Slotkin Vows to Address Global Security Challenges

By Jim Garamone

DoD News, Defense Media Activity

WASHINGTON, Dec. 2, 2014 – If confirmed as the next assistant secretary of defense for international security affairs, Elissa Slotkin told a Senate panel today that she’d develop U.S. policies and partnerships to address security challenges in an increasingly complex world.

Slotkin, currently the principal deputy assistant secretary of defense for international security affairs, testified before the Senate Armed Services Committee. The assistant secretary of defense for international security affairs is the principal adviser to the defense secretary and the undersecretary of defense for policy on security policy and strategy involving Europe -- including NATO -- the Middle East and Africa.

“America’s security interests in these parts of the world are as profound as they are vast,” she said.

NATO Alliance

The United States needs to ensure the NATO alliance is prepared to meet the challenge Russia poses with its aggressive behavior, Slotkin said. The U.S., she added, must also meet the threats emanating from the Middle East and North Africa and proliferating extremist groups in both Central Asia and Africa. There is also the challenge posed by transnational criminal gangs in the Western Hemisphere.

Slotkin spoke about a Turkish request to create a no-fly zone or a buffer zone against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant inside Syria along its border with Turkey.

“The idea of a safe zone or a buffer zone or a no-fly zone is something the Turks have been talking to us about for a couple of years now,” she said. “We’re in regular discussion about their proposal.”

She noted Vice President Joe Biden talked about the proposal with Turkish authorities during his visit to the country last week.

“We currently don’t think a no-fly zone fits the bill, but it is something that the elements of which we are looking at very closely to see if there is a proposal that advances our combined objectives,” she said. “The proposal involves a full range of air and land elements.”

Assistance for Ukraine

On Ukraine, U.S. officials are looking at proposals to provide lethal defense assistance.

“I think it is important to note that we have provided over $116 million worth of security assistance to the Ukrainians,” she said. “More important than that is the joint commission we have set up with the Ukrainians, the 25 visits that our generals have made from U.S. European Command to work on the medium and long-terms of the Ukrainian military to build them into a truly substantial force.”

In Iraq, Prime Minister Haydar al-Abadi “is saying the right things and starting to do the right things on the critical issue of reform and reconciliation in Iraq,” Slotkin said.

“This is different than what Prime Minister (Nouri al-) Maliki did, particularly after 2011,” she added. “In fact, Prime Minister Abadi has been deconstructing some of the things that Maliki did during his time.”

Abadi removed 20-plus Ministry of Interior officials today for corruption and mismanagement, Slotkin said.

If confirmed, Slotkin said she’d push to build capabilities and capacity for allies worldwide.

“We’ve all talked about the complexities of the world problems, the unpredictability of the world and there is nothing more important than the capacity and capabilities of partners in addressing those common threats,” she said.

North Korea 'Volatile and Dangerous' Pacom Nominee Says

By Claudette Roulo

DoD News, Defense Media Activity

WASHINGTON, Dec. 2, 2014 – The nominee to become the next commander of U.S. Pacific Command told Congress today that North Korea is the most volatile and dangerous threat in the Asia-Pacific region.

North Korean Threats

Kim Jong Un is opportunistic, unpredictable and ruthless as he seeks to acquire nuclear weapons and the means to deliver them intercontinentally, Navy Adm. Harry B. Harris Jr. said during his nomination hearing before the Senate Armed Services Committee.

And, he added, Kim is likely to take advantage of a weakened U.S. presence in the region if sequestration returns in 2016 as scheduled and forces the Navy to make cuts to its carrier strike groups.

“I believe that if there's no relief to the sequester, it will, in fact, increase risk,” the admiral noted. “It will increase risk to the lives of service men and women ... [and] it will affect the strength and the reach of our rebalance to the Pacific.”

North Korea's destabilizing efforts extend beyond the maritime realm and into cyber, he said.

“I believe that North Korea is seeking asymmetrical advantages over us and our allies in the Pacific, and cyber is just one of those methods by which they're seeking to get that advantage,” the admiral said.

China an “Enduring Challenge”

Harris, currently serving as the commander of U.S. Pacific Fleet, told the committee that in addition to the threats posed by North Korea's activities, “The dramatic rise of China's military, the uncertainty about how it will use its growing capabilities and its provocative actions in the region represent our most enduring challenge.”

“I believe that a strong China, of itself, a strong military in China of itself is not a bad thing, and we welcome the rise of a strong China that participates in the international arena,” he said.

Harris said that while he's concerned about China's provocative behavior in the East China Sea and the South China Sea, he wanted to acknowledge and applaud China's efforts in other areas. China assisted in the removal of chemical weapons from Syria, he said, and in counter-piracy efforts in the Horn of Africa and the Gulf of Aden region. “Their work in the search for the Malaysian airliner, MH-370, their work in supporting the Philippines during the [Haiyan] typhoon disaster last year. These are positive things,” the admiral said.

But, Harris added, China's anti-access/area-denial strategies are worthy of a hard look. The greatest advantage the U.S. has in the region, he explained, lies in its submarine fleet. While fighter aircraft are the key to “being able to get in there to do the missions,” submarines provide “indisputable leverage” over China and any other adversary in the Pacific for the foreseeable future, Harris said.

India Key to Regional Security

And India's importance to regional security shouldn't be overlooked, Harris said.

“I believe that India is a key nation in the region,” he said. “I refer to my responsibilities as a Pacific Fleet commander as covering the Indo-Asia-Pacific. I use that term intentionally, because I believe in the strategic value or the strategic balance that's offered by India.

“It's a critical country and it's an important country, and I believe an important friend to the United States,” the admiral said.

“As we continue to defend our national interests abroad, our efforts are bolstered by our teammates in the State Department and across government,” he said. “Our collective efforts amid the challenges I have mentioned underscore the importance of America remaining strong and engaged in the region.”

“American leadership does matter,” Harris said. Since the strategic rebalance was announced, he said, the U.S. has broadened its operations with Japan, deployed Marines rotationally to Australia and improved missile defense and cooperation with South Korea.

“We've also signed an important security agreement with the Philippines,” the admiral added.

“The rebalance is real and, although we all have concerns about the fiscal landscape, I believe that America has the staying power to sustain it,” Harris said.

But more can be done, he said, vowing that, if confirmed, he will “remain laser focused on deepening our regional alliances and partnerships to increase our combat agility and readiness.”

ASD Nominee Scher Emphasizes ‘Unwavering’ Military Support

By Air Force Tech. Sgt. Jake Richmond

DoD News, Defense Media Activity

WASHINGTON, Dec. 2, 2014 – Robert M. Scher, the nominee for assistant secretary of defense for strategy, plans and capabilities, testified to the Senate Armed Services Committee today that what happens at the Pentagon “is all about how to better support the men and women that make up our armed forces.”

Since April 2012, Scher has served as the deputy assistant secretary of defense for plans. If confirmed, he said his new role would be to support the undersecretary of defense for policy, the deputy secretary and the secretary of defense in formulating strategic guidance for the department.

He stressed an “unwavering” commitment to service members and said his most important task would be to ensure that “what we do in the Pentagon continues to best support our forces.”

Prioritizing the Nuclear Enterprise

Scher answered questions from committee members on the importance of effective strategy in Afghanistan and Ukraine, and he repeatedly discussed the nuclear enterprise, which he called a “number-one priority” for the Defense Department.

The nominee said the nuclear enterprise has remained safe, secure and effective, but added that the department has “underperformed” in that arena of late.

Officials have spent considerable time working to ensure the department understands the needs of the nuclear enterprise, Scher said, and he expects current funding plans will preserve modernization and fix problems that were found in multiple reviews.

“We spend about $15 to $16 billion per year,” he said. “We are looking to plus that number up in the billions – not tens of billions, but in the billions.”

He explained that the increase in funds will not come at the expense of modernization, but rather from other parts of the department’s budget.

Uncertain and Dynamic Environment

The DoD is operating in an “uncertain and dynamic environment” right now, Scher said, which doesn’t allow the luxury of exclusively focusing on either today’s problems or those of the future.

“We must simultaneously be working to address the needs of current operations, planning for potential contingencies, and ensuring that we build a military that is capable of responding to the threats and opportunities of the future,” Scher said.

Scher did offer a caveat to his comments on future plans and strategies: “Sequestration throws all of this into question.”

Before his current duty, Scher served as the deputy assistant secretary of defense for South and Southeast Asia, within the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Asian and Pacific Security Affairs, between April 2009 and April 2012. He entered government service through the Presidential Management Fellowship Program.

“If confirmed,” Scher said, “I will make every effort to live up to the confidence that has been placed in me.”