The next US Minister of Defense, Lloyd Austin, pledged Tuesday, January 19 to fight extremism within the US military, after the participation of plainclothes soldiers in the assault on the Capitol on January 6 , by supporters of outgoing President Donald Trump.
"The activities that we have recently witnessed in our ranks, in terms of potentially racist or extremist behavior, are in my opinion absolutely unacceptable,"
said Lloyd Austin, 67, chosen by President-elect Joe Biden to become the first Afro- American to lead the Pentagon.
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The task of the Department of Defense is to protect America from our enemies, but we cannot carry it out if some of these enemies are hiding in our ranks.
"
Lloyd Austin
"I will do everything to rid our ranks of racists and extremists," he
told the Senate Armed Forces Committee, as twelve soldiers of the US National Guard were removed from the security system of the ceremony. inauguration of Joe Biden as part of a procedure to search for possible links with extremist groups.
"The task of the Department of Defense is to protect America from our enemies, but we cannot carry it out if some of these enemies are hiding in our ranks,"
continued the former army general. de Terre, whose appointment has yet to be confirmed by the senators.
The Covid, the first threat
When asked to cite the main threat the United States faces, Lloyd Austin cited the Covid-19 pandemic, ahead of China.
“She killed over 400,000 Americans.
These are just incredible losses
, ”he noted, believing that the Pentagon could do more to fight the disease.
But
"China is our most difficult problem
(...)
and the most complex"
, he added, stressing that the United States wanted to deter Beijing militarily but to cooperate with China economically.
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Lloyd Austin has generally remained vague about his plans to head the US military, but in written responses submitted to elected officials, he said he intended to reconsider the military withdrawals from Germany and Somalia wanted by the outgoing president. Donald Trump.
On the other hand, he supported the withdrawal from Afghanistan.
"I would like to see this conflict end with a negotiated settlement
," he told senators, deeming that
"focusing on counterterrorism operations in the future would be useful."
Asked about Iran, with which Joe Biden said he would like to resume dialogue, Lloyd Austin said that Tehran remained
"a destabilizing element in the region"
and that it would therefore be dangerous for the regime to have access to it. 'nuclear weapon.
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