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During his testimony at a confirmation hearing in the U.S. Senate Thursday, President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee for secretary of defense, retired marine General James Mattis, said that the U.S. must be ready to engage with Russia.
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Answering written questions from Congress, Mattis cited Moscow’s involvement in hacking and cyber warfare, warned about treaty violation and destabilizing other states and wrote that he supports Trump’s “desire to engage with Russia now.”
“At the same time, when we identify other areas where we cannot cooperate, we must confront Russia’s behavior, and defend ourselves if Russia chooses to act contrary to our interests,” Mattis continued.
In a press conference Wednesday, when asked about the hacking of the Democratic National Committee during the 2016 presidential election campaign, Trump said, “I think it was Russia,” adding that “if Putin likes Donald Trump, guess what folks, that's an asset, not a liability.”
Mattis said that while he had very high confidence in U.S. intelligence agencies, U.S. policy on cybersecurity urgently needed to be addressed.
Mattis said that he is looking to ensure that the Pentagon is at its “most lethal stance,” adding that it will require increased deterrence against Russia, which is looking to dismantle NATO. Asked about Trump’s previous concessions on NATO, Mattis praised the success of the alliance and said that Trump has “shown himself to be open” on the issue.
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Often referred to as “Mad Dog,” Mattis has been retired from U.S. Marine Corps military since 2013 and previously oversaw operations in the Middle East and Afghanistan and once said he found it “a hell of a lot of fun” to kill people in Afghanistan.
Mattis’ nomination to the head of the Pentagon requires a congressional waiver, as he is technically not eligible for the position because he has not been a civilian for at least seven years. The eligibility criteria is aimed at ensuring civilian control over the military.
Chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, Republican Senator John McCain, said that he would “fully support” the waiver, which is expected to pass Congress and “could not be happier" about the nomination. McCain also warned about Russian influence, saying that Putin “will never be our partner.”
Mattis also threw his support behind Israel and said that the U.S. must promote peace between Israel and Palestine, but avoided questions about the U.S. abstention from a U.N. Security Council vote on illegal Israeli settlements on Palestinian land.
Mattis also claimed, “Iran is the biggest destabilizing force in the Middle East and its policies are contrary to our interests,” while warning that a strategy on Iraq must be reviewed so that it “does not become a rump state of the regime in Tehran.”
Avoiding a direct response to questions about U.S. strategy in the South China Sea, Mattis said that his strategy was always to side with allies.
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