WEBVTT 00:00.009 --> 00:02.150 It is truly an honor to serve as the 00:02.160 --> 00:04.327 Deputy under Secretary of the Navy for 00:04.327 --> 00:07.230 policy . In that capacity . I serve as 00:07.239 --> 00:09.149 the principal civilian adviser on 00:09.159 --> 00:11.430 defense policy and foreign policy for 00:11.439 --> 00:14.289 the Department of the Navy . And doing 00:14.300 --> 00:16.022 that kind of work gives me the 00:16.022 --> 00:18.989 opportunity to support international 00:19.000 --> 00:21.340 engagement , to support international 00:21.350 --> 00:23.709 arrangements and partnerships and to 00:23.719 --> 00:25.552 support policies that make naval 00:25.552 --> 00:27.950 presence here at Diego Garcia possible . 00:28.579 --> 00:30.579 You have to come to Diego Garcia to 00:30.579 --> 00:32.590 really understand the extraordinary 00:32.599 --> 00:34.919 place that it is and the extraordinary 00:34.930 --> 00:37.840 mission that takes place here sitting 00:37.849 --> 00:40.016 here in the South Indian Ocean , seven 00:40.016 --> 00:42.238 degrees south of the equator . There is 00:42.238 --> 00:44.460 no place like it in the world where our 00:44.460 --> 00:47.700 naval forces are operating at its core . 00:47.709 --> 00:50.400 We are the island , we run the island , 00:50.409 --> 00:53.330 we make the island possible and to tick 00:53.349 --> 00:55.516 in concert with our British partners . 00:55.810 --> 00:59.340 Um And so what what we accomplish 00:59.349 --> 01:01.689 here is kind of incredible self 01:01.700 --> 01:04.584 sufficiency in a very austere remote 01:04.595 --> 01:07.194 location and we're supporting war 01:07.205 --> 01:09.038 fighters in multiple theaters in 01:09.038 --> 01:12.434 multiple domains . It really is 01:12.444 --> 01:14.444 exceptional when you consider where 01:14.444 --> 01:17.464 we're doing this from and the kinds of 01:17.474 --> 01:20.904 conditions we're working from out here 01:20.915 --> 01:23.680 in the South Indian Ocean to a certain 01:23.690 --> 01:25.690 extent , a lot of people don't know 01:25.690 --> 01:27.634 Diego Garcia exists because of the 01:27.634 --> 01:29.968 strategic nature of what we do out here . 01:29.968 --> 01:32.379 A lot of which we don't talk about . Um 01:32.389 --> 01:34.278 But it's a tremendous spectrum of 01:34.278 --> 01:37.949 support um that goes from uh all the 01:37.959 --> 01:41.199 way from space to undersea . Um 01:41.209 --> 01:44.319 And uh at the end of the day , it is a 01:44.330 --> 01:47.430 key enabler . It is something that um 01:47.870 --> 01:51.610 uh can flex at a moment's notice . 01:52.260 --> 01:55.849 And , you know , I think that's 01:55.860 --> 01:59.510 part of its indispensable quality is 01:59.519 --> 02:01.741 the fact that it's really not very well 02:01.741 --> 02:03.519 known , but it is so incredibly 02:03.519 --> 02:05.680 strategic and it's as indispensable 02:05.690 --> 02:09.169 today as it was decades ago when it was 02:09.179 --> 02:12.410 established . So I think that 02:12.990 --> 02:15.979 it is hard to leave this island , not 02:15.990 --> 02:19.449 impressed by the people who are 02:19.460 --> 02:21.627 contributing to this mission , who are 02:21.627 --> 02:23.793 supporting this mission . It's hard to 02:23.793 --> 02:26.016 leave , not impressed by what's able to 02:26.016 --> 02:27.904 be accomplished here and the true 02:27.904 --> 02:30.071 spirit of everyone that comes together 02:30.071 --> 02:33.169 to make all of this possible . So I 02:33.179 --> 02:35.529 leave here with nothing but the most 02:35.539 --> 02:37.970 favorable impressions of my time here . 02:38.679 --> 02:41.199 And I think that if there is one thing 02:41.210 --> 02:43.539 I would offer for the secretary , it's 02:43.550 --> 02:46.470 that as we look at Diego Garcia , we're 02:46.479 --> 02:49.059 also looking at an installation that's 02:49.070 --> 02:51.580 6 ft above sea level that is in the 02:51.589 --> 02:53.899 absolute crosshairs of climate change 02:54.440 --> 02:57.320 and that we can't talk about Diego 02:57.330 --> 02:59.163 Garcia without talking about the 02:59.163 --> 03:01.600 importance of resilience and the 03:01.610 --> 03:03.777 importance of ensuring that this is an 03:03.777 --> 03:05.999 enduring facility for decades to come . 03:06.289 --> 03:09.539 The team out here has to be prepared 03:09.550 --> 03:12.979 for all kinds of contingencies . But 03:12.990 --> 03:15.101 the other thing the team out here has 03:15.101 --> 03:16.990 to be able to do is to constantly 03:16.990 --> 03:18.601 battle mother nature and the 03:18.601 --> 03:20.712 environment that we have here , which 03:20.712 --> 03:22.934 is extraordinary . And that takes a lot 03:22.934 --> 03:25.770 of , a lot of attention , a lot of care , 03:25.779 --> 03:28.600 a lot of resources . And so making sure 03:28.610 --> 03:31.210 that we have a resilient Diego Garcia 03:31.220 --> 03:32.998 well into the future will be my 03:32.998 --> 03:34.300 priority message going home .