Pentagon chief

Pentagon chief vows to 'fix' US military's sexual assault problem

Sat, 18 May 2013 00:45:45 GMT

Source: timesofindia.indiatimes.com --- Friday, May 17, 2013
Defense secretary Chuck Hagel ordered top military chiefs on Friday to redouble their effort to address the problem of sexual assault, saying the frequency and perceived tolerance of the crime was eroding the military's ability conduct its mission. ...

Pentagon chief vows to ‘fix’ military’s sexual assault problem

Fri, 17 May 2013 22:32:10 GMT

Source: blogs.reuters.com --- Friday, May 17, 2013
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel ordered top military chiefs on Friday to redouble their effort to address the problem of sexual assault, saying the frequency and perceived tolerance of the crime was eroding the military’s ability conduct its mission. “We’re going to fix this problem,” Hagel told a news conference a day after he and top military leaders met with President Barack Obama to discuss a series of incidents that have reduced confidence in the services’ handling of the crime. “The president was very constructive. He was very clear. There wasn’t anybody in that room who wasn’t disappointed and embarrassed and didn’t recognize that we’ve in many ways failed,” Hagel said. The Pentagon chief issued a memo giving the military heads a week to devise a plan for discussing the sexual assault problem with troops at all levels and ensuring that those who deal with new recruits and sexual assault victims have appropriate training and credentials. The aim is to ensure that “every member of the armed forces clearly understands that they are accountable for fostering a climate where sexist behaviors, sexual harassment and sexual assault are not tolerated,” Hagel said in the memo. The push for action came a week after the Pentagon issued its annual report on sexual assault in the military, a study that estimated cases of unwanted sexual contact jumped 37 percent in 2012 to 26,000, versus 19,000 the previous year. Re ...

Pentagon chief announced unpaid leaves for 800,000 civilian employees

Wed, 15 May 2013 12:30:15 GMT

Source: gantdaily.com --- Wednesday, May 15, 2013
Fourth Estate Cooperative Staff Pentagon, United States (4E) – U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel on Tuesday announced unpaid leaves for nearly 800,000 civilian employees for 11 days through September. Revealing his decision to an audience of civilian defense workers, Hagel said that this would help them “survive” steep automatic budget cuts. However, he also regretted the decision and said, “I’m sorry, but I have to be honest and deal with the facts. You deserve honesty and you deserve the facts.” He added that he tried to limit the length of the furloughs while protecting the combat readiness of the military. Initially, furloughs of up to 22 days or 14 days had been considered after an additional funding was approved by Congress, however, it was finally reduced to 11 days. Hagel said that he had difficult set of choices since he could not avoid furloughs altogether. “I could not go responsibly any deeper into cutting or jeopardising our core missions on readiness, training. That is why I made a decision that we’ll go forward with furloughs starting July 8 of 11 days,” he stated. Intelligence officers, foreign military sales, medical and police personnel and shipyard workers are among 69,000 civilians, who will be exempt from these furloughs. Article © AHN – All Rights Reserved ...

Ex-Pentagon chief Gates: Budget must be smarter

Fri, 10 May 2013 23:23:00 GMT

Source: www.wistv.com --- Friday, May 10, 2013
Former Defense Secretary Robert Gates says there are smart ways to reduce the size of the nation's defense budget. ...

Ex-Pentagon chief Gates addressing USC graduates

Fri, 10 May 2013 10:04:29 GMT

Source: www.fortmilltimes.com --- Friday, May 10, 2013
Former Defense Secretary Robert Gates is addressing graduates of the University of South Carolina. ...

Arming Syria’s Rebels Now an ‘Option,’ Says Pentagon Chief

Thu, 02 May 2013 19:51:03 GMT

Source: www.wired.com --- Thursday, May 02, 2013
Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel made it official: The Obama administration is considering sending guns, missiles and other weapons to Syria's rebels. ...