WASHINGTON – Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin was back in the office Monday, exactly four weeks after he was rushed to the hospital with complications from prostate cancer surgery that he kept from his colleagues – and President Biden – for days.
The Department of Defense issued a brief statement announcing Austin’s return, saying the 70-year-old had been working from home since being released from Walter Reed National Army Medical Center on January 15.
Austin’s return to the pentagon coincided with a visit to the Pentagon by NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, who met with Austin and other senior defense officials to discuss the alliance’s continued support for Ukraine and other global security matters.
“At this important time, I am delighted to be back at the Pentagon,” Austin said at the opening of his meeting with Stoltenberg Monday. “I’m feeling good and recovering well, but I’m still recovering.”
On New Year’s Day evening, Austin was taken by ambulance from his home in Virginia in severe pain from a urinary tract infection following his Dec. 22 prostatectomy.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin is back at work in person, attending a meeting with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg at the Pentagon in Washington on Monday, Jan. 29, 2024. AP
Secrecy appears to be Austin’s top priority, with one aide asking the 911 operator for an ambulance to arrive without turning on its lights or sirens.
“We’re trying to stay a little subtle,” the aide added on the call.
Austin quietly transferred his authority to Deputy Secretary Kathleen Hicks on Jan. 2 — without telling her or any of his other Pentagon colleagues why — but failed to tell the White House that he had done so. That didn’t happen until Jan. 4, when Biden was notified of Austin’s hospitalization.
Although the Pentagon quietly revealed Austin’s hospitalization to the public in a Friday news dump the following day, the full story didn’t come out until January 9, when Austin’s doctor Walter Reed released a statement revealing his prostate cancer diagnosis and early surgery — which was also news. to the Pentagon and the White House.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin hosted the January Ukrainian Defense Liaison Group virtually from his home in Great Falls, Va. while he was recovering from complications from prostate cancer treatment. AP
Austin’s secrecy has upset many in Washington, prompting both Republican and Democratic lawmakers to call for his resignation. Biden said he intended to keep Austin in his role despite the controversy.
The House Armed Services Committee has asked Austin to testify about the ordeal during a hearing on February 14.
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
