The US Secretary of Defense, Lloyd Austin, who suffers from prostate cancer, was hospitalized again this Sunday due to discomfort related to his illness, according to the Pentagon. In January, the retired general had sparked a strong controversy when it was announced that he was hospitalized but did not inform the White House, nor the rest of the Government, until four days after his admission to the Intensive Care Unit.
On this occasion, he will be treated for “symptoms that point to an incipient bladder problem,” Pentagon spokesman General Pat Ryder revealed in a statement. Austin, 70, will maintain control of the tasks corresponding to his position, according to the spokesperson. He also specifies that this time, the situation has been communicated in a pertinent manner to the White House and the US Congress.
“Deputy Secretary of Defense [Kathleen Hicks] is prepared to assume the functions and duties of the Secretary of Defense if necessary. “Secretary Austin moved to the hospital with the necessary communications systems, classified and unclassified, necessary to carry out his tasks,” adds Ryder.
On December 22, Austin had undergone surgery to treat his cancer, and was discharged almost immediately. But on January 1 he was admitted again to the Walter Reed military hospital, on the outskirts of Washington, due to complications from the disease. The White House, and even Hicks, who was on vacation, did not receive notice of the hospitalization until the 4th. The Secretary of Defense did not disclose the reason for his admission until the 9th. He was discharged on January 15 .
The incident has motivated the Pentagon to open a thirty-day investigation into how the communication failure was possible, and to update its protocols for notification of this type of situation. As head of the US military, the Secretary of Defense must always be available should a national security emergency arise.
Austin is summoned to appear on February 29 before the Armed Forces committee in the House of Representatives to testify about what happened. After his hospitalization became known in January, several congressmen, and the foreseeable Republican candidate in the November presidential elections, Donald Trump, demanded the resignation of Austin, former commander of US troops in Iraq and Afghanistan, and first Secretary of Defense. black.
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“I want to make it very clear: we did not manage this well. “I didn't manage it well,” the soldier acknowledged on February 1, in his first press conference after being discharged. “I should have told the president about my cancer diagnosis. I also should have told my team and the American public, and I take full responsibility. “I will apologize to my team and the American public.”
This coming week, Austin was scheduled to travel to Europe for a meeting of the Contact Group for the Defense of Ukraine. At this time it is unknown if she will continue with her plans or cancel her trip. In that case, it is not known whether another person from his team at the Pentagon will replace him.
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