measures that were laid out in that letter. But as Secretary Austin and others have said, we also believe that more needs to be done. So, we're going to continue to have those conversations with our Israeli partners.

That's not to say, though, that we haven't seen some progress, and I know my colleagues at State Department have talked about that in depth. And so, we also believe that, had that letter not been sent, had those conversations not been had, we wouldn't have seen the

kind of progress that we're seeing now. But we're not going to take our foot off the gas pedal. We're going to continue to speak with our Israeli partners, and expect that we'll continue to see an uptick.

Q: And last unrelated question, the Indonesian president was supposed to meet Secretary Austin today. He didn't come. A, why? And B, is the Secretary concerned that the next two or three months were leaders and counterparts will, you know, look more towards the incoming administration than the current one when it comes to meetings and policy decisions?

PENTAGON PRESS SECRETARY MAJOR GENERAL RYDER: Yeah. As far as the Indonesian president's visit, as I understand it, unforeseen schedule changes made the visit not possible. I'd defer you to the Indonesians for any more details on that.

But to address your second question, you know, look, there's a lot going on in the world right now, and the Secretary remains squarely focused on carrying out his duties as Secretary of Defense and defending this nation. And, you know, as evidenced by his call today with Minister Umerov and his upcoming trip to the Indo-Pacific region, Secretary Austin is going to stay engaged 24 hours a day, seven days a week, doing his job as the secretary. And as you know, having traveled with him, he has great respect - is well respected among world leaders and defense ministers. And so, we will continue to see that.

Oren?

Q: Two questions, both on the question of humanitarian aid. First, can you detail or provide any numbers or specifics on how much has changed since the letter has been sent, whether that's trucks going in or crossings that are open or quantity of aid that's reached the Palestinian population?

PENTAGON PRESS SECRETARY MAJOR GENERAL RYDER: So, Oren, I'd refer you to State Department to get a breakdown, a detailed breakdown of the number of trucks. What I can tell you, broadly speaking right now, is what we've seen Israel do is reopen the Erez crossing, open a new crossing at Kissufim. They restarted the Jordan Armed Forces corridor, waived custom requirements that humanitarian organizations had objected to. They approved additional delivery routes inside Gaza.

They have restored deliveries to the north that were closed for weeks, first to Gaza City and then this week to areas around Jabalia, increased efforts to stop looting, and expanded the Mawasi humanitarian zone and also have instituted periodic operational pauses. So, from a US government standpoint, these are critically important steps.

But again, we're going to continue having conversations about what else needs to be done to ensure that the Palestinian people can get the food that they need. Ultimately, we believe that the long-term solution here, as you've heard Secretary Austin and others say, is bringing an end to this war. And we'll continue to work to achieve that.

Q: And then just my follow up question is today is the 30 day mark, and we heard this from the State Department, nothing has changed in terms of US policy. And yet, as you and State have pointed out, Israel hasn't met the full letter of the requirements in the letter. What was the purpose of putting a 30 day deadline on it then?

PENTAGON PRESS SECRETARY MAJOR GENERAL RYDER: Well, again, you know, on any type of discussions or, you know, requests for action, you're going to always want to try to have some type of mark on the wall to work toward. Again, we understand the complexities of the situation here, but it's critical that additional aid get to the people in Gaza, humanitarian assistance.

And so, as I highlighted earlier, we believe, the US government believes that had this letter not been sent, had these conversations not been had, we wouldn't see - have seen the kinds of increases that we're seeing now. So, again, we're not going to take our foot off the gas pedal here when it comes to working with the Israelis to increase the amount of aid flowing into Gaza.

Let me go to the phone here real quick. Let's go to Mike Glenn, Washington Times.

Q: Hi, Pat. Thank you. The Pentagon leaker, Jack Teixeira, is supposed to be sentenced today for violating the Espionage Act. Does the Pentagon believe that the - that, with this case coming to an end, that the - that the security situation there at that base has been taken care of and there's no more expected leaks coming out of there?

PENTAGON PRESS SECRETARY MAJOR GENERAL RYDER: Just to clarify, you're talking about the base where the airman was stationed?

Q: Yeah. Right, right.

PENTAGON PRESS SECRETARY MAJOR GENERAL RYDER: Yeah. Broad - broadly speaking, Mike, what I would tell you is, you know, the Department is confident that the appropriate steps have been taken to mitigate additional leaks. I'd refer you to the Department of the Air Force, though, for any specifics on that front.

Ok. Let me go to Jeff Schogol, Task and Purpose.

Q: Thank you. And I apologize to the Pentagon press corps for my attempt at singing. It won't happen again. Just to follow up, can you talk about why the attacks against US troops

at Green Village weren't announced before the airstrike? And which specific Iranian backed group was targeted in the airstrike? Was it Kataib Hezbollah or was it another group?

PENTAGON PRESS SECRETARY MAJOR GENERAL RYDER: Yeah. Thanks, Jeff. On your second question, I don't have any additional details to provide beyond what I highlighted in my topper.

As for the timing of that release, just to be quite frank, as there were operations ongoing to respond to these attacks against US forces at Green Village, you know, the decision was made to ensure that those operations were complete before CENTCOM issued its press release. Again, fully aware, as I highlighted to your colleague, of the media and public interest in these types of situations. And so, again, we'll continue to work diligently to ensure we're putting out as much information as possible as quickly as possible consistent with operation security and balancing the public's right to know. Thanks, Jeff.

Fadi?

Q: Thank you, General. The Houthis claimed today that they launched two attacks, one on USS Lincoln in the Arabian Sea and another one targeting two US destroyers in the Red Sea. Do you have anything on that?

PENTAGON PRESS SECRETARY MAJOR GENERAL RYDER: I do. And again, I expect a statement to go out from CENTCOM here shortly, but here's what I can tell you.

So on November 11th, US Central Command forces successfully repelled multiple Iranian backed Houthi attacks during a transit of the Bab el Mandeb strait. During the transit, the Arleigh Burke class guided missile destroyer, USS Stockdale and USS Spruance were attacked by at least eight one-way attack uncrewed Aerial systems, five anti-ship ballistic missiles and three anti-ship cruise missiles which were successfully engaged and defeated.

The vessels were not damaged, no personnel were hurt. Again, CENTCOM forces retain the inherent right of self-defense and as I highlighted earlier, will take appropriate steps to protect our personnel. Literally got this shortly before coming out here, so you can expect to see something coming out of CENTCOM on that as well.

Q: [Inaudible]

PENTAGON PRESS SECRETARY MAJOR GENERAL RYDER: To my knowledge, not aware of any attacks against the Abraham Lincoln.

Q: I have a follow up on the letter. You talked about progress, and you mentioned some steps. However, in the last 48 hours, the IPC, UN IPC issued the alert about imminent

famine in northern Gaza, Oxfam, along with seven other humanitarian organizations issued a scorecard where they found that Israel is not in compliance with your letter.

The UN just said that the humanitarian situation in Gaza today is worse than any time during this year, at any time during this year. Those statements from organizations that work on the ground to increase humanitarian assistance to Palestinians in Gaza are in contradiction to what you just said.

PENTAGON PRESS SECRETARY MAJOR GENERAL RYDER: Well, what I would say, Fadi, is this is why we will continue to press the Israeli government to do more, to get humanitarian aid and assistance into the people of Gaza. Yes, some progress has been made as I outlined, but we're having those conversations right now in terms of what Israel can and should do to surge additional humanitarian assistance.

And so I know that this is a priority for Secretary Austin. As I mentioned, he brings it up in every conversation he has with Israeli counterparts, and we'll continue to have those conversations going forward. Nobody questions the importance of doing this and doing it now. Yes, sir.

Q: Two questions about Ukraine war. It is reported that around 50,000 Russian and North Korean forces are already preparing to launch a new counteroffensive to push out Ukrainian forces in Kursk region. Can you confirm that?

PENTAGON PRESS SECRETARY MAJOR GENERAL RYDER: I've seen those press reports. As we've talked about before, we see about 10,000, over 10,000 DPRK soldiers. Most of them have moved to the far western Kursk Oblast, where they've reportedly begun engaging in combat operations with Russian forces. I don't have more to provide at this point in time in terms of what specifically that will entail or could entail other than we're watching very closely.

You've heard us talk about the fact that Russian forces have trained these DPRK soldiers in artillery, UAV, basic infantry operations, all of which are skills that will be employed on the front line. And so for our part, what we're doing is we're continuing to ensure that Ukraine has what it needs in terms of security assistance to defend itself from Russian aggression.

And we'll continue to keep consulting closely with our allies and partners on next steps.

Q: According to the UK government, Russian forces suffered on average about 1,500 people die and injured per day last month, October. How do you assess the casualties of Russian forces in Ukraine were?

PENTAGON PRESS SECRETARY MAJOR GENERAL RYDER: I think what we've seen is upwards, and we've talked about this publicly before, upwards of 1,200 per month. So

staggering casualties among Russian forces. So again, this is one reason why we assessed that DPRK forces have been brought into this fight is to help Russia make up for some of those losses.

And so again, we're going to continue to keep a close eye on this and consult closely with our allies and partners. Sir?

Q: Thank you. I would like to stay on Ukraine. Is the Secretary concerned about the plans that are reportedly considered in the incoming administration's team of creating a buffer zone, a demilitarized zone as it would derail the administration's legacy in Ukraine? And secondly, what are the next steps in the remaining weeks of the administration to maybe ensure that Ukraine has a better position at the negotiating table?

PENTAGON PRESS SECRETARY MAJOR GENERAL RYDER: Yeah. So a few things there. So first of all, I'm not going to speculate or get into hypotheticals about the next administration. We're very focused on, as I highlighted earlier, on the situation at hand right now and frequent communication with our Ukrainian counterparts to ensure they have what they need to defend themselves from Russian aggression.

Secretary Austin has talked many times about the fact that Ukraine matters, that Ukraine's security matters, not only to Europe but also to the United States. And we've seen strong bipartisan support for Ukraine. So we're going to continue to stay in close communication with our allies and partners.

We're going to continue to be focused on the task at hand right now, which is helping Ukraine defend itself from Russian aggression. But as for what the future might portend, I'm just not going to speculate or get into hypotheticals. I'll come back to you, sir. Yes, sir?

Q: Thank you, General. Regarding to Lebanon, there are some media reports today that the Israeli army has begun the second phase of its ground operation in southern Lebanon. First of all, have you received any notice from the Israeli about their operations in the Lebanon ground operations? And do you believe that they need more time to achieve their goals there?

What about the limited operation? Do you still believe what's going on and Lebanon is still a limited military operation? Thank you.

PENTAGON PRESS SECRETARY MAJOR GENERAL RYDER: Yes, so a few things. So first of all, when it comes to any announcements by the Israeli military, I don't have anything on that. I'd refer you to them to talk about their operations and what their goals are. Broadly speaking, again, you've heard them say that their focus is on enabling the return of citizens to their homes in northern Israel.

And as we've said, we want to see the situation resolved as quickly as possible through diplomatic means, understanding that Hezbollah has presented a significant threat to Israel. But again, we believe that the quickest way to get people on both sides of the border back into their homes is through a cessation of hostilities through diplomatic means.

So we will continue to emphasize that going forward. Charlie?

Q: Yeah. I had a couple of questions. First of all, did the secretary bring up North Korea to Umarov in his phone call?

PENTAGON PRESS SECRETARY MAJOR GENERAL RYDER: It did come up. We'll, again, have a readout here shortly. Just the discussion of what I highlighted, the presence of DPRK forces in Kursk, and I'll just leave it there for now.

Q: No more than that in terms of-

PENTAGON PRESS SECRETARY MAJOR GENERAL RYDER: Again, a discussion of battlefield dynamics, but I, from the podium here, Charlie, I'm just not going to be able to go into more details.

Q: OK. A more general question is, um, we're all aware that the clock is ticking. Is there a sort of hurry up offense in getting the Ukrainians the weaponry that they're asking for before sort of January 20th? Is there a change to the pacing or delivery, etc. to that?

PENTAGON PRESS SECRETARY MAJOR GENERAL RYDER: What I would say, Charlie, is we've had a hurry up and deliver security assistance to Ukraine from the very beginning. I mean, since two and a half years ago, almost three years ago when Secretary Austin stood up the Ukraine Defense Contact group, that has been a priority, is to get assistance to the Ukrainians as quickly as possible.

So insomuch as we're here in November of 2024, it is still the same as it was two years ago. And so we are going to continue to do everything we can to rush security assistance to Ukraine to help them defend themselves against Russian aggression. Thank you. Alex?

Q: Can you refresh your memory of how much Ukraine assistance has been given through PDAs this year? And can you confirm the $7 billion still left in the account? What's up with that? Why isn't that surge forward?

PENTAGON PRESS SECRETARY MAJOR GENERAL RYDER: So a few things here. So since the supplemental, we've drawn down nearly $3.7 billion in equipment from DOD stocks across 12 PDA drawdowns that were announced between late April through mid-October. And as we've highlighted before, when we draw down equipment that's immediately available from our stocks, we ship it within days or weeks. Between the passage of the

supplemental and the middle of last month, we've delivered to Ukraine, 83 percent of the critical munitions that we've committed from stock, including a 155 millimeter artillery rounds, GMLRs, Patriot, NASAMS, missiles and more.

We've also delivered 67 percent of other critical air defense commitments including Stingers and Hawk missiles and we've delivered 60 percent of the fire's capabilities we have committed including small diameter bombs and 105 millimeter ammunition. If it's something that's not immediately available because it requires repairs, we repair it as quickly as possible and then ship it immediately after. And then just since the passage of the supplemental, we've delivered hundreds of thousands of artillery rounds, thousands of armored vehicles, thousands of munitions for HIMARS and antitank weapons, dozens of artillery systems, significant air defense capabilities including a Patriot battery, hundreds of interceptors and dozens of other systems. And together with our allies and partners, the deliveries of the strategic air defense system we committed to providing at the NATO summit are nearly completed.

As far as funding goes, Alex, right now what I'm tracking is we have a total of $7.1 billion in PDA. That includes the $4.3 billion for fiscal year 2024 plus the $2.8 billion that was recaptured with a 2.2 - $2.21 billion remaining in USAI.

And so, as was highlighted earlier in this year, we are going to continue to rush aid and use the funds that we have to ensure that Ukraine gets what it needs in order to deter and fight against Russian aggression. So, we just recently announced a PDA and I'm confident that you will continue to see those coming out at a steady clip.

And to Charlie's question, we understand the urgency of the situation, not because of politics but because of the situation on the battlefield. And we're going to continue to do what we can to make sure that Ukraine has the aid that it needs.

Q: The humanitarian letter, A through F, what's your grade on their - the Israelis' capability and effort to meet the request?

PENTAGON PRESS SECRETARY MAJOR GENERAL RYDER: I went to the University of Florida, so we used a number scale, so I'm not going to put a letter on it. Again, as I highlighted, a lot has been done, but more needs to be done. And so, we'll continue to have that conversation.

Q: Would you [ph] characterize it as satisfactory?

PENTAGON PRESS SECRETARY MAJOR GENERAL RYDER: As I highlighted, a significant amount has been done and we're going to continue to consult with the Israelis to ensure that more is getting done. All right, let me go here and I'll come to the back.

Q: OK, thank you, general. What evidence do you have of the Lebanese government attempting to evict Hezbollah from their government or their country? And I have a follow up.

PENTAGON PRESS SECRETARY MAJOR GENERAL RYDER: I'd refer you to the Lebanese government to talk about that.

Q: Well, the other question I have is how can the Lebanese government be considered faultless when they don't fight against Hezbollah?

PENTAGON PRESS SECRETARY MAJOR GENERAL RYDER: Again, look, you're well versed in the challenges of the region. The Lebanese government, I'd refer you to them to speak for themselves. From a DOD standpoint, as we've highlighted before, we have a very good relationship with the Lebanese Armed Forces and we'll continue to consult closely with them on how best to support the people of Lebanon.

The LAF we're going to play a very important role in any post hostilities as will the UN. And so, we'll continue to consult closely with them on the steps ahead in terms of ultimately bringing peace and stability to the region. Let me go back here. Yes.

Q: Thanks so much. In Peru this week there will be an opening ceremony of a Chinese funded Shanghai port and Chinese President Xi is expected to attend this opening ceremony. And is the Pentagon concerned that this Chinese funded Shanghai port could be used by the Chinese Navy?

PENTAGON PRESS SECRETARY MAJOR GENERAL RYDER: I appreciate the question. I don't have anything specifically on that port other than to say, again, we will continue to consult closely with our allies and partners around the world about Chinese malign activities and behavior. And I'll just leave it there. All right. Let me take just a couple more from the phone here. Let's go to Chris Gordon, Air & Space.

Q: Thanks, Pat. Does the Pentagon have an update on the total number of attacks there have been on US forces in Iraq, Syria and Jordan since October of last year?

PENTAGON PRESS SECRETARY MAJOR GENERAL RYDER: Let me take that question for you, Chris. Okay, and then we'll go to Howard Altman.

Q: Thanks, Pat. Just a couple questions. One is on Kursk. Can you give us an assessment of the territory that Russia has been able to claw back there if they have been? And is the counteroffensive underway? And then with the Abraham Lincoln, how close was the Abraham Lincoln to the two destroyers that came under fire?

PENTAGON PRESS SECRETARY MAJOR GENERAL RYDER: Yeah, thanks, Howard. On your second question, I'm not going to get into the specific locations of the Abraham Lincoln other than to say, again, based on the information I have, it was not attacked contrary to some of the allegations, should I say, by the Houthis. In terms of the Kursk region, again, what we see are Russian forces attempting to take back territory from the Ukrainian armed forces. I don't have geographic numbers to provide other than it's been incremental gains with the Ukrainians largely holding a line in Kursk. Okay. Take just a couple more. Yes, sir.

Q: Thank you very much. As you are striking with your allies in Yemen, it's very immediate neighbor, Saudi Arabia, is coming more closer with Iran. Like last month we observed they held naval drills. And now this Sunday, the Saudi military chief visited Iran, discussed more defense cooperation. So, is that a matter of concern for US or you have any observation that -

PENTAGON PRESS SECRETARY MAJOR GENERAL RYDER: -Just to clarify, you're asking if we have any concerns with Saudi Arabia communicating with Iran. Look, we fully understand that Saudi Arabia, like many countries in the region, are going to communicate with their neighbors. The US has a very valued relationship with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia from a defense standpoint. And we'll continue to have those conversations as well. But ultimately, it's up to Saudi Arabia to choose who they communicate with or not.

Q: So, CNN reported that Pentagon officials are holding informal discussions about how the Department of Defense would respond if the President-elect Donald Trump issues some order regarding the active-duty personnel domestically regarding his policy what he is going to implement. So, is there any concern regarding the upcoming administration in the department?

PENTAGON PRESS SECRETARY MAJOR GENERAL RYDER: Yeah, let me just be clear up front. I'm not aware of any meetings aimed at discussing or responding to potential decisions by the next administration. As Secretary Austin underscored in his letter to the force, the department is focused on ensuring a calm, orderly and professional transition to the incoming Trump administration and will continue to stand apart from the political arena.

And again, if you'll allow me to quote Secretary Austin - quote, as it always has, the US military will stand ready to carry out the policy choices of its next Commander-in-Chief and obey all lawful orders from its civilian chain of command, end quote.

So, the men and women of the Department of Defense who work every single day to protect our freedoms, we've sworn an oath to the Constitution and the secretary is

confident that we'll continue to do the great work that our military members do day in and day out to keep the country safe. I'll just leave it there. Last question, yes, sir.

Q: Two questions, please. I just came back from a short trip to India and there was a talk of the town in India among the people of India.

PENTAGON PRESS SECRETARY MAJOR GENERAL RYDER: There's a lot of towns in India. So, which town was it? You've got to narrow it down.

Q: Commander-in-Chief here at the Pentagon and now how the relations today, military-to-military relations between US and India and anything you change under the new administration?

PENTAGON PRESS SECRETARY MAJOR GENERAL RYDER: So, first of all the relationship that we have with India is excellent. As you know, we've made a lot of progress in our bilateral security relationship. And that is something that you've seen Secretary Austin prioritize over the last four years. As far as who the next Commander-in-Chief will be, that will be President Trump as the Commander-in-Chief. As for who he may pick as a Secretary of Defense, obviously I'm not going to speculate on that, and I'd refer you to the Trump transition team.

Q: Second question, sir, please. As far as US military is concerned, it is concerned as per terrorism in the Middle East and elsewhere. Two things happened during this - after the election. One, Qatari government asked the people there, all the terrorists to wind up and no more business in Qatar. Number two, the Pakistan, Nawaz Sharif, and also his daughter were here and they met with President-elect Trump.

And also at the same time, Sheikh Hasina, the former Prime Minister of Bangladesh, also met with the former president-elect, President Trump. Now how the US military will affect in those countries now have relations under the new administration because they came to meet with the new Commander-in-Chief.

PENTAGON PRESS SECRETARY MAJOR GENERAL RYDER: Yeah, I appreciate the question. I'm here as a US Department of Defense spokesperson. Obviously, I'm not going to be able to comment on the incoming administration, and I'm not going to speculate or get into hypotheticals about potential future decisions. So, I'll just leave it there. Thanks very much everybody. Appreciate it.

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