Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel to Headline Defense One Summit

Letter from the Editor:
Defense Secretary Hagel to Headline Defense One Summit

Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel will headline the Defense One Summit next week in Washington, joining a lineup of U.S. national security leaders gathering to discuss trends and ideas for the next era of global security.

Hagel took office early this year following a contentious confirmation process which scrutinized the former senator and Vietnam veteran’s lifetime of national security views, ranging from engaging adversaries like Iran, to advocating for nuclear nonproliferation and speaking out against the Iraq war. Now settled into his role as defense secretary, Hagel is charged with leading the Defense Department through a time of “uncertainty,” as he calls it, clouding the military’s future after a decade spent fighting a clearer, if limited, mission in Iraq and Afghanistan. In the post-war era, Hagel and the rest of President Obama’s administration have begun to outline some of the boundaries for a U.S. role in global security, which is the key theme of the Defense One Summit -- including determining just when and where and how to use military force. With the Afghanistan war ending, the Mideast in turmoil, a pivot to Asia underway, and a partisan climate in Washington’s budget fight disrupting DOD planning, Hagel has no small task in front of him.

Defense One is also pleased to announce that Acting Secretary of the U.S. Air Force Eric Fanning also will join the lineup. Fanning, who also is chief management officer of the Air Force, is presiding over a period a transition period in the service where everything from manned flight to nuclear bombers to the very need for an air force have come into question. Fanning has long experience managing the Defense Department’s workforce through change, serving previously as deputy under secretary of the Navy and deputy chief management officer.

Hagel and Fanning join the previously announced participants scheduled to be featured on stage, including: Under Secretary (Comptroller) Bob Hale; DARPA Director Arati Prabhakar; the Pentagon’s Deputy Chief Management Officer Beth McGrath; Lt. Gen. Terry Wolff, director of strategic plans and policy for the Joint Staff (J-5); Lt. Gen. Keith C. Walker deputy commanding general for futures and director of the Army Capabilities Integration Center.

The invitation-only audience will convene the Defense One Summit on Nov. 14, 2013 at the Grand Hyatt Hotel in Washington D.C.

For more information, speaker updates and to request an invitation to attend, please visit www.defenseone.com/summit.