Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin is bidding farewell to the forces and personnel he's led through a tumultuous term

It's unclear who'll take over at the Pentagon and the military services when the top leaders all step down Monday as President-elect Donald Trump is sworn into office.

Departing Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin spurns criticism from President-elect Donald Trump — and from Trump’s choice to replace him — that the American military has become too “woke,” and champions the value of diversity policies that the next administration wants to scrap.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin bid farewell Friday to the forces and personnel he has led through a tumultuous term that had three major military crises, a global pandemic and a personal brush with cancer that became a flashpoint for the way it was mishandled.

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin’s failure to inform Congress or the White House as required when he was incapacitated due to treatment for prostate cancer and later complications potentially raised “unnecessary” security risks.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin used their final meeting Thursday to press the incoming Trump administration not to give up on Kyiv’s fight, with Austin warning that to cease military support now “will only invite more aggression,

During the gathering at his Florida estate, Trump confirmed several shifts in government priorities, namely a planned meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Putin "wants to meet, and we're setting it up," he told attendees. Most reporters weren't invited to the proceedings, but questions were taken from a Fox News Channel journalist.

Donald Trump’s administration had warned of the problem ... referring to the nation’s board of top military officers. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin at Philippine navy headquarters as part of his visit to Subic Bay, Philippines, July 2024.

Wicker did not specify what day the vote would take place, but said it could be as late as next Thursday if Senate Democrats do not allow the chamber to speed up the confirmation process.

RAMSTEIN AIR BASE, Germany — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin used their ... President-elect Donald Trump’s pronouncements about pushing for ...

Zelenskyy and Austin Use Their Final Meeting to Press Trump to Keep Supporting Ukraine RAMSTEIN AIR BASE, Germany (AP) — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd ...