WEBVTT 00:00.009 --> 00:02.120 Conversations with Coast Guard senior 00:02.130 --> 00:04.030 leaders . We just heard from the 00:04.039 --> 00:06.206 commander of the Atlantic area and now 00:06.206 --> 00:08.261 we are heading west to hear from our 00:08.261 --> 00:10.500 commander of the Pacific area , Vice 00:10.510 --> 00:13.609 Admiral Andrews . So Admiral Tien 00:13.949 --> 00:15.979 assumed command of the Coast Guard 00:15.989 --> 00:18.620 Pacific area in Alameda , California . 00:18.629 --> 00:22.280 In July 22 Admiral Tien serves as the 00:22.290 --> 00:24.959 operational commander responsible for 00:24.969 --> 00:27.760 all coast guard missions whispered from 00:27.770 --> 00:29.799 the rocky mountains across the Indo 00:29.819 --> 00:32.990 Pacific Arctic and Antarctic 00:33.000 --> 00:36.259 regions to the coast of eastern Africa . 00:36.450 --> 00:39.250 He currently serves as Commander 00:39.259 --> 00:41.979 Defense Force West and provides Coast 00:41.990 --> 00:43.900 Guard operational support to the 00:43.909 --> 00:45.909 Department of Defense and Combatant 00:45.909 --> 00:48.509 Commanders following the interview . 00:48.520 --> 00:50.464 He'll be taking questions from the 00:50.464 --> 00:52.576 audience . So definitely stick around 00:52.576 --> 00:54.576 and think about those questions you 00:54.576 --> 00:56.742 want to ask the admiral and he will be 00:56.742 --> 00:59.076 interviewed by our acquisition director , 00:59.076 --> 01:00.909 Communications manager , Loretta 01:00.909 --> 01:02.964 Herring , former editor and reporter 01:02.964 --> 01:05.529 Loretta . Take it away . I'd like to 01:05.540 --> 01:07.651 thank you for being here and I'd like 01:07.651 --> 01:09.818 to thank everybody in the audience for 01:09.818 --> 01:11.707 being here to share the important 01:11.707 --> 01:13.873 information about what the Coast Guard 01:13.873 --> 01:16.040 is doing today . Ok . Let's start with 01:16.040 --> 01:18.096 the Indo Pacific . The United States 01:18.096 --> 01:20.262 has taken an increased interest in the 01:20.262 --> 01:22.429 Indo Pacific for a variety of economic 01:22.429 --> 01:24.410 and political reasons . National 01:24.419 --> 01:26.360 security adviser , Jake Sullivan 01:26.370 --> 01:28.537 recently spoke about the importance of 01:28.537 --> 01:30.481 the Coast Guard's role in the Indo 01:30.481 --> 01:32.537 Pacific and noted that the deterrent 01:32.537 --> 01:35.199 will be key in this region . What does 01:35.209 --> 01:37.376 deterrence currently look like for the 01:37.376 --> 01:39.487 Coast Guard ? And what do you see the 01:39.487 --> 01:41.709 Coast Guard's role over the next 1 to 5 01:41.709 --> 01:45.400 years ? Well , first off , 01:45.629 --> 01:47.240 thank you very much for this 01:47.240 --> 01:49.379 opportunity . I always appreciate 01:49.650 --> 01:52.059 having a chance to tell a Coast Guard 01:52.069 --> 01:54.291 story and what we are doing in the Indo 01:54.291 --> 01:56.559 Pacific . So thank you so much for this 01:56.569 --> 01:58.402 opportunity . I really like your 01:58.402 --> 02:01.779 question as well . Um Let me just , 02:01.790 --> 02:04.139 I'll start with a couple of things . 02:04.629 --> 02:08.580 One you mentioned Jake Sullivan in 02:08.589 --> 02:12.250 there and , and certainly of all of the 02:12.580 --> 02:16.000 agencies in the US 02:16.009 --> 02:18.065 government . I think there's about , 02:18.065 --> 02:21.449 there's over 430 of them , over 430 of 02:21.460 --> 02:24.850 these , which one was actually named 02:24.860 --> 02:27.460 specifically in the White House's in 02:27.919 --> 02:31.440 Indo Pacific strategy . It was 02:31.449 --> 02:33.880 US , it was the United States Coast 02:33.889 --> 02:37.380 Guard . That's incredible . And it 02:37.389 --> 02:40.070 wasn't about you should or think about 02:40.080 --> 02:43.089 or any of that stuff . It specifically 02:43.100 --> 02:45.660 told us to go ahead and increase our 02:45.669 --> 02:49.520 presence in the form in a , in a uh 02:50.130 --> 02:53.940 uh in advising , training and building 02:53.949 --> 02:57.360 partner capacity . There's no doubt 02:57.970 --> 03:00.137 that's where it is and people see that 03:00.137 --> 03:02.710 value and they see the value we provide . 03:03.169 --> 03:05.280 Why do they see that because we do it 03:05.280 --> 03:08.199 so well with the American public . And 03:08.210 --> 03:10.377 what that value proposition is that we 03:10.377 --> 03:13.779 provide not only to , to our own 03:13.789 --> 03:16.820 nation , but globally as a global coast 03:16.830 --> 03:19.052 guard . It's very simple and we know it 03:19.052 --> 03:21.219 very well . It's maritime governance . 03:21.679 --> 03:23.846 Think about maritime governance in the 03:23.846 --> 03:26.068 broader sense . Think about it in terms 03:26.068 --> 03:29.320 of there's a mts in there , marine 03:29.330 --> 03:31.108 transportation system , they're 03:31.108 --> 03:33.108 searching rescue in there , there's 03:33.108 --> 03:35.163 maritime security in there , there's 03:35.163 --> 03:37.163 environmental protection in there . 03:37.163 --> 03:39.274 Think about all of our missions under 03:39.274 --> 03:41.386 the umbrella of maritime governance . 03:41.386 --> 03:43.386 That is our value proposition . And 03:43.386 --> 03:45.800 that's what people see and he see it 03:45.809 --> 03:49.410 and he say , wow , I want some of that 03:49.419 --> 03:51.919 over here in country wide , that is the 03:51.929 --> 03:54.619 global demand calling us . And that's 03:54.630 --> 03:56.297 why you see the White House , 03:56.297 --> 03:58.408 acknowledging this saying you need to 03:58.408 --> 04:00.574 go out there and , and see what we can 04:00.574 --> 04:02.809 do with these partner nations 04:02.820 --> 04:04.709 throughout the Indo Pacific . And 04:04.709 --> 04:06.931 that's what we do each and every day in 04:06.931 --> 04:08.820 PAC area . And we do that through 04:08.820 --> 04:11.410 relentless incrementalism , small bites , 04:11.419 --> 04:14.080 little bites at a time building up to 04:14.089 --> 04:17.190 have a strategic impact . We do it with 04:17.200 --> 04:20.679 hardware , we do it with people , we do 04:20.690 --> 04:23.269 it by engaging in different multi 04:23.660 --> 04:27.510 multilateral forum throughout the world . 04:27.820 --> 04:30.329 So thank you for that question . But 04:30.339 --> 04:32.339 those are the types of things we're 04:32.339 --> 04:34.440 doing and it's not , it's not that 04:34.450 --> 04:36.506 we're creating anything new . I told 04:36.506 --> 04:38.728 you it was based on maritime governance 04:38.728 --> 04:40.783 of which we do . So think about what 04:40.783 --> 04:42.506 we're doing in partner nations 04:42.506 --> 04:44.506 throughout the Indo Pacific . We're 04:44.506 --> 04:46.672 providing search and rescue training . 04:46.672 --> 04:48.283 We're providing maritime law 04:48.283 --> 04:50.283 enforcement subject matter , expert 04:50.283 --> 04:52.172 exchanges . We're providing cyber 04:52.172 --> 04:54.228 protection , subject matter , expert 04:54.228 --> 04:55.783 exchanges . We're providing 04:55.783 --> 04:58.006 environmental protection . In fact , we 04:58.006 --> 05:00.006 have a small team right now that is 05:00.006 --> 05:02.006 down in the Philippines helping out 05:02.006 --> 05:04.117 with a major oil spill that they have 05:04.117 --> 05:06.440 had one that stretches 75 miles . It's 05:06.450 --> 05:10.190 over 200 gallons of fuel oil . And our 05:10.230 --> 05:13.549 folks are there providing counsel 05:13.720 --> 05:17.230 to the Philippines as well as 05:17.239 --> 05:20.130 Korea who is here to help out Japan and 05:20.140 --> 05:22.140 maybe Australia . But these are the 05:22.149 --> 05:24.205 types of things we do each and every 05:24.205 --> 05:27.390 day in a area to do one thing , one 05:27.399 --> 05:30.130 thing very important . And that's our , 05:30.200 --> 05:32.367 that's our goal . That's our vision is 05:32.367 --> 05:34.200 that and that is to be a trusted 05:34.200 --> 05:36.869 partner , a trusted partner in the 05:36.880 --> 05:39.970 region . Thanks for that question . You 05:39.980 --> 05:41.989 keep talking about partnerships and 05:42.000 --> 05:44.089 partners . What kind of partnership 05:44.100 --> 05:46.322 building are we currently conducting in 05:46.322 --> 05:50.040 that region ? I 05:50.059 --> 05:51.892 just , I just mentioned , I just 05:51.892 --> 05:54.059 mentioned one , a real life one that's 05:54.059 --> 05:55.781 going on right now in terms of 05:55.781 --> 05:58.279 environmental protection , that small 05:58.290 --> 06:00.269 island in the Philippine Islands , 06:01.000 --> 06:03.750 their , their uh their livelihood is 06:03.760 --> 06:07.220 fisheries . There are over 20 06:07.480 --> 06:10.250 protected areas that have been impacted , 06:10.260 --> 06:12.260 fisheries protected areas that have 06:12.260 --> 06:14.609 been impacted by this fuel oil spill . 06:16.160 --> 06:19.109 Their livelihood is also tourism . 06:19.589 --> 06:22.450 Guess what happens when you have oil 06:22.459 --> 06:24.899 that's coming up on the shore and you 06:24.910 --> 06:26.966 want to talk about being a partner . 06:26.966 --> 06:29.077 Those are the types of things that we 06:29.077 --> 06:31.077 do to get out there and be , and be 06:31.077 --> 06:33.440 partners . It's amazing to me when 06:33.450 --> 06:36.179 people think about the Indo Pacific and 06:36.190 --> 06:38.412 things like that , they think about big 06:38.412 --> 06:41.130 cutters and aircraft and , and hardware . 06:41.890 --> 06:44.220 Um And yeah , I say that's part of it , 06:44.720 --> 06:48.399 but what we do is amazing with 06:48.410 --> 06:50.790 small teams . There's a team of five 06:50.799 --> 06:53.021 people down here helping out the will . 06:53.021 --> 06:55.459 We'll , we'll send a team of three to 06:55.470 --> 06:58.049 talk about how we do humanitarian 06:58.059 --> 07:00.540 assistance and disaster relief to a 07:00.549 --> 07:04.140 partner nation . And that has cascading 07:04.149 --> 07:06.890 impacts throughout that nation . So , 07:06.899 --> 07:10.480 is it all about hardware ? I'd say no . 07:10.510 --> 07:12.454 In fact , the commandant says when 07:12.454 --> 07:14.510 you're building these partnerships , 07:14.510 --> 07:16.510 this is people , business and we do 07:16.510 --> 07:18.869 that very well with small groups of 07:18.880 --> 07:21.660 people . So thanks again , I can talk 07:21.670 --> 07:23.781 about this all day . You want to keep 07:23.781 --> 07:25.948 on going . I was just going to mention 07:25.948 --> 07:28.170 that in the media , you usually see the 07:28.170 --> 07:30.392 pictures of you running the drills like 07:30.392 --> 07:32.503 the Japanese Coast Guard or something 07:32.503 --> 07:34.503 as you said , the big cutters . But 07:34.503 --> 07:36.726 it's great that you have the example of 07:36.726 --> 07:36.079 the small teams like that . It's 07:36.089 --> 07:38.256 amazing work that you guys are doing . 07:38.350 --> 07:40.829 So , Admiral Putin just released NAS 07:40.980 --> 07:44.040 release of the Arctic strategic Outlook , 07:44.049 --> 07:46.510 implementation plan and enhancing 07:46.519 --> 07:49.100 operations and exercises in the Arctic 07:49.109 --> 07:51.160 is among the initiative task to the 07:51.170 --> 07:54.010 Pacific area . We know that this region 07:54.019 --> 07:55.950 has significant geo strategic 07:55.959 --> 07:58.179 importance for the United States . But 07:58.190 --> 08:00.412 how do we remain competitive there with 08:00.412 --> 08:02.350 just two icebreakers compared to 08:02.359 --> 08:03.350 Russia's 40 ? 08:07.540 --> 08:08.989 Well , we're 38 behind . 08:12.410 --> 08:15.450 That's a great question . So I can't 08:15.459 --> 08:17.790 help but start at the very top of our 08:17.799 --> 08:20.010 nation in strategies , right . So 08:20.019 --> 08:22.420 recently released was the White House's 08:22.429 --> 08:24.899 national strategy for the Arctic region . 08:25.730 --> 08:27.674 Who do you think is named in there 08:27.674 --> 08:29.841 specifically again , the United States 08:29.841 --> 08:32.063 Coast Guard , what does it talk about ? 08:32.063 --> 08:34.286 It talks about expanding our presence , 08:34.286 --> 08:36.397 doing the same type of stuff in terms 08:36.397 --> 08:39.179 of training , advising and ice breakers . 08:39.859 --> 08:42.078 The need for our icebreakers . The ice 08:42.088 --> 08:44.088 breaker acquisition for us is a top 08:44.088 --> 08:46.144 priority . There is no doubt it is a 08:46.144 --> 08:48.310 top priority . It's a top priority for 08:48.310 --> 08:50.532 the United States Coast Guard . It is a 08:50.532 --> 08:52.699 top priority for the government of the 08:52.699 --> 08:54.921 United States . We have a lot of things 08:54.921 --> 08:57.144 that are happening up in the Arctic and 08:57.144 --> 08:59.310 there are threats and challenges there 08:59.310 --> 09:01.366 all the time . So , so first we know 09:01.366 --> 09:03.588 that we are an Arctic nation because of 09:03.588 --> 09:06.229 Alaska . We have a large footprint in 09:06.239 --> 09:09.830 Alaska over 10% of our overall 09:09.840 --> 09:12.630 structure . Our infrastructure is right 09:12.640 --> 09:16.059 there in Alaska . That's big , that's 09:16.070 --> 09:19.739 big . We always try to keep and frankly , 09:19.750 --> 09:21.917 we do extremely well at trying to keep 09:21.917 --> 09:24.140 a 1.0 presence . We always have a large 09:24.150 --> 09:26.270 cutter that's there and around the 09:26.280 --> 09:28.119 Bering Sea , we do that for many 09:28.130 --> 09:30.700 reasons . One is basic search and 09:30.710 --> 09:32.932 rescue . The other is to ensure that we 09:32.932 --> 09:36.229 are conducting law enforcement in terms 09:36.239 --> 09:39.440 of fisheries and those things . And the 09:39.450 --> 09:42.830 last reason is because we need to be in 09:42.840 --> 09:45.007 the strategic mode of meeting presence 09:45.007 --> 09:47.890 with presence . So for example , just 09:47.900 --> 09:51.159 this past summer , they were , they 09:51.169 --> 09:53.650 were APR C and Russian Surface Action 09:53.659 --> 09:55.440 Group or a task force that was 09:55.450 --> 09:57.919 operating in the Arctic in the US . 09:59.739 --> 10:03.200 And our on station national security 10:03.210 --> 10:06.000 cutter went and shadowed them and met . 10:06.010 --> 10:08.330 Presence with presence . I don't think 10:08.340 --> 10:11.580 presence isn't important . Presence is 10:11.590 --> 10:13.757 a form of maritime governance . We see 10:13.757 --> 10:15.868 you , we know what you're doing . Can 10:15.868 --> 10:17.812 you transit through these waters ? 10:17.812 --> 10:20.034 Absolutely don't be doing anything else 10:20.034 --> 10:22.201 we're here and we know what's going on 10:22.359 --> 10:24.192 and that is important . And what 10:24.192 --> 10:26.303 happens is if you continue with these 10:26.303 --> 10:28.248 things of maritime governance , it 10:28.248 --> 10:31.260 begets good behavior and that's why we 10:31.270 --> 10:33.492 meet presidents with presidents all the 10:33.492 --> 10:35.714 time . And those are the reasons why we 10:35.714 --> 10:37.603 keep one of those up there in the 10:37.603 --> 10:39.826 Arctic . Now , I didn't even talk about 10:39.826 --> 10:41.992 all of our partners throughout there . 10:41.992 --> 10:43.826 People usually say , and I think 10:43.826 --> 10:45.992 Admiral Lu was just talking about some 10:45.992 --> 10:47.770 of them . He probably mentioned 10:47.770 --> 10:50.349 Greenland , Denmark , the UK , France . 10:50.359 --> 10:52.581 We work with the Canadians all the time 10:52.679 --> 10:55.000 up in the Arctic . What people don't 10:55.010 --> 10:57.359 understand is we actually work with the 10:57.369 --> 11:00.239 Russians . We work with the Russian 11:00.250 --> 11:02.250 border guard because we have mutual 11:02.250 --> 11:04.239 interests up there . We share a 11:04.250 --> 11:06.590 maritime boundary line . They have 11:06.719 --> 11:08.719 fisheries on their side . They have 11:08.719 --> 11:11.380 fishermen , we have fisheries and 11:11.390 --> 11:13.446 fishermen on our side . We share the 11:13.446 --> 11:15.668 common interests of search and rescue . 11:15.668 --> 11:17.890 In case something goes bad . We share , 11:17.890 --> 11:20.112 we share the mutual interest of , hey , 11:20.112 --> 11:22.279 these are our sovereign rights on this 11:22.279 --> 11:25.289 side . Don't be taking our fish back 11:25.299 --> 11:28.179 and forth . And then we , we also 11:28.190 --> 11:30.559 concerned about environmental . So 11:30.570 --> 11:32.737 people usually look kind of strange at 11:32.737 --> 11:35.320 me when I say we do communicate with 11:35.330 --> 11:37.052 them and we want to keep those 11:37.052 --> 11:39.274 partnerships going because the Arctic , 11:39.274 --> 11:41.386 as you know , it's about partnerships 11:41.386 --> 11:43.386 up there just like it is everywhere 11:43.386 --> 11:45.386 else . And we have a small piece of 11:45.386 --> 11:47.552 that because Alaska makes us an Arctic 11:47.552 --> 11:50.219 nation . Thank you . Why don't you tell 11:50.229 --> 11:52.396 us about the equities in the Antarctic 11:52.396 --> 11:54.396 and the operations of service plans 11:54.396 --> 11:57.739 there in the future ? Well , I 11:57.750 --> 11:59.972 appreciate that too . I probably should 11:59.972 --> 12:02.139 have said up in the Arctic , the coast 12:02.139 --> 12:04.306 Guard cutter Healy , one of our medium 12:04.306 --> 12:07.299 icebreakers went to the North Pole 12:07.359 --> 12:10.630 proper last deployment and the next 12:10.640 --> 12:12.807 deployment , they're going to try to , 12:12.807 --> 12:14.807 they're going to transit the entire 12:14.807 --> 12:16.862 Arctic area and they'll , they'll be 12:16.862 --> 12:19.029 making stops along the way and working 12:19.030 --> 12:21.950 very closely with our , with our Arctic 12:21.960 --> 12:24.460 partners . So that's one thing . But 12:24.469 --> 12:26.559 your question is about the Antarctic 12:27.080 --> 12:29.739 and I , I can tell you that I take 12:29.750 --> 12:32.479 what's happening up in the Arctic and I 12:32.489 --> 12:34.590 transpose that right on to the 12:34.599 --> 12:36.655 Antarctic . So obviously , there's a 12:36.655 --> 12:38.655 treaty that's down there . We are a 12:38.655 --> 12:40.655 signature to that . We help out the 12:40.655 --> 12:42.655 National Science Foundation a great 12:42.655 --> 12:45.030 deal when we go down there . But 12:45.039 --> 12:47.261 there's a lot of stuff that's happening 12:47.261 --> 12:49.595 there in the geopolitical sense as well . 12:49.739 --> 12:51.659 There are all different types of 12:53.669 --> 12:56.000 other nation surveying vessels that are 12:56.010 --> 12:58.232 happening down there . There's a lot of 12:58.232 --> 13:01.510 activity on the actual ice that's 13:01.520 --> 13:03.631 happening down in the Antarctic . And 13:03.631 --> 13:05.687 that's a place where we need to make 13:05.687 --> 13:07.853 sure that we continue to have presence 13:07.853 --> 13:10.187 and show , show the American flag again , 13:10.770 --> 13:13.359 maritime governance , presence matters , 13:14.150 --> 13:17.090 presence in maritime governance . We 13:17.099 --> 13:19.909 get good behavior and that's what we 13:19.919 --> 13:21.975 want to do . And that's the key . We 13:21.975 --> 13:24.109 need those ice breakers as an 13:24.119 --> 13:26.397 operational commander . I can say this , 13:26.397 --> 13:28.675 we needed those ice breakers yesterday . 13:28.675 --> 13:32.070 Some would say yes for a year . But you 13:32.179 --> 13:34.123 know , we need to , we need to get 13:34.123 --> 13:36.346 after that . That is a top priority , a 13:36.346 --> 13:38.457 top acquisition priority of the coast 13:38.457 --> 13:41.190 guard . So as evidenced by the first 13:41.200 --> 13:43.367 two questions , there is an increasing 13:43.367 --> 13:45.589 demand for the Coast Guard's engagement 13:45.589 --> 13:47.729 internationally . How do you balance 13:47.739 --> 13:50.210 the service's domestic responsibilities 13:50.219 --> 13:51.719 with increasing demand for 13:51.719 --> 13:54.250 collaboration in support of dod efforts , 13:54.419 --> 13:56.586 which means additional requirements on 13:56.586 --> 13:58.808 the Coast Guard in terms of operational 13:58.808 --> 14:00.975 prioritization and mission readiness , 14:00.975 --> 14:02.929 all without reducing operational 14:02.940 --> 14:05.549 availability beyond acceptable limits 14:08.260 --> 14:11.080 Yeah , I actually alluded to some of 14:11.090 --> 14:13.570 this in the , in the opening question . 14:14.039 --> 14:16.479 So I told you that our value 14:16.489 --> 14:18.711 proposition to the world , the American 14:18.711 --> 14:21.489 public is maritime governance . That's 14:21.500 --> 14:24.809 what we do . We do that 14:24.820 --> 14:28.780 extremely well for the American 14:28.789 --> 14:32.099 public , for our nation . Others see 14:32.109 --> 14:35.530 that they want that our brand is that 14:37.309 --> 14:40.359 we protect , we defend , we save that 14:40.369 --> 14:43.799 is our brand who wants a copy of a 14:43.809 --> 14:47.200 brand ? That's no good does anybody ? 14:48.210 --> 14:51.520 No . So our global demand is based on 14:51.640 --> 14:54.989 how well we do our work here . 14:55.799 --> 14:58.169 So we need to continue without a doubt . 14:58.179 --> 15:00.590 And that is non negotiable . We protect , 15:00.599 --> 15:04.429 we defend , we save period all under 15:04.440 --> 15:06.890 the umbrella of maritime governance . 15:07.299 --> 15:09.900 So in order in order for us to continue 15:09.909 --> 15:12.080 to be able to reach out to other 15:12.090 --> 15:14.257 nations and things like that , we have 15:14.257 --> 15:16.780 to keep our brand strong . How do we do 15:16.789 --> 15:19.530 that ? Our brand starts here here 15:20.950 --> 15:22.849 and , and I mentioned a couple of 15:22.859 --> 15:25.081 things to you in the first question you 15:25.081 --> 15:29.039 asked as well . We can do a lot with 15:29.049 --> 15:32.539 small teams , small teams of 15:32.549 --> 15:35.010 people going to partner nations . Does 15:35.020 --> 15:39.000 it take big cutters in aircraft ? It 15:39.010 --> 15:41.190 absolutely does . It absolutely does . 15:41.200 --> 15:43.419 In places like the Pacific , we are 15:43.429 --> 15:46.200 increasing our presence three fold this 15:46.210 --> 15:48.239 year with national security cuts . 15:48.409 --> 15:50.631 We're pushing fcs out further than they 15:50.631 --> 15:53.500 have been before um throughout , 15:53.510 --> 15:56.099 throughout the region . So we are doing 15:56.109 --> 15:58.960 that and it's my job and I would say 15:58.969 --> 16:01.025 it's anybody who wears a command pen 16:01.270 --> 16:03.159 and who is a district commander , 16:03.159 --> 16:06.059 anybody in a command position to have a 16:06.070 --> 16:08.940 balance between risk , commission and 16:08.950 --> 16:11.440 risk to force . And in this case , I'll 16:11.450 --> 16:14.750 add risk to brand , we need to balance 16:14.760 --> 16:17.109 those things out as we continue to move 16:17.119 --> 16:19.063 forward . And I think we've done a 16:19.063 --> 16:21.230 pretty good job of doing that so far . 16:21.230 --> 16:23.510 So , thank you for that question . I've 16:23.520 --> 16:25.409 heard that you've been doing some 16:25.409 --> 16:27.659 special things in order to ensure that 16:27.669 --> 16:29.780 readiness that you're talking about . 16:29.780 --> 16:31.725 Are there some special things that 16:31.725 --> 16:33.336 you've been doing for that ? 16:36.289 --> 16:38.178 When , when you , uh when you say 16:38.178 --> 16:40.299 readiness , um explain to me what , 16:40.309 --> 16:42.531 what you mean by that ? Are you talking 16:42.531 --> 16:45.190 about color readiness in terms of , in 16:45.200 --> 16:47.367 terms of those types of readiness , in 16:47.367 --> 16:49.478 terms of training and certification ? 16:49.478 --> 16:52.179 The answer is absolutely yes . In order 16:52.190 --> 16:54.599 to deploy down in the Pacific , we need 16:54.609 --> 16:56.720 to ensure that our crews are prepared 16:56.720 --> 16:58.887 for those types of things because that 16:58.887 --> 17:00.998 is a different atmosphere that's down 17:00.998 --> 17:02.887 there . We do hold pre deployment 17:02.890 --> 17:05.180 training to ensure that those crews are 17:05.189 --> 17:07.300 ready for those types of activities . 17:07.329 --> 17:09.162 In addition to that you're doing 17:09.162 --> 17:11.162 fisheries , everybody I think knows 17:11.162 --> 17:13.218 that we hold pre deployment training 17:13.218 --> 17:15.385 for fisheries , whether it's up in the 17:15.385 --> 17:17.440 bearing or even sometimes when we're 17:17.440 --> 17:19.607 doing fisheries type enforcement for I 17:19.750 --> 17:23.390 U in the Eastern Pacific , we'll hold 17:23.400 --> 17:25.819 trainings as well . So we continue to 17:25.829 --> 17:29.000 try to improve or increase our 17:29.010 --> 17:31.420 training before we deploy so that our 17:31.430 --> 17:34.959 crews are ready for that . We've worked 17:34.969 --> 17:37.290 with our Coast Guard Reserve to bring 17:37.599 --> 17:39.821 them into the mix even more , trying to 17:39.821 --> 17:41.932 figure out what capabilities and what 17:41.932 --> 17:44.266 talents that they can provide . In fact , 17:44.266 --> 17:46.729 we have deployed coast guard reservist 17:46.739 --> 17:50.500 down range to provide training . Our 17:50.510 --> 17:52.510 Coast Guard Reserve has always been 17:52.510 --> 17:54.677 there and very useful to our nation in 17:54.677 --> 17:58.290 terms of disaster relief . You see that 17:58.300 --> 18:00.467 we've used the Reserve before in terms 18:00.467 --> 18:02.579 of surges . Well , guess what ? Those 18:02.589 --> 18:04.459 are the people that we send or 18:04.469 --> 18:06.459 sometimes we send to go ahead and 18:06.469 --> 18:08.390 provide humanitarian assistance , 18:08.400 --> 18:10.930 disaster relief training to partner 18:10.939 --> 18:13.050 nations throughout the Indo Pacific . 18:13.050 --> 18:15.750 So we're doing a lot to maintain our 18:15.760 --> 18:19.530 readiness and to go ahead and utilize 18:19.540 --> 18:23.359 the whole of workforce , going to give 18:23.369 --> 18:25.630 you a really easy question before we go 18:25.640 --> 18:27.751 to the audience for their questions . 18:27.751 --> 18:29.807 What is the greatest strength of the 18:29.807 --> 18:32.189 Pacific area ? What do you do best ? 18:32.199 --> 18:34.143 And what makes you valuable to the 18:34.143 --> 18:35.255 American taxpayer ? 18:38.540 --> 18:42.300 I think we , I think what we do best 18:42.920 --> 18:46.729 is that we , we see 18:46.739 --> 18:49.829 threats and challenges through the eyes 18:49.839 --> 18:53.030 of those partner nations and 18:53.040 --> 18:56.199 those we are sworn to serve . We see 18:56.209 --> 18:58.376 them like that and we try to meet them 18:58.376 --> 19:00.598 exactly where they're at with what they 19:00.598 --> 19:03.390 need . No more , no less , never 19:03.400 --> 19:05.589 pushing things upon them . Always 19:05.599 --> 19:08.449 listening and trying to be there to be 19:08.459 --> 19:10.403 a trusted partner . Whether it's a 19:10.403 --> 19:14.030 foreign nation , whether it's a native 19:14.040 --> 19:16.989 indigenous tribe , indigenous people up 19:17.000 --> 19:19.800 in Alaska , up in the Arctic or whether 19:19.810 --> 19:22.239 it's the people of California , that's 19:22.250 --> 19:24.306 what we try and we do that , I think 19:24.306 --> 19:26.020 extremely well . Thanks . 19:28.310 --> 19:30.849 Ok . So , all right , we'll move along 19:30.859 --> 19:34.540 to questions from the audience . Yes , 19:34.550 --> 19:36.290 sir . From Forbes dot com . 19:38.459 --> 19:40.750 Admiral . So great presentation . You 19:40.760 --> 19:43.260 talked a whole bunch about diplomacy 19:43.640 --> 19:47.000 and maritime diplomacy . How 19:47.380 --> 19:50.150 do you get along with the other 19:50.160 --> 19:52.430 agencies that are in charge of 19:52.439 --> 19:54.670 diplomacy throughout the Pacific ? And 19:54.680 --> 19:58.469 do you see areas where you can improve 19:58.479 --> 20:00.750 collaboration or not ? And then also if 20:00.760 --> 20:02.816 I can speak in another question , we 20:02.816 --> 20:05.829 know a lot about the top end priorities 20:05.839 --> 20:09.000 for you guys , but in the in the area 20:09.010 --> 20:10.843 where everybody gets an unfunded 20:10.843 --> 20:13.209 priorities list , what's your sort of 20:13.219 --> 20:16.300 unfunded priorities list right now ? No 20:16.310 --> 20:17.310 pressure , 20:20.489 --> 20:22.711 right ? So there's a bunch of different 20:22.711 --> 20:24.656 questions in there . You mentioned 20:24.656 --> 20:26.767 diplomacy . I think we work extremely 20:26.767 --> 20:28.989 well with the State Department . I have 20:28.989 --> 20:31.156 come to DC on a couple of occasions to 20:31.156 --> 20:34.479 meet with key lockers in terms in terms 20:34.489 --> 20:36.949 of how we can help and if they need our 20:36.959 --> 20:39.589 assistance , what the US is doing 20:39.599 --> 20:41.880 around the world in terms of trying to 20:41.890 --> 20:45.814 counter the legal unreported related 20:45.824 --> 20:49.204 fisheries is incredible . I I 20:49.214 --> 20:52.354 called meetings together with State 20:52.364 --> 20:55.484 Department Commerce in terms of Noa and 20:55.494 --> 20:57.661 Memphis , other types of agencies like 20:57.661 --> 21:00.415 that to see how can we as a group of 21:00.425 --> 21:02.895 enforcers help with moving diplomacy 21:02.905 --> 21:05.155 forward . And they have really helped 21:05.165 --> 21:07.915 me understand the nuances of what they 21:07.925 --> 21:10.744 are trying to do in terms of brokering 21:11.489 --> 21:14.459 agreements , multilateral agreements 21:14.469 --> 21:16.739 for fisheries management organizations 21:16.750 --> 21:19.500 throughout the world . And what I may 21:19.510 --> 21:23.239 do here may impact them and for good or 21:23.250 --> 21:25.849 for bad . I think that's very , very 21:25.859 --> 21:28.081 helpful and it shows that we're working 21:28.081 --> 21:31.030 very closely at trying to get diplomacy 21:31.040 --> 21:33.520 from different angles even with our law 21:33.530 --> 21:35.641 enforcement capabilities there . So I 21:35.641 --> 21:38.319 think those work out really well . And 21:38.329 --> 21:40.385 I don't want to say it's just , it's 21:40.385 --> 21:42.440 just the diplomacy side of the house 21:42.440 --> 21:44.229 either . As you know , with the 21:44.239 --> 21:46.239 Department of Defense , we're wired 21:46.239 --> 21:48.183 tight . All of the things that I'm 21:48.183 --> 21:50.295 talking about . We work with the Indo 21:50.295 --> 21:52.849 Pacific Command . We work with Pacific 21:52.859 --> 21:55.569 fleet and seventh fleet and I won't 21:55.579 --> 21:57.801 leave the marines out of there either . 21:57.801 --> 22:00.023 So we work very closely with , I'll say 22:00.023 --> 22:02.449 third fleet as well , three meth and 22:02.459 --> 22:04.839 one meth to get after these things . 22:04.849 --> 22:07.329 And certainly up in the Arctic , you 22:07.660 --> 22:09.882 can't , you can't talk a , they'll talk 22:09.882 --> 22:11.993 in north comm in this Haley transit . 22:11.993 --> 22:14.790 We work very closely with the US . So 22:14.800 --> 22:17.420 we're pretty wit with all the other 22:17.430 --> 22:19.750 partner agencies to get after these 22:19.760 --> 22:21.704 things in the way that I described 22:21.704 --> 22:24.329 earlier . You asked about resources . 22:24.869 --> 22:27.000 Do we have enough ? I'm going to say 22:27.010 --> 22:29.719 I'm going to say no , the answer is no , 22:29.989 --> 22:33.109 I think we could use more patrol 22:33.119 --> 22:35.910 forces for patrol forces , Micronesia . 22:35.920 --> 22:38.219 Those are fast response cutters . I 22:38.300 --> 22:41.119 think we can , we definitely need ice 22:41.130 --> 22:43.130 breakers . I don't think we need to 22:43.130 --> 22:45.297 beat on that drum anymore . I think we 22:45.297 --> 22:48.579 also are very grateful to 22:48.589 --> 22:51.969 have a 270 ft cutter 22:52.260 --> 22:54.829 coming over to be the Indo Pacific 22:54.839 --> 22:57.006 Support cutter , a cutter that will be 22:57.006 --> 22:59.319 home ported in the region and increase 22:59.329 --> 23:01.551 our presence completely because it will 23:01.551 --> 23:05.209 always be there conducting theater 23:05.219 --> 23:07.441 security cooperation , building partner 23:07.441 --> 23:10.010 nation capacity . One of those is great . 23:10.760 --> 23:12.593 If someone were going to give us 23:12.593 --> 23:14.704 another one , I'd take that too . All 23:14.704 --> 23:16.538 right , I think we have time for 23:16.538 --> 23:19.630 another question . Yes , sir . So one 23:19.640 --> 23:21.751 of the groups of the coast guard I've 23:21.751 --> 23:23.862 known the best over the years are the 23:23.862 --> 23:25.973 captains of the port . When you think 23:25.973 --> 23:25.969 of those people and their roles , what 23:25.979 --> 23:27.979 sort of challenges do they face and 23:27.979 --> 23:30.201 what would you like to see them be able 23:30.201 --> 23:33.859 to do better in the years to come ? The 23:33.869 --> 23:37.099 captain of the ports are incredible and 23:37.109 --> 23:39.079 frankly , I talked about what I 23:39.089 --> 23:41.390 consider to be our brand at maritime 23:41.400 --> 23:43.770 governance . I put a lot of that on our 23:43.780 --> 23:46.280 sector commanders and our captains of 23:46.290 --> 23:48.401 the port . I want them to continue to 23:48.401 --> 23:50.568 do the great work that they're doing . 23:50.568 --> 23:52.734 Show our brand , make it even stronger 23:52.869 --> 23:55.369 and continue to have other nations try 23:55.380 --> 23:57.436 to emulate what we do each and every 23:57.436 --> 24:00.359 day . All right . And I think we have 24:00.369 --> 24:03.959 time for one more . Yes , sir . Good 24:03.969 --> 24:06.250 morning Steve Dean from . So I was 24:06.260 --> 24:08.260 wondering , uh , you just mentioned 24:08.260 --> 24:10.260 about a 2 70 being forward deployed 24:10.280 --> 24:12.447 over to the Asia Pacific area , home , 24:12.447 --> 24:15.520 home boarded over in that region . How 24:15.530 --> 24:17.530 about a national security cutter to 24:17.530 --> 24:20.550 Yako Guam to that area ? As Kimba and 24:20.560 --> 24:22.782 Midget have been absorbing and tracking 24:22.782 --> 24:25.004 a lot of miles and covering that area , 24:25.004 --> 24:27.227 possibly a national security cover over 24:27.227 --> 24:31.170 there . So obviously , those 24:31.180 --> 24:33.400 types of things are well above my 24:33.410 --> 24:36.280 position and head where we would 24:36.290 --> 24:38.849 homeport different , right ? And 24:38.859 --> 24:41.026 there's politics involved in there and 24:41.026 --> 24:43.192 then there's necessity and operational 24:43.192 --> 24:46.640 need . You know , if , if I were well , 24:46.650 --> 24:49.079 1st , 1st , I want to mention that when 24:49.089 --> 24:51.859 I was , when I was growing up as well . 24:51.869 --> 24:54.510 When I was born , my father was also in 24:54.520 --> 24:56.742 the Coast Guard . He was stationed on a 24:56.742 --> 24:59.180 378 ft cutter in Boston , Massachusetts 24:59.479 --> 25:02.150 known as the Sherman when I was born . 25:02.160 --> 25:05.589 Guess where the Sherman was ? No , it 25:05.599 --> 25:08.569 was in Vietnam . It was 25:09.359 --> 25:13.180 providing naval gunfire support . So 25:13.560 --> 25:17.109 can can ships travel far from Boston to 25:17.119 --> 25:19.286 Vietnam ? That's pretty far . That's a 25:19.286 --> 25:22.300 378 ft cutter . Our national security 25:22.310 --> 25:24.421 cutters more capable . I don't know . 25:24.421 --> 25:26.477 We'll ask the acquisition people . I 25:26.477 --> 25:28.254 commanded one . I was the first 25:28.254 --> 25:30.421 commander . The answer is absolutely . 25:30.421 --> 25:32.477 So can we get them out and push them 25:32.477 --> 25:34.699 into the West Pacific ? The answer is , 25:34.699 --> 25:36.699 yes , we do that I already told you 25:36.699 --> 25:38.810 we're doing it three times as much as 25:38.810 --> 25:40.780 we did last year . And frankly , 25:40.810 --> 25:42.699 they're a welcome addition to the 25:42.699 --> 25:44.866 seventh fleet and what they do there . 25:44.866 --> 25:47.088 So , I , I think that's how I'll end up 25:47.088 --> 25:49.143 the answer in that one . Thank you . 25:49.143 --> 25:51.366 All right . I think we'll have to leave 25:51.366 --> 25:53.532 it there . Admiral Johnson . Thank you 25:53.532 --> 25:53.540 very much for your time , sir .