Pentagon Press Secretary Air Force Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder Holds an Off-Camera Press Briefing

Aug. 26, 2024

PENTAGON PRESS SECRETARY MAJOR GENERAL PAT RYDER:  So,  just a few things to kick off this morning. First of all, we continue to monitor the situation in the Middle East and remain prepared to support the defense of Israel.

As you're aware, Lebanese Hezbollah did conduct a drone and rocket attack against Israel Saturday evening Eastern Time, which Israel responded to, to include some preemptive strikes. As I'm sure you can appreciate, I'm going to refer you to the IDF to discuss their specific operations. I don't have any numbers to provide to you today as we continue to assess.

What I can tell you is that the US was not involved in Israel's preemptive strikes Saturday night. We did provide some intelligence surveillance reconnaissance support, ISR, in terms of tracking incoming Lebanese Hezbollah attacks, but did not conduct any kinetic operations, as they were not required.

Secretary Austin spoke to his Israeli counterpart, Minister Gallant, on Saturday night Eastern Time and Sunday morning Eastern Time to discuss Israeli actions to defend against attacks by Lebanese Hezbollah. During those calls, the secretary reiterated Israel's right to defend itself and the United States' ironclad resolved to support Israel's defense against threats from Iran and its regional partners and proxies.

Per the readout that we issued yesterday, as part of that support, the secretary has ordered the presence of two carrier strike groups to remain in the region. The secretary also expressed support for completing negotiations on a ceasefire and hostage release deal.

We remain well postured to support Israel's defense against any aggression from Iran, Lebanese Hezbollah or other actors. And as we've been from the start, we remain intently focused on de-escalating tensions in the region while also remaining focused on securing a ceasefire as part of a hostage deal to bring all of the hostages home and to end the war in Gaza.

Shifting gears, Secretary Austin released a statement this morning honoring our 13 service members who were killed three years ago at Abbey Gate in Kabul, Afghanistan. The statement reads in part, "We will never forget these 13 brave Americans, 11 Marines, a soldier and a sailor, who lost their lives defending their teammates and helping to save tens of thousands of Afghans seeking freedom and the opportunity for a better life. Another year has passed, but our gratitude will never wane. My thoughts are with our fallen troops and their families on this somber day, and with the families of all those whose loved ones made the ultimate sacrifice during America's two decades of war in Afghanistan." As I'm sure you're aware, the full statement is available on defense.gov.

And finally today, Dr. Jon T. Kosloski arrived on detail from the National Security Agency for appointment as the director of the All Domain Anomaly Resolution Office. Dr. Kosloski brings extensive experience working in multiple scientific fields, including quantum optics and crypto mathematics, as well as leading mission oriented research and analysis teams.

As the AARO director, Dr. Kosloski will head DOD's efforts, in coordination with the intelligence community, to minimize technical and intelligence surprise by synchronizing scientific intelligence and operational detection, identification, attribution and mitigation of unidentified anomalous phenomena, or UAP, in the vicinity of national security areas.

Under his leadership, AARO will continue to examine the US government historical record relating to UAP as well as efforts to declassify and release UAP related records to the greatest extent possible. Dr. Kosloski's bio is on Defense.gov.

With that I'll take your questions.

Q:  Will you translate that to English?  

MAJOR GENERAL RYDER:  Absolutely. It'll be posted up on the transcript.

Q:  Cryptocurrency at all?

MAJOR GENERAL RYDER:  I didn't say cryptocurrency.

All right. This is a very short podium here. Lita?

Q:  Yes. So, this is just so you have somewhere to put — ok. Ok, got it.

MAJOR GENERAL RYDER:  The copier was — I was —

Q:  So, just to double check on all of what you said, the US helped track incoming Hezbollah strikes, but the US took no action to shoot down any of the incoming as well as none of the proactive strikes, correct?

MAJOR GENERAL RYDER:  That's correct.

Q:  So — ok. On the carrier strike group, when did the secretary decide — decide to extend the TR again? Was it in reaction to the Hezbollah Israeli strikes? So, just give us some context on his thinking. Was it because of this — sort of the strikes triggered a concern of broader regional conflict, or can you help us with that timing?

MAJOR GENERAL RYDER:  Yeah. So, I'm not going to go into specific details on the exact timing other than to say, given the tensions in the Middle East and given our commitment to continue to support Israel's defense and deter potential aggression, the secretary did order an extension of the Theodore — Theodore Roosevelt carrier strike group. For operation security reasons, I'm not going to go into what that timeline looks like other than to say, again, he has ordered the two carriers to remain in the region.

Q:  Right. I am not asking how long they're staying. I'm asking, in the past, what has already happened when he made that decision? Was it over the weekend?

MAJOR GENERAL RYDER:  Over the weekend.

Q:  Was it before or after —

MAJOR GENERAL RYDER:  Over the weekend.

Q:  The attacks?

MAJOR GENERAL RYDER:  It was made over the weekend. I'll — that's as specific as I can get.

Q:  General?

MAJOR GENERAL RYDER:  Oren?

Q:  Israel described their attacks as preemptive strikes. The US also used that terminology, preemptive strikes. Does the US — did the US see indications that Hezbollah was preparing an attack? And did the US pass that information on to Israel?

MAJOR GENERAL RYDER:  So, I'm not going to discuss intelligence, Oren, other than, you know, we were closely monitoring the situation, as was Israel. I'll refer you to Israel to talk about their decision calculus in terms of conducting any type of preemptive strikes.

Clearly, you saw LH conducting drone and rocket attacks against Israel. And — and so, the fact that there was an attack clearly was demonstrative of the fact that they intended to attack. But as for the decision calculus on, you know, why and when, I'd — I'd refer you to the IDF.

Q:  But you — you — you accept Israel's explanation that it was a preemptive strike.

MAJOR GENERAL RYDER:  Correct. Correct. Clearly there was a threat emanating. They took action. But as for the decision calculus on why then, you know, I'd refer you to — to them.

Q:  General?

MAJOR GENERAL RYDER:  Yeah.

Q:  Thank you. So, you said Israel didn't need the — the US help in shooting down any of the — whether the Katyusha rockets or the drones. Was — was that decision made because of prior information that the US gathered in Israel about the size of the attack and what Hezbollah might use in it, or was it made during the attack?

MAJOR GENERAL RYDER:  So — and again, you know, I'm going to apologize here because there's — you know, can't get into intelligence, and I — and I can't get into tactical planning. But to answer your question, Fadi, the bottom line is the US is prepared, as we've demonstrated in the past, to — to use force in order to — to support the defense of Israel.

In this particular situation, given the threat that was launched from Lebanese Hezbollah, there was no requirement for the US to employ any of our munitions or capabilities to help defend. In other words, Israel was able to do that with its own organic capabilities and systems. Should there have been a need for us to do that, certainly we are posed and ready to go. And I'll just leave it there.

Q:  And in terms of Iran's response and in light of this attack by Hezbollah, does — the US is still seeing any indication that Iran is still preparing to launch an attack on Israel?

MAJOR GENERAL RYDER:  Well, we certainly hope that's not the case. But, you know, again, I'd point you back to some of the — the public comments that have been made by Iranian leaders and others, other, you know, proxy groups. And so, we have to take that seriously. So, we continue to assess that — that there is a threat of attack and we, again, remain well postured to be able to support Israel's defense as well as protect our forces, should they be attacked.

Q:  Thank you.

MAJOR GENERAL RYDER:  Yeah.

Q:  Thank you.

MAJOR GENERAL RYDER:  You're going to ask me an AARO question, aren't you?

Q:  You know it. How dare you bring up AARO in a gaggle?

MAJOR GENERAL RYDER:  I'm going to take that question.

Q:  I just wanted to make sure I understand. The new official who's on detail from NSA, he's going to be the permanent director and Tim Phillips is no longer the acting director?

MAJOR GENERAL RYDER:  As I understand it, he will be the director.

Q:  Okay.

MAJOR GENERAL RYDER:  Yeah.

Q:  Couldn't say from your others. And then, do you know when — the next report on cases that you guys are clearing of UAP, when AARO is planning to do that?

MAJOR GENERAL RYDER:  So, is this the volume two?

Q:  Yes, sir.

MAJOR GENERAL RYDER:  I do not. They continue to conduct their review, but we don't have any further to announce in terms of the timing of the report at this time.

Q:  Thank you.

MAJOR GENERAL RYDER:  Okay. Thank you. Charlie?

Q:  Thanks, Pat. Either in terms of ISR or in terms of the attack period itself, at any time were US aircraft, US fighters, I assume drones were in the region, were any of them scrambled during the period of the attack?

MAJOR GENERAL RYDER:  The — I gotta think how to answer this question. So, our forces, of course, are postured and ready to do what they need to do. I'm not going to get into the specifics in terms of where they were — where they were located, other than to say they were ready should they have needed to be employed in the defense of Israel.

Again, that wasn't a requirement. We did, as I mentioned, provide some ISR support to enable or to bolster Israel's ability to — to track incoming. But in terms of our kinetic capabilities, they were postured available and ready to go should they have been required, but they were not. Does that make sense?

Q:  Sort of. Were they on a deck or were they in the air or were they on a runway?

MAJOR GENERAL RYDER:  They — they were postured throughout the . Yeah. Okay.

Q:  Thanks. Given what happened over the weekend, did you all observe any heightened risk to troops in Iraq or Syria, or was any preemptive action taken there on — you know, around the bases? That is — I know that's done every once in a while, but —

MAJOR GENERAL RYDER:  Yeah. So, you know, what we're — given the current tensions, obviously, you know, we continue to look at — at force protection. Take that very seriously. Won't get into specifics. I'm not aware of any specific threats beyond what we've, you know, generally seen in the past in terms of, you know, some of the rhetoric. That said, you know, it's something we obviously will take very seriously. But hopefully, that answers your question.

Konstantin?

Q: Thanks, Pat. So, the — the TR got extended. Before them, the Ford got extended. The ARG/MEU that was in the — in the region also got extended. I mean, we're seeing a bit of a trend here of every Navy asset that goes into the region gets its deployment extended. Are there any concerns about sort of stressing Navy resources, the op tempo, that sort of thing?

MAJOR GENERAL RYDER:  Yeah. I mean, you know, clearly fleet management, force management, global force management is something that we take incredibly seriously all the way up to the secretary of defense, you know, himself. And that's something we're always going to look at.

But it's also important, again, to kind of take a step back and look at why we have these capabilities and why we have those assets in order to support our national security interests, and in this particular case, as I highlighted, to help protect our forces, to support Israel's defense, and to deter potential aggression.

And so, those kinds of decisions are — are — obviously, you know, a lot of deep thought goes into them. But certainly, we'll do everything we can to ensure we can meet our national security commitments while also at the same time managing the finite resources that we do have around the world.

All that to say, I mean, this is exactly — one of the key attributes of the DOD is our ability to surge forces to where we need them when we need them for various contingencies and crises. And so, that's exactly what you're — what you're seeing here.

Q:  Thanks.

MAJOR GENERAL RYDER:  Thanks. Will?

Q: Thanks, Pat. I just wanted to clarify something. You mentioned that the US continues to assess that there's a threat of an attack on Israel.

MAJOR GENERAL RYDER:  Did I — I didn't say that. What did I say? What — say that again?

Q:  Continues to assess that there is a risk of an attack on Israel.

MAJOR GENERAL RYDER:  I thought you said no risk.

Q:  Oh, no, no, no. Is that — is that directly from Iran, from proxies, or both?

MAJOR GENERAL RYDER:  Well, I mean, you know, I would just point you back to the — the public comments that you've seen come out of LH, Iran, you know, saying that they will retaliate. And so, again, we've got to take that seriously and we've got to be prepared.

Again, we would hope that that's not the case as it relates to the situation in Gaza, which I think is kind of a central aspect of the current tensions in the region. We would want to see a ceasefire. We would want to see hostages come home immediately. And so, again, we're going to continue to work toward that end and work toward a broader ceasefire and de-escalation of tensions in the region. Thanks.

Jeff?

Q:  Just following up on Iran, did you have any intelligence that Iran was also involved in this, directly involved and was preparing to attack Israel, as well at the same time as Hezbollah?

MAJOR GENERAL RYDER:  Don't want to talk about intelligence. You know, right now, I — you know, I would say that this was a Lebanese Hezbollah attack, obviously as a proxy of Iran. But this was Lebanese Hezbollah conducting an attack against Israel, and I'll just leave it — leave it at that.

Idrees?

Q:  Would — if Israel had asked, would carrying out preemptive strikes with them in Lebanon have come under the — the sort of definition of self-defense, in your opinion?

MAJOR GENERAL RYDER:  So, I'm not going to get into hypotheticals because they — they didn't ask, to my knowledge. And — and, look, I mean, again, just taking a step back, our focus is on enabling — or supporting, rather, Israel's defense should they be attacked.

So, again, that was an Israeli decision, to conduct those preemptive strikes based on information that they clearly had. The US was not a part of that. And so, we continue to maintain very frequent and close communication with our Israeli counterparts to understand the nature of the threat to be able to better support any defense, should that be required.

Q:  And was the secretary notified before the preemptive strikes?

MAJOR GENERAL RYDER:  So, I'm not going to have anything on that other than to say, again, we've been closely monitoring the situation. The secretary, as I highlighted at the top, spoke to Minister Gallant twice over the weekend. General Kurilla is also speaking to his counterparts and the chairman, of course, as well.

Q:  Was he caught by surprise?

MAJOR GENERAL RYDER:  Again, look, we've been monitoring this very closely and, you know, have been very clear about that. And so, as evidenced by the fact that Israel was able to respond as quickly as they were, you know, we — we have been in close communication throughout. And I'll just leave it there.

Q: And lastly, sorry, really quick, the TR. Is that extension, like, more than a few days, like, an actual — like, long — longer — longer than a few days?

MAJOR GENERAL RYDER:  Again, I — you know, just longstanding policy, I'm not going to get into ship deployment timelines other than to say, again, it's been extended, and we'll have two ships in the region.

Sir — and then I'll get to you. Sir.

Q:  Ok. Three weeks ago, you had a report that North Korea has a 250 missile launch and deployed them in front line. And then — but today, South Korea government thought about whether North Korea has enough missiles to apply for these 250 missile launchers, because North Korea supply missiles to Russia. So, do you think North Korea has enough missiles to supply 250 missile launchers?

MAJOR GENERAL RYDER:  So, I don't — I don't have any information to provide in terms of specifics of North Korea providing missiles or launchers to Russia other than to say that, look, we know that Russia and North Korea have this burgeoning relationship, that they have provided capabilities, to include munitions, to Russia for employment in Ukraine, which, again, demonstrates the fact that North Korea is — is complicit in this illegal Russian invasion, and it's something that we're keeping a very close eye on.

Q:  One more. North Korea demonstrated so-called suicide drones for the first time today. And some experts said that North Korean drones resemble Russian made drones, and with the possibility that they received Russian technology in return for North Korea providing weapons to North Korea and Russia. Do you — any comment on North Korean drones?

MAJOR GENERAL RYDER:  I've seen those press reports, but I don't have anything on that.

Q:  Ok.

MAJOR GENERAL RYDER:  Thanks. Eric?

Q:  Did the United States provide ISR to the Israelis to help them target the launchers in the preemptive strikes to allow Israel to defend its territory?

MAJOR GENERAL RYDER:  Eric, I — I'd let my comment stand that we provided ISR to help them understand the incoming as it related to Lebanese Hezbollah.

Q:  Right. I understand once they're launched, you're going to help —

MAJOR GENERAL RYDER:  We are not — in other words, we're not, to my knowledge, supporting them in terms of targeting operations. We're not helping them plan their operations.

Q:  You weren't helping confirm targets they already identified? They were just getting a gut check, US?

MAJOR GENERAL RYDER:  We were providing ISR support to enable the defense of Israel in terms of incoming, as I understand it.

Q:  Can I follow up on this?

MAJOR GENERAL RYDER:  Let me get a couple of —

Q:  Yeah. Sure.

MAJOR GENERAL RYDER:  Your colleagues. All right. Anybody else?

Q:  Just on — on Ukraine, I was hoping you could tell us a bit more about the advice that the US is giving the Ukrainians right now in their offensive in Kursk, and whether there's an assessment on how soon the Russians might be able to take Pokrovsk?

MAJOR GENERAL RYDER:  So, in terms of Kursk and the Ukrainians, I mean, you know, Secretary Austin, of course, has spoken to Minister Umerov about this, you know, and SAG-U also maintains a, you know, relationship with the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense. But at the end of the day, it's really up to Ukraine in terms of talking about their operations and the — you know, their calculus. I'm not going to get into their planning or our advice as it relates to that, as it's their decision.

You've heard President Zelenskyy say that they're working to create a buffer zone. So, I — you know, again, we're communicating with them to better understand what that entails as part of their broader campaign to secure their sovereign territory and to — to deter future Russian aggression because, obviously, that then carries with it certain requirements.

And our focus — you know, you've heard me say this before. Our focus is on helping them to remain a free and sovereign nation that's able to deter future Russian aggression. So, strategically, that's our focus. As it relates to Kursk, you know, is that part of that broader effort? Again, that's a question that only the Ukrainians can answer. And — and again, we'll continue to work with them to better understand their security assistance requirements and needs towards the broader strategic end state.

Q:  And Pokrovsk? Is there an assessment on how soon the Russians might reach?

MAJOR GENERAL RYDER:  You know, it's definitely something that we're keeping a close eye on. You're seeing the Russians make incremental gains there. And, you know, it's tough fighting along that border area. And so, again, we're going to continue to communicate, consult with the Ukrainians to better understand their needs to enable them to — to defend their territory.

Noah?

Q:  There was reporting that Chinese aircraft violated Japanese airspace, I believe over Nagasaki. Has the Pentagon seeing those reports? If so, has it been in contact with its Japanese counterparts? And does it have any comment on the flight?

MAJOR GENERAL RYDER:  I’ve seen the press reports. I'd have to refer you to Japan to talk about their sovereign airspace and any activities that they may have taken in that regard. You know, so that's kind of we're at.

Q:  Um-hmm. Also, returning to the Middle East, you've been saying from here in this short podium for a couple of weeks now that the US's message with its increased force posture in the Middle East has been to de-escalate, to try to get sides backing — backing away from a regional war. Obviously, Sunday was an escalation, but with both sides now trying to, it seems, take an offramp, do you assess that that increase in forces has worked as desired?

MAJOR GENERAL RYDER:  I do. I think that the additional forces in the theater send a very clear message to all actors in the region that we're serious when it comes to supporting the defense of Israel as well as protecting our forces should they be attacked, but then also giving us the capability and capacity to respond to a wide variety of contingencies should we need to do that.

So, again, I — I can't emphasize enough that we are not seeking any type of escalation in the region, the — the opposite. In fact, we're looking, as you highlight, to de-escalate. We're looking to get a ceasefire signed and the hostages released and start lowering the temperature around the region. And so, in addition to the military aspects of that, of course the main effort is on the diplomatic side, which continues to — to work itself very intently.

Ok. Go to Ellie and I'll come back to Fadi.

Q:  Has the Georgia arrived in Central Command yet?

MAJOR GENERAL RYDER:  There's always gotta be one person in the crowd asking about Georgia. Didn't you go to University of Georgia?

Q:  I just like their football team.

MAJOR GENERAL RYDER:  Yeah. Look, as I understand it, the Georgia is still underway, but I don't have any updates to provide on that.

Okay, take one more. Fadi?

Q:  Thank you. So, again, I want to revisit this question of ISR and intelligence. As — as part of this effort by the US, are you monitoring Lebanese territories where Hezbollah is active?

MAJOR GENERAL RYDER:  I, again, appreciate the question. I'm just not going to be able to go into discussions on intelligence operations beyond what I've already provided.

So, all right. Thanks very much, everybody. Appreciate it.