FAMU announces Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin III headlines spring commencement
Phelan M. Ebenhack/AP
U.S. Central Command Commander Gen. Lloyd Austin III addresses military recruits during an induction ceremony during halftime of an NFL football game between the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the New York Giants in Tampa, Fla., Sunday, Nov. 8, 2015. (AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack)
Posted at 10:26 AM, Apr 05, 2021
and last updated 2021-04-05 10:26:45-04
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) â Florida A&M University announced Monday that U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin III will deliver the keynote address at the in-person Spring 2021 Commencement ceremony on Saturday, April 24.
Saturday eveningâs ceremony will feature students from the College of Social Sciences, Arts and Humanities. Austin, the first African American to head the Defense Department, will also officiate at the commissioning ceremony for 17 officers, members of FAMUâs largest Reserve Officer Training Corps gra
Washington [US], April 2, (ANI): US Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin III spoke with his Greek counterpart Nikos Panagiotopoulos to reaffirm a mutual commitment to security in the Eastern Mediterranean and NATO's Southern Flank, the Defence Department said in a release on Thursday.
thank you very much. thank you very much for your service to your country, we do predict that. thank you. reporter: indeed, jon, general austin will be commanding a third of troops he did in 2008. it is by no means a soft mission, advising and assisting the iraqi troops going forward. the americans have to train iraqi troops, still, in combat, although the official american combat operation is over, u.s. soldiers will still be in the line of fire as they go out and show iraqis how to do the job and how to secure the country and maintain its own sovereign country and nation going forward. back to you in new york. jon: we all hope and pray that mission goes well. dominic, thank you. jenna: another story on iraq now, iraq is spending billions of dollars to transform its military into a state of the art fighting force, and guess who they re spending that money with? they re turning to us, the united states, to make that happen. there are new reports the iraqi government is planning to
facts, figures, whatever else, let us know. thanks, chad. sure. the u.s. officially begins a new phase of operations in iraq. a ceremony in baghdad today marked the end of the combat mission and the start of support rules for u.s. troops. there was also a change of command, army general lloyd austin iii is commander of u.s. forces in iraq. vice president biden helped preside over the ceremony. operation iraqi freedom is over, but american engagement with iraq will continue with the mission that begins today. operation new dawn. as the name suggests, the ceremony not only marks the change of a command, but the start of a different chapter in relationship with iraq. you know, for the next 16 months, american troops are
are there, even if our numbers are diminishing the iraqiingso iraqis know we ll be there to make it through this transition period to help them take it on their own. jenna: general ray odierno is leaving on wednesday after five years of leading our troops there. we have a new general coming in, general lloyd austin iii, we haven t heard about that, it s not going to be a huge ceremony, but this is happening. what does that mean to the troops there? well, i think it s symbolic of a transition but i also think the troops will be sad to see a guy like general odierno leave, he embodies the learning curve of the military, embodies the resolve of what our army and marine corps have done on the ground in iraq that, if you stick to the fight, change your strategy and do it right with enough resources you can ultimately change the dynamics on the ground. general odierno and general petraeus were the two guys that primarily made that happen in the thick of things in 07 and 08 and will be mi