Lloyd James Austin III is a retired United States Army four-star general who has served as the 28th and current United States Secretary of Defense since January 22,2021.
The United States under secretary of defense for policy (USDP) is a high level civilian official in the United States Department of Defense. The under secretary of defense for policy is the principal staff assistant and adviser to both the secretary of defense and the deputy secretary of defense for all matters concerning the formation of national security and defense policy.
Michael George Vickers is an American defense official who served as the Under Secretary of Defense for Intelligence (USD-I). As USD-I,Vickers,who was appointed by President Barack Obama in 2010,was the Defense Department's top civilian military intelligence official. Before becoming USD-I,Vickers served as Assistant Secretary of Defense for Special Operations and Low Intensity Conflict.
Michael A. Sheehan was an American author and former government official and military officer. He was a Distinguished Chair at the U.S. Military Academy in West Point,New York and a terrorist analyst for NBC News.
Michael D. Lumpkin is a former American Naval Officer and businessman who served as the Special Envoy and Coordinator of the Global Engagement Center at the U.S. Department of State from January 2016 to January 2017. From 2013 until 2016,he was the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Special Operations and Low-Intensity Conflict. During that time,he also served as the acting Under Secretary of Defense for Policy,the third-highest civilian job at the United States Department of Defense.
The Technical Support Working Group (TSWG) is a United States Interagency program for research and development into combating terrorism measures. Established in 1986,TSWG falls under the oversight of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Special Operations/Low-Intensity Conflict and derives some authorities for international work from the Coordinator for Counterterrorism at the Department of State.
Christopher Karl Mellon is an American politician and investor. He worked as a private equity investor as of 2023 and was the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Intelligence in the Clinton and George W. Bush administrations and later for Security and Information Operations. He formerly served as the Staff Director of the United States Senate Select Committee on Intelligence. He is a member of the influential Mellon family of the Greater Pittsburgh area. Mellon has lobbied for U.S. government investigations into UFO/UAP.
In the United States,the Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs or ASD (ISA) is the principal advisor to the Under Secretary of Defense for Policy (USD (P)) and the United States Secretary of Defense on international security strategy and policy on issues of Department of Defense (DoD) interest related to the governments and defense establishments of the nations and international organizations of Europe (including the North Atlantic Treaty Organization),the Middle East,Africa,and the Western Hemisphere. The ASD (ISA) also oversees security cooperation programs and foreign military sales programs in these regions. Despite the broad title of the office,the ASD (ISA) does not develop policy related to Asia,the Pacific region,Latin America,or South America.
The Assistant Secretary of Defense for Special Operations/Low-Intensity Conflict or ASD(SO/LIC),is the principal civilian advisor to the U.S. Secretary of Defense on special operations and low-intensity conflict matters. Located within the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Policy,the ASD(SO/LIC) is responsible primarily for the overall supervision of special operations and low-intensity conflict activities. These activities,according to USSOCOM's 2007 Posture Statement,include counterterrorism;unconventional warfare;direct action;special reconnaissance;foreign internal defense;civil affairs,information operations,psychological operations,and counterproliferation of WMD.
Assistant Secretary of Defense is a title used for many high-level executive positions in the Office of the Secretary of Defense within the U.S. Department of Defense. The Assistant Secretary of Defense title is junior to Under Secretary of Defense. Reorganization Plan No. 6 of 30 June 1953 increased the number of assistant secretaries. The National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2023 added three new Assistant Secretary positions under the Under Secretary for Research and Engineering. The list of Assistant Secretaries of Defense includes:
John F. Kirby is a retired United States Navy rear admiral serving as White House National Security Communications Advisor since 2022. He previously served in the Biden administration as Pentagon Press Secretary and Assistant to the Secretary of Defense for Public Affairs from 2021 to 2022. He worked as a military and diplomatic analyst for CNN from 2017 to 2021. He served in the Obama administration as Pentagon Press Secretary from 2013 to 2015 and as the spokesperson for the United States Department of State and Assistant Secretary of State for Public Affairs from 2015 to 2017.
Ezra Cohen,also known as Ezra Cohen-Watnick,is an American intelligence official who served as the acting under secretary of defense for intelligence during the Trump Administration. He previously served as the acting assistant secretary of defense for special operations and low-intensity conflict,national security adviser to the United States attorney general and as a former senior director for intelligence programs for the United States National Security Council (NSC).
Marshall Billingslea is a former Assistant Secretary for Terrorist Financing at the United States Department of the Treasury. He was the Trump administration's nominee to be Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security Affairs,and he previously served as a U.S. Senate staffer and as a Department of Defense official.
Michael Patrick Mulroy is the former United States Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense (DASD) for the Middle East,serving under Secretary James N. Mattis and Secretary Mark T. Esper. He was responsible for representing the United States Department of Defense (DoD) for defense policy and for Middle East policy in the interagency. He is also a retired CIA Paramilitary Operations Officer and a United States Marine.
Operation Freedom's Sentinel (OFS) was the official name used by the U.S. government for the mission succeeding Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) in continuation of the War in Afghanistan as part of the larger Global War on Terrorism. Operation Freedom's Sentinel was part of the NATO-led Resolute Support Mission,which began on January 1,2015. OFS had two components:counterterrorism and working with allies as part of Resolute Support.
Christopher Charles Miller is an American retired United States Army Special Forces colonel who served as acting United States secretary of defense from November 9,2020,to January 20,2021. He previously served as Director of the National Counterterrorism Center from August 10 to November 9,2020. Before his civilian service in the Department of Defense,Miller was a Green Beret,commanding 5th Special Forces Group in Iraq and Afghanistan,and later spent time as a defense contractor.
Kathleen Anne Holland Hicks is an American civil servant who has served as the United States deputy secretary of defense since 2021. She is the first Senate-confirmed woman in this role and is the highest ranking woman to have served in the United States Department of Defense.
Brett Michael Holmgren is an American intelligence official who served as assistant secretary of state for intelligence and research in the Biden administration. He currently serves as the acting director for the National Counterterrorism Center.
Christopher P. Costa is a retired US Army intelligence officer with 34 years of service,culminating in his role as Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Counterterrorism at the National Security Council,White House. He is now the executive director of the International Spy Museum.
Laura D. Taylor-Kale is an American foreign policy and economic advisor. She is the US Assistant Secretary of Defense for Industrial Base Policy.
United States 
United States Air Force 
