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Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III today called on the next generation of Army officers to lead with courage and unwavering commitment to those women and men who have answered the call to serve.
In his address to U.S. Military Academy, West Point, New York, cadets on "Lessons in American Military Leadership," the secretary drew from his more than four decades of service in uniform underscoring that the people who fill the ranks of the nation's all-volunteer force will continue to remain as the core of the United States' warfighting prowess.
"Over the decades, our uniforms have changed. Our weapons have changed. Our tactics have changed. But one thing won't ever change. And that's the power and the capability of our people," Austin, a member of West Point's graduating class of 1975, said.
"You are the key to our strength and our warfighting power," he said. "And the security of the United States will always depend on two huge strategic assets: the talents and the commitment of the American people, and the values of our democracy."
He conveyed a series of lessons learned from his nearly six years of leading in combat as he drove home the imperative of leading the nation's warfighters with conviction.
"On the battlefield, troops will only go as far as they have to for poor leaders," Austin said. "But troops will go the distance for good leaders. And I have personally seen this over and over again.
"American soldiers will run through walls for leaders, and I mean that literally," he said. "They will do amazing things. They will show phenomenal courage. And it is more powerful than anything you'll see in any war movie."
That intrinsic bravery permeates throughout the ranks regardless of gender, Austin said. He noted, in particular, the courage he has witnessed among women serving under his command.
While serving as the assistant division commander for maneuver during the march on Baghdad in 2003, Austin said he decided to keep his command post close to the fight to see the situation and understand the battlefield conditions.
Shortly before crossing the line of departure, he gathered his team, including "several extraordinary women," serving in his command post to discuss what lay ahead.
"I told my team, 'Look, we need to win this fight, so I need to be at the front,' Austin recalled. "I know what will happen to me if I'm captured. I have no intention of being captured, and I will fight to the last bullet. But the risks are serious. I am enormously proud of all of you, and that won't ever change. So, if anyone here thinks that they can't deploy forward, I fully understand. And no one will ever think any less of you."
"The women and men of that incredible team looked at me, and finally one of the women popped up and said, 'Sir, what are you talking about,'" Austin said.
He said despite facing the same dangers as the men, and perhaps more, the women under his command "did not flinch."
"That is who the women of the United States military are," Austin said. "Everywhere I've gone on a battlefield, I've seen women fighting for America. They are incredibly capable, incredibly accomplished, and incredibly brave."
He also highlighted the bravery of another soldier who risked his life to save his save the members of his squad who had become pinned down by enemy fire in Iraq.
Austin, who was deployed to Iraq as a one-star general, spoke to the unit immediately after the firefight.
"Once we had evacuated the unit and they were out of harm's way, I approached that young soldier and I asked him, 'Hey, what made you do that? What made you run toward that automatic weapon?'" Austin said. "And I asked him, 'Weren't you afraid?'"
The soldier confirmed he was scared out of his mind, Austin said.
"And then he said, 'But I heard my squad leader's voice, and I knew that it was going to be OK,'" Austin said.
He said those "extraordinary patriots" that fill the ranks demand "extraordinary leadership." He called on the cadets to lead from the front and foster teamwork and confidence among the soldiers they lead.
"We are one team. One team," Austin said. And in today's complex national-security environment, we don't have one warrior to spare."
The secretary said the new generation of leaders are stepping up at a critical time for global security and for American ideals.
"We face serious security challenges today: coercion from the People's Republic of China; aggression from Putin's Russia; malice from North Korea, Iran, and transnational terrorist groups; and autocrats around the world who insist that democracy's day is done," Austin said.
He added that while the cadets will enter the Army under extraordinary circumstances, they are up to the task.
"Believe in yourselves," he said. "And trust in the training, the education, and the confidence that you've gained here as cadets."
