SecNav:Climate Change Navy's Top Priority - Shrink Fleet

quote:

---

Secretary of the Navy Carlos Del Toro said he sees fighting climate change as a top priority for the Navy as the Biden administration proposes shrinking the fleet by two ships and worries grow about how the U.S. Navy stacks up to China’s.

"As the Secretary of the Navy, I can tell you that I have made climate one of my top priorities since the first day I came into office," Del Toro said March 1 in remarks at the University of the Bahamas.

Del Toro said he met with Bahamas Prime Minister Philip Davis during his visit and spoke "at length" with him about the climate crisis and focused the bulk of his remarks on climate.

"We view the climate crisis much the same way as damage control efforts on a stricken ship. This is an all-hands-on-deck moment," he added.

Del Toro spoke just days before the Biden administration released its proposed budget for 2024, which calls for shrinking the Navy fleet even though most military experts and senior Navy officers have called for more ships to deter China's larger fleet.

He noted that Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry was just in the Bahamas and that he was going to meet with Kerry in Panama at the "Our Oceans Conference." And he said the USNS Comfort, a 1,000-bed medical ship, is often in the Caribbean to help with "climate-charged disasters."

---