SECRETARY OF DEFENSE CHUCK HAGEL: General, thank you. Thank you very much. Good afternoon. First, thank you for giving me a little time this afternoon. I had an opportunity this morning to take in a couple of exercises and see a little bit what you're doing down here and how important you are and continue to be to our defense enterprise and security of this country.
I want to also thank you for what you've been doing. I know there are a number of you who've just returned from Afghanistan and other deployments all over the world. Thank you. Thanks to your families for their sacrifice and what they do every day to support you, support us, support this country, so please convey my thanks to them.
Let me give you a couple of thoughts on where I think we are today in the world, your role, why you continue to be an indispensable part of our security effort. Then we'll take some questions and then get some photos.
First, we are living in a time that is as uncertain and complicated as any time during any of our lifetimes. What you do as Marines, your expeditionary mission, what you're trained for, what we rely on you for is as important today and will become even more important in the years ahead.
The kind of challenges and the threats that we face all over the world are in your wheelhouse. These are areas that we will rely on you as much as any other branch of our service because of your agility, because of your capabilities, because your understanding of so many different parts of the world. And it is in support of all our other branches -- our Army and our Navy, our Air Force -- this integrated piece of the Marine base is so critically important.
I was particularly interested today in spending some time with some of the female Marines here, especially some who are involved in this integration task force, and to all of you who are supporting that effort and especially to the women who are part of that -- of that task force, I thank you.
The integration of our services, which as you know is not new -- it has been evolving and developing -- is important for a lot of reasons. You know, we are a country who believes -- we always have -- it's taken us a while to get where we need to be -- that believes strongly that every individual deserves the same opportunities, if you're capable, if you can qualify, if you can do the job. And we are doing that, and we continue to do that.
We want to maximize all our abilities and all our talent from all our people in this country. It's the right thing to do. Our military -- this institution has done more in so many ways of these kinds of institutional integrations -- in integration in general that has reflected on our society than any one institution.
And so I compliment everybody who is engaged in this effort. I know it is not easy. I know we are dealing with cultural issues, we're dealing with standards, we're not going to lower standards. And I think how you're approaching, how the Marines are being smart in working through each of these issues is the right way to do it.
So I wanted also to come here today to take a look at some of that training and some of those exercises and have an opportunity to talk to some of those individuals who are participating in that effort. And we'll just get very personal with them as to why. I mean, are you trying to prove something? Or what is it?
And it's not a different answer that I get from anybody else in any service, as I hold monthly luncheons with junior enlisted in my office. I hold monthly luncheons with junior officers in my office. And I ask all of them the same question, "Why do you do this? You're young, you're smart, you're talented, you've got skills, you've got a lot of options." And I get the same answer, same answer I'd get from every one of you today if I asked each of you to give me the answer to this question, and that is you want to serve your country. You want to do something special that very people do.
You want to make a better world. You want to make your life meaningful. You want your life to count for something. That's pretty special. And we don't want to abridge people who want to give that kind of service for the right reasons. You guys are about that. Our services are about that. And, again, it is the essence, it's the soul, it's the character of our military.
You know, I've been around the country the last about five days visiting a lot of bases, the different kinds of bases, different services, and I recognize as I have since I've been in this job almost two years that the uncertainty of our budgets, the lack of clarity about where those budgets are leading us, we know those budgets are being cut, we know our resource base is being constrained. But yet we're being asked to do more.
We're shifting from 13 years of constant grinding land war, unprecedented in this country, never gone through that before. Also unprecedented is that we've fought those wars with an all-volunteer force. That's never happened.
So we are adjusting. We are adapting our force structures, everything. We have to. We need to not only deal with the crisis of the moment -- and we are -- and there are a lot of them, and you all are dealing with them -- but we also must not lose sight of the future. How do we continue to prepare this institution, the kind of platforms that will be required over the next five and 10 years? That investment doesn't start today or in today's budget. That -- for the next 10 years, it has to start a lot earlier than 10 years.
The downsizing, the prioritization of our leaders of where they're going to maximize their resources based on what they think we need to deal with the threats, not just current threats, but long-term threats in this country. We haven't really had to face the tough choices and the tough decisions that our senior leaders are having to face today in prioritizing our programs, our platforms, our future, our resources. We've not had to confront that.
This is not unique in history. After conflicts, we go through these processes. Every conflict that we've been in since World War II, we've been through this. It's how we do it and the resources required to do it. We do it smart. We do it with anticipation as to what's out there. We can't predict anything. The only certainty in the world is uncertainty. And it is a hell of a lot more uncertain today than it was 10 years ago. And I don't think it gets less complicated. I don't think it gets less complicated.
So we all are part of preparing this institution for the future, as well as dealing with what we're dealing with right now, and we don't have any choice. We've got to lead here. We've got to manage through this, continue to strengthen our coalitions around the world, which we're doing in the Middle East, we're doing in Asia Pacific. We can't do it alone. We can't take on these conflicts, because they are so wide and deep, alone. It is going to require a lot of cooperation and a lot of partners working with them and helping them build their capacity and their capabilities so that they can be a more reliable partner as we see these threats and we anticipate these threats. And we don't wait for the threats to come to us. We try to stay ahead of those.
So I wanted to mention a couple of those things, because that's what we're doing today -- all your senior leaders, here at Camp Lejeune, all over the world, all our military leaders, what we're doing in Washington as we think through these.
I was particularly pleased this morning to have some time with these individuals, as we just talked off the record about what they think about our forces and what they think we need to do more of or less of. And some of the issues that we are dealing with, that are not new -- sexual assault -- I think we're making a lot of progress. We're not where we need to be yet. It isn't just because the secretary of defense thinks that. I ask you. I ask the people on the ground what you think. What do we need to do better? What do we need to do more of, less of?
But we're moving in the right direction in all of these areas. This is a time that requires from each of us immense leadership and immense focus. I think as you all will walk your grandchildren one of these days on beaches when you're retired, you will tell them that you helped define a new era in history. That's what we're going through. We are seeing a new world order defined. And you are at that center of that, and I know, as we each do our jobs every day, we wonder, does anybody notice, does anybody care, and how can I be that important in this kind of a world?
Well, let me assure you -- you are. Every job is important. We need everybody in this business, and we need everybody committed and to do it right. And you are. And another reason I wanted to come out here was to thank you, as well, for that. And I know when you do your jobs better than anybody else does them around the world, you do occasionally wonder if anybody cares, but we do care. You're so good that unfortunately I think too often you're kind of taken for granted, but we don't take you for granted. So please convey that to your families.
I'd be very interested in any suggestions you have for me while I'm here, any thoughts you've got. Certainly, I'll take questions, but anything on your minds that you want to tell me, and they can be negative, they can be positive. I do draw the line at insults. No insults. But I -- I do appreciate your input, because we can't do this business any other way, unless we know what's on your minds and what you think.
We're going to get through this. It's a tough time. We've got sequestration and a lot of budget issues. We'll deal with it. We are dealing with it. But we'll get through it, and we'll be a lot better, a lot smarter, a lot stronger at the other end.
So I'd be glad to respond to whatever you all want to talk about. And there are microphones, I guess -- three different microphones.
Q: Good afternoon, sir.
SEC. HAGEL: How are you?
Q: Capt. (inaudible) from the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit. My question relates actually to your comments regarding force restructuring and constrained budgets. In December 2013, Special Purpose MAGTF-Crisis Response was tasked to conduct a noncombatant evacuation of Juba, South Sudan. Despite elements of the MEU sitting in MODLOC off the coast of Djibouti with a much larger and much more capable force, Crisis Response was sent over 3,700 miles to Djibouti from Moron, Spain. The apparent reason was that the MEU was allocated to CENTCOM and Crisis Response was allocated to AFRICOM, the crisis being in AFRICOM.
The Marine Corps has reinvigorated its focus on the MEU as a flexible force capable of preventing, preparing or reacting to global threats. In fact, the argument is often made that the ships is what gives us that flexibility, mobility, and agility. Is there a near-term policy solution to share conventional forces across UCP boundaries to respond to a crisis, contingency, or phase zero requirement based on that unit's capability and its proximity that might give us more flexibility across the Department of Defense?
SEC. HAGEL: Captain, thank you for your question. Let me answer it this way. A quick yes. I mentioned in my comments that we are adapting, we're assessing, we're looking at all of our asset placements, our forward deployment, our expeditionary forces, where we're stationed around the world. As the Marines transition out of two long land wars, as you have out of Iraq, as you are out of Afghanistan, the latest being the closing of Camp Leatherneck, your role, back as I mentioned in my comments, as an expeditionary force that gives us our entire defense apparatus more reach, more flexibility, more response, quicker response time, assigning that to commands that will need it, who's in the locations, who can respond first, quickest. All of that is happening now. All of that is being worked with the commandant, with his senior commanders through CENTCOM, through AFRICOM, through our chiefs.
So the quick answer to your question is yes. All of that is being reassessed, reviewed. This goes back to what I said generally, as we pull back and we look at the kind of world that we're in now. Where are those threats coming from? Where will they continue to come from? Where do we need to be positioned with our assets?
I mentioned agility, being able to respond quickly, smartly, when we need those assets. So, yes, this is a constant process, as all of our leaders know. There is no such thing as status quo. Threats and challenges are not status quo. The enemy always has a word and a say in everything, too. So we have to be very, very agile to deal with what is ahead and what's right now.
Q: Good afternoon, sir, Staff Sgt. (inaudible) as you were mentioning, sir, about the wars winding down and we're getting a lot of our troops back, and talking about a complicated environment and you mentioned also NATO partners. Where are some of the areas that we might be able to see ourselves moving into and establishing those partnerships and having us have that greater reach that you're talking about?
SEC. HAGEL: Thank you. Well, I think we start with our relationships, partnerships, and our collective security arrangements today. Obviously, NATO is the first and foremost of all, the 28 nations, in the most successful collective security alliance in the history of the world.
Now, each member of that alliance -- NATO -- brings different capabilities. No nation has the same capabilities or even close to our capabilities. We get that. But each brings capabilities. And to use those capabilities in smart ways that complement all the other capabilities is a big part of this.
So, NATO. Our treaty obligations to specific countries in the Asia Pacific, as we're continuing to build strong partnerships and capabilities. Given an example of last year. I mean, you all know, you're rotating in and out of Australia now. Some of you may have been on some of those rotations.
That's new. That gives us more capacity, capability, gives us more presence, gives us more agility, helps the Australians, it helps reassure our Asia Pacific partners. The new arrangements -- rotational arrangements we have with the Philippines, which we haven't had in a long, long time -- gives us more presence, more agility, more reassurance of our Asia Pacific partners in that area.
What we're continuing to do with our current treaty obligations and partnerships in Japan and South Korea is it isn't just about military. It isn't just about military. It's about economics. It's about diplomatic. It's about humanitarian. It's all the instruments of our government focusing together in a comprehensive way to, yes, protect American interests around the world, but also to protect our allies, our partners, and that involves a great deal of commerce and trade and economics, keeping those maritime and air spaces clear and free and open, cyber, a huge part of that.
I began with NATO. As you know, we are changing over the last six months and as a result of the Wales NATO summit, which the president attended, we have new arrangements with our NATO partners on rotational operations in Eastern Europe, air, sea, land, missile defense.
So as we build those capacities -- I was just in Latin America about a month ago. I was in Colombia, Chile, and Peru working closer and closer with those -- with those militaries, with those countries, helping them build their capabilities and their capacities.
So we're doing this all over the world, different countries, different cultures, different relationships, but it's the same focus. It's the same -- it's the same principle. And that's hugely, hugely important for our interests going into the future that we continue to do that and make those investments.
Q: Sir, good afternoon. Captain (inaudible) from 2nd Transportation Support Battalion. Given our individual oaths to support and defend the constitution, what role, if any, do you see we as individuals have to ensure that our orders and actions are in keeping with the constitution? Thank you, sir.
SEC. HAGEL: It's an interesting question, because our country is built around that constitution. And every person who serves in our government, whether it's the military or any other responsible position, takes an oath of office to the constitution.
And the constitution and that oath of office in particular is pretty clear. It's not complicated. There is clarity. And so our role, when you take an oath of office, when I took the same oath, is particularly important to protect that constitution, if for no other reason we are the only agency, department, entity in this government that was set up by this constitution that has the one responsibility to secure the country.
The security of the United States of America falls on us. Now, there are other agencies that are part of that, intelligence agencies and others who help, but we're the only ones that actually have the responsibility to do it. Law enforcement's different. Law enforcement's different.
So when your oath of office that we all take, that's essentially what you're saying. And you agree to abide by the parameters of that constitution -- civilian leadership and management, the organized uniform military works in that line of accountability, accountable to a civilian elected commander-in-chief, and you know the rest of the structure.
That's why it's always so important that we assure that, in every way, that we ground our forces, our young troops who come into our forces with an understanding of that abiding principle. And I remember when I was going through basic training at Fort Bliss, Texas, in the summer of 1967. And I remember we took a lot of classroom instructions on the constitution and learning the chain of command.
And I remember so well so many -- in those days, of course, the world was different. It was an all-draftee Army, essentially, and a different dynamic. But I remember so often guys sitting in the classroom with me saying, why are we wasting our time on learning about the constitution? Or why are we wasting our time learning about our obligations as soldiers to this?
Well, there was a reason for that. And we've never deviated from that. And so it is the one document that holds this together as a nation. Yes, culturally, we get all that, and so on and so on. But it is truly a unique -- it is the unique document, if for no other reason it is a document that allows us to self-correct.
We got into some of this, this morning when I was talking to a number of these female Marines. If we had it all right in 1776, such a perfect republic, of course, in those days, for a long time, unless you were a white landowning male, you couldn't vote. You had very few rights. But yet our constitution says all men are created equal. It wasn't quite right.
But the constitution allowed us an amendment process so that we have 27 amendments to the constitution right now to fix some of these problems. We're not where we need to be yet. But we can fix them. And it is -- it is the only mechanism out there to do that without guillotining each other and revolution in the streets. And so the constitution is a precious, precious document that guides us all.
Q: Good afternoon, sir (inaudible) my question is, with the rising tensions with Russia, the disregard for the sanctions and the warnings from various leaders around the world, the flights over NATO with bomber planes and jets, and the plane flights of the Gulf near the U.S. borders with bomber planes. Do you foresee the U.S. getting more involved with eastern Ukraine and Russia?
SEC. HAGEL: Well, everything you said, unfortunately, is a reality that we're dealing with, and that's a very dangerous, irresponsible set of behaviors and actions that the Russian government has taken. And you recited some of them.
This -- that set of provocations and new tensions that the Russian government has brought upon the world, especially Eastern Europe, over the last six months has probably done more to coalesce the NATO alliance than any one thing that we've seen in many, many years, because it has demonstrated in clarity that the world is still dangerous, and even in Europe it can be dangerous.
The violations of sovereignty and of international law that the Russians have perpetrated is requiring, has required, will continue to require responses. We were -- are responding, working with NATO and shifting our entire rotational rapid deployment of focus, as I mentioned some of them here a few minutes ago, air, sea, land, what we're doing now, what our NATO partners are doing now to respond, economic sanctions.
Economic sanctions are having a very, very negative impact on the country of Russia. All you need to do is look at some metrics on this. Their latest economic forecast -- their forecast last week shows they have changed their economic growth forecast to maybe zero next year. Their currency, their ruble, is at an all-time low. Oil prices are as low as they've been in many years, which is directly impacting their resource base, because their economy is an exporting resource-based economy. They've had to dig into their reserves to finance a lot of their deficits. They have seen foreign investment completely dry up in Russia. That's one -- and another way we're responding.
It has brought the world together in a way where they are isolating themselves -- they are isolating themselves by their actions. So, yes, their actions have been very dangerous. We are responding with our partners in all the different comprehensive ways that we need to respond and working with the Ukrainian government. I just spoke to the new Ukrainian minister of defense two weeks ago, and we're continuing to work with them and assist them.
Okay. Admiral Kirby says I cannot take any more questions, and you know how these admirals are. Thank you, guys. I am very, very proud to be here with you and proud to serve with you, and we appreciate everything you do. And I think we're going to take some photos and we're got some coins. And we'll have a jolly afternoon.
Thank you. Thank you.
