From March 17 to March 30 the U.S. handed over four bases to Iraqi forces, to include an airfield near Mosul and a strategic outpost near the Iraq-Syria border known as al-Qaim. In April the coalition handed over a fifth base, Taqaddum air field, which fell outside the reporting quarter for the IG report.

Operation Inherent Resolve — the U.S.-led mission to defeat ISIS in Iraq and Syria — detailed in several news releases that the base transfers were long planned in advanced and were the result of successful operations against ISIS.

But in a recent IG report, the coalition admitted the base transfers — while long planned in advanced — were accelerated “in some part due to increased threats presented by malign actors.”

OIR told the IG that the “nascent threat of malign actors” and the “change in focus from [defeat-ISIS] operations to force protection” resulted in a force posture change.

OIR noted that a coalition task force “discontinued face-to-face interaction with their Iraqi partners, and ground travel to partner locations halted, ‘ which reduced OIR’s “visibility into partner force activity.”

The transfers came amid tensions with Iran following a January U.S. decapitation strike that killed Iranian Quds Force commander Qassem Soleimani and a subsequent retaliatory ballistic missile strike launched by Iran that wounded dozens of American troops stationed on two Iraq bases.

Iran-backed militias continued deadly rocket attacks targeting coalition troops housed across Iraq bases. Two U.S. troops and a British service member were killed when more than a dozen rockets slammed Camp Taji in March.

“This base transfer occurred amid force protection concerns sparked by escalating tensions between the United States and Iran and its proxy militias, which CJTF-OIR [Combined Joint Task Force-Operation Inherent Resolve] said led to an acceleration of the long-term transfer plan,” Sean W. O’Donnell, the acting inspector general for the DoD said in IG report.

OIR told the IG that “the frequency and increasing lethality of these attacks” from “malign actors” resulted in the U.S. shifting priorities from defeat ISIS to force protection.

The DoD Office of the Undersecretary for Policy, International Security Affairs told the IG that the coalition’s shift to force protection “diminished” support to Iraqi force and “probably sowed doubt within the ISF [Iraqi Security Forces]” whether support would return.

There was another factor as well.

The IG report also detailed that COVID-19 caused disruptions for Iraqi and Syrian partner forces. Iraqi forces paused training while Syrian Democratic Forces paused operations against ISIS fighters due to the pandemic.

OIR told the IG that it “resumed most relationships” with Iraqi forces over a four-week period but not all relationships returned to “pre-pause levels.”

OIR reported a decrease in some visibility of the OIR mission since the consolidation of forces, according to the report.

Army Gen. Richard D. Clarke, the commander of SOCOM, said Tuesday during a virtual running of the Special Operations Forces Industry Conference, that countering violent extremist groups was a generational issue and would remain the number one priority for U.S. special operators.

Clarke’s comments comes as national security experts and members of Congress have questioned SOCOM’s role in addressing near-peer adversaries like Russia and China.

For decades SOCOM has provided troops trained and primed to operate against terrorist and extremists organizations often operating out of more permissive environments. But the DoD is amid a massive shift to counter rising adversaries like Russia and China.

While Clarke said SOF would continue to hunt down extremists groups moving into the future, he told audience members streaming SOFIC that the fight to counter terror groups is not mutually exclusive from the Defense Department’s pivot to great power competition.

Highlighting a recent trip to the Indo-Pacifc region, Clarke explained that allies, partnerships and maintaining alliances will be an integral part to addressing near-peers in the future.

Special operations forces are uniquely placed to fill that role, serving in a number of host nation countries helping train partner forces to counter violent extremist groups.

In the Philippines, an important potential buffer to China’s ambitions in the region, American commandos “provided casualty triage and evacuation assistance” on three occasions supporting Phillipine forces during the stretch from Jan 1 to March 31, according to a recent inspector general report.

The IG report detailed that U.S. special operators assisted five Philippine soldiers wounded in the three separate occurrences in southern and central Mindanao when Philippine assets were unavailable.

American commandos are also partnering with Philippine troops “to conduct a week-long combat casualty care training with the goal of building the independent casualty evacuation capabilities of the Philippine forces,” the IG report reads.

Philippine forces are battling a number of terror and militant groups in the country to include ISIS. The IG report noted there was an estimated 300 to 500 ISIS-linked fighters in the Philippines.

“Great power competition is about influence” and American special operators have a “unique role” to play in this through presence, partnerships and training, Clarke explained. Clarke also said the information space was important.

Jordan’s King Abdullah II also made an appearance during the virtual SOFIC session and told viewers that ISIS was trying to exploit COVID-19 by increasing attacks in Iraq and “threatening to undo years of effort.”

Lt. Gen. Pat White, the commander of Operation Inherent Resolve, told reporters Friday that while ISIS has sought to exploit the pandemic, attacks carried out by the Islamic extremist group are on par with last year’s tally.

White said that ISIS claimed 152 attacks in April 2019 and there were 151 claimed attacks in April 2020. But CNN reported, citing a U.S. defense official, that ISIS has increased attacks in recent weeks.

The increased attacks by the terror group come as Iraqi forces have been forced to divert resources and manpower to enforce curfews due to COVID-19, CNN reported.

White said that the curfews may have actually had a negative impact on ISIS fighters and their ability to launch attacks. The curfews “constrained the ability of an adversary to move above ground,” he said.

Anyone moving at night or during the day “became an easy target,” White said.

White explained that ISIS has “failed miserably” to achieve recently stated goals, and that the jihadi group was unable to capitalize on recent operational pauses due to COVID-19.

“I was surprised that Daesh did not take advantage of some of the pause in some of the empty space that might have been an opportunity for them,” he told reporters.

White also noted that recent attacks have lacked sophistication of the ISIS organization that once held sway over vast territory across Iraq and Syria from 2016 to 2017.

“What we have seen is that the attacks we have been witnessing here over the past weeks are inconsistent with an organization that we knew of in the past,” he explained.

During the height of ISIS’ control of territory, the jihadi group was capable of launching “complex” attacks using bomb-laden vehicles, small arms and rockets all “simultaneously,” White said.

White said now the majority of attacks are small arms, rifles and mortars with no VBIEDs.

White acknowledged that COVID-19 did slow the coalition down “a little bit.”

But partner forces are continuing to put pressure on ISIS while U.S. troop rotations are continuing with implemented safety guidelines and quarantines to stem the spread of the virus.

White said the U.S. military was “proceeding forward with most of our rotational forces that were already planned.”

Secretary of Defense Mark Esper told reporters Tuesday that the Taliban were not living up to their commitments inked between the U.S. and the militant group in Doha, Qatar, on Feb. 29.

Reuters reported the Taliban launched 4,500 attacks in the 45 days since signing the agreement — a nearly 70 percent increase in attacks between March 1 and April 15. Reuters cited two sets of data from a Western military source and an independent group.

Despite the spike in violence the U.S. has continued to draw down forces to a goal of 8,600 by July. CNN reported that there are fewer than 10,000 troops in Afghanistan — putting the U.S. ahead of schedule since the signing of the agreement in February.

Some Marines and sailors with Task Force Southwest in Helmand, Afghanistan, have started to return home.

Maj. John J. Rigsbee, a spokesman with U.S. Central Command, told Military Times that roughly 100 Marines and sailors with the unit are returning home following a deployment where they trained and advised the Afghan National Army 215th Corps in Helmand and Nimroz province.

Military Times reached out to Resolute Support and U.S. Forces Afghanistan regarding whether the current Task Force Southwest rotation would be the last Marine deployment to Helmand with the unit.

Rigsbee said he would not discuss the “specifics of future troop movements and timing.”

The Doha agreement calls for all U.S. troops to withdraw over a 14-month period.

But a recent spate of violence across Afghanistan, arguments over a prisoner exchange and divisions over the Afghan presidential election threaten to throw a wrench in America’s goal to end the war and withdraw forces.

It’s been a sticking talking point for U.S. and Afghan officials that Taliban militants have continued levels of attacks against Afghan forces believed to be in violation of the agreement.

The publicly released four-page agreement between the Taliban and U.S. does not include language calling on the Taliban to reduce attacks. U.S. officials have yet to declassify and release annexes to the agreement that outline implementation of the deal.

The U.S. State Department told a government watchdog on Afghan reconstruction efforts that the “agreement does not prohibit all Taliban attacks against Afghan security forces, nor does it preclude the United States from acting in defense of Afghan forces.”

On May 2, Col. Sonny Leggett, a spokesman for U.S. Forces Afghanistan, tweeted a letter from USFOR-A addressed to Zabihullah Mujahid, the Taliban spokesman, claiming the U.S. and Taliban “spoke of ALL sides reducing violence by as much as 80% to pave the way for peace talks.”

The letter said since the Feb. 29 agreement, “the world has witnessed not a decrease, but instead a drastic increase in violence.”

“During those long negotiations there were written and spoken commitments,” the letter reads.

The U.S. has recognized a reduction of violence against cities and coalition forces, according to the USFOR-A letter.

A government watchdog noted that Resolute Support reported the Taliban have refrained from attacks against coalition and U.S. troops, but “increased attacks against ANDSF [Afghan National Defense and Security Forces] to levels above seasonal norms.”

However, data on enemy initiated attacks are no longer being released to the public. Resolute Support told the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction that the data “are now a critical part of deliberative interagency discussions regarding ongoing political negotiations between the U.S. and the Taliban.”

And it’s not the only important metric being withheld from the public that could spotlight progress or lack thereof in the Afghan war. U.S. Air Forces Central Command is no longer releasing its monthly tallies of airstrikes and munitions releases in Afghanistan.

“Due to a multiplicity of diplomatic relational concerns, including how the report could adversely impact ongoing discussions with the Taliban regarding Afghanistan peace talks, we are not, at present, publishing a monthly Airpower Summary report,” AFCENT told Military Times in an emailed statement.

CNN first reported that the airstrike report was no longer being released to the public.

Esper also told reporters that he believed the Afghan government was also not living up to commitments.

The Afghan government was not party to the document signed in Doha, but a heated prisoner exchange between the Taliban and Kabul-based government has delayed intra-Afghan negotiations.

Cmdr. Zachary Harrell, a CENTCOM spokesman, told Military Times in an emailed statement that the first six Purple Hearts were awarded to U.S. Army soldiers in Kuwait and Iraq on May 2 and May 3 respectively, for injuries sustained in the ballistic missile strike targeting al-Asad Air Base in Iraq.

The awards were approved by Lt. Gen. Pat White, commander of Combined Joint Task Force- Operation Inherent Resolve, Harrell said.

In all, 80 Purple Heart packages were evaluated “individually” by a CJTF-OIR review board in accordance with Army and Air Force regulations, Harrell explained.

“The review board submitted their recommendations to White for final decision and determination for U.S. Army soldier Purple Hearts,” Harrell said.

Harrell explained two packages for airmen were sent to White who “passed his recommendation against approval” to Lt. Gen. Joseph T. Guastella, the commander of U.S. Air Forces Central Command Command.

Guastella has final approval over Purple Hearts for airmen.

On Jan. 8, Iran launched more than a dozen ballistic missiles targeting two Iraqi air bases in Erbil and al-Asad as retaliation for a decapitation strike carried out by the U.S. that killed Iranian Quds force commander Qassem Soleimani.

More than 100 U.S. service members have been evaluated for traumatic brain injury following the attack.

“It is important to note that a Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) diagnosis does not automatically qualify a Service Member for Purple Heart eligibility or awarding, and the CJTF-OIR process was designed to be a fair and impartial proceeding that evaluated each case in accordance with applicable regulations,” Harrell said.

“Ultimately, 29 Purple Hearts have been approved for injuries sustained by U.S. Army soldiers, and the rest of the awards are expected to be presented this week,” Harrell explained.

CNN first reported that 29 Purple Hearts have been approved for troops injured in the Iran ballistic missile attack.

It’s the first time a U.S. Navy surface ship has operated in the Barents Sea since the mid-1980s, according to a Navy news release.

The ships participating in the maritime operation in the Arctic include the Arleigh Burke-class Aegis destroyers Donald Cook, Porter and Roosevelt, supported by the Supply-class fast combat support ship Supply (T-AOE 6), the release said.

The American surface ships were joined by the U.K.’s Type 23 Duke class frigate HMS Kent.

“In these challenging times, it is more important than ever that we maintain our steady drumbeat of operations across the European theater, while taking prudent measures to protect the health of our force,” Vice Adm. Lisa Franchetti, commander of U.S. 6th Fleet, said in the release.

“We remain committed to promoting regional security and stability, while building trust and reinforcing a foundation of Arctic readiness,” Franchetti said.

The Navy said the Russian Ministry of Defense was notified of the Barents Sea “visit” on Friday to prevent “misperceptions, reduce risk, and prevent inadvertent escalation.”

The Porter, Donald Cook and Kent recently wrapped up an anti-submarine warfare exercise in the Norwegian Sea, the release detailed. In April, Porter was operating in the Black Sea.

The operation in the Barents Sea follows several intercepts between Russian and U.S. aircraft over the last two months.

F-22s on several occasions between March and April have intercepted Russian reconnaissance aircraft operating new Alaska. In March, the Russian aircraft were spying on a U.S. submarine exercise near Alaska known as ICEX.

In April, a Russian jet buzzed a Navy P-8 Poseidon over the Mediterranean Sea.

Operation Inherent Resolve posted a video of coalition aircraft pummeling 10 ISIS cave complexes on April 29 in the Hamrin Mountains, Iraq.

OIR said five to 10 ISIS fighters were killed in the strikes but those numbers could rise as Iraqi forces sweep and search the area post strike mission.

The coalition said in a news release that ISIS has used the intricate system of tunnels in the mountain range to smuggle weapons and move senior leaders as one of their “last remaining operating” areas in Iraq.

“The presence of Daesh in Iraq continues to diminish, thanks to the efforts and sacrifices of our Iraqi partner forces,” Maj Gen. Eric Hill, the commanding general, Special Operations Joint Task Force – Operation Inherent Resolve, said in the release.

“Strikes like these help our Iraqi partners maintain relentless pressure on the Daesh scourge, no matter where these terrorists hide,” he said in the release.

After the strikes, the coalition said the Iraqi 14th Army Division conducted a sweep of the area and found ISIS documents and electronic devices. OIR said searches around the are continue, but much of the cave complexes are inaccessible.

“Removing Daesh fighters and mid-level operatives from the battlefield further degrades their ability to resurge and plot terrorist attacks against innocent civilians, our Iraqi partners, and Coalition troops,” OIR said in the release.

In March, two Marine Raiders — Gunnery Sgt. Diego D. Pongo, 34, of Simi Valley, California, and Capt. Moises A. Navas, 34, of Germantown, Maryland — were killed while advising Iraqi Security Forces on a mission against ISIS in the southern Makhmur Mountains in Iraq, about 60 km south of Erbil.

OIR said it took nearly six hours to recover the two Raiders.

ISIS fighters have lost control over major urban centers across Iraq and Syria but the group still holds sway over ungoverned territories sprawled across desert and mountainous regions.

There will be Purple Hearts awarded to troops injured during the Jan. 8 Iranian missile barrage on the al-Asad airbase in Iraq, a defense official told Military Times.

In the weeks following the attack, 110 troops were eventually diagnosed with mild traumatic brain injuries in Tehran’s attack targeting the airbase — where roughly 1,000 U.S. troops are stationed. The barrage was in response to a U.S. airstrike that killed Iran’s Quds Force Commander Qassem Soleimani on Jan. 3.

CNN’s Barbara Starr first reported that the Purple Hearts would be awarded, saying that “dozens of troops” are expected to receive them.

It’s unclear at the moment how many troops will receive the Purple Hearts. The defense official told Military Times that the medal award packets are still going through the approval process.

A Pentagon spokeswoman said the award submissions are under review.

“The Purple Heart submissions remain under review and are being processed in accordance with Defense Department and military service regulations,” Jessica Maxwell, a Pentagon spokeswoman, told Military Times in an email. “Upon completion, service members entitled to receive the Purple Heart will be notified by their leadership.”

In 2011, the Pentagon streamlined its policy regarding criteria for the Purple Heart to allow service members with mild TBI to be eligible for the award even if they did not lose consciousness in the attack or were not immediately treated on scene by a medical officer.

The Army says the Purple Heart can be awarded for mild TBI “or concussive severe enough to cause either loss of consciousness or restriction from full duty due to persistent signs, symptoms, or clinical finding, or impaired brain functions for a period greater than 48 hours from the time of the concussive incident.”

The Army further clarifies that examples of medical treatment for a concussion that meets the standard for the Purple Heart includes, referral to neurologist or neuropsychologist, physical or occupational therapy, or restriction from duty for a period greater than 48 hours.

“Combat theater and unit command policies mandating rest periods or “down time” following incidents do not constitute qualifying treatment for concussion injuries. To qualify as medical treatment, this rest period must have been directed by a medical officer or medical professional for the individual after diagnosis of an injury as indicated,” the Army’s Purple Heart policy states.

The Air Force also includes a 48 hour loss of work requirement for airmen diagnosed with TBI or a concussion, according to the Air Force awards manual.

“When considering award of the Purple Heart for a mild traumatic brain injury or concussion that did not result in the loss of consciousness, ensure the diagnosed mild traumatic brain injury resulted in a disposition of ‘not fit for full duty’ by a medical officer for a period of greater than 48 hours based on persistent signs, symptoms, or findings of functional impairment resulting from the concussive event,” the Air Force awards manual detailed.

“Sailors and Marines may be awarded the Purple Heart for certain mild traumatic brain injuries that were caused by enemy action” Jim Nierle, president, Navy Department Board of Decorations and Medals, said in a 2011 news release.

“If they suffered a loss of consciousness, or had to be given the disposition of ‘not fit for full duty’ by a medical officer for a period greater than 48 hours after a concussive event, they may qualify for the Purple Heart,” Nierle explained in the release.

The Purple Heart is also awarded to sailors and Marines who lose consciousness as a result of a mild TBI or concussion.

According to CNN, three defense officials described the situation as extremely sensitive because of the attention the issue received after President Donald Trump downplayed the significance of the injuries. With the Purple Hearts pending, the awards are getting internal attention from senior Pentagon personnel, according to the defense officials. It is not clear how much the Defense Department will publicize the awards when they are made, officials said.

When the first reports about the injuries emerged, Trump said he didn’t consider potential brain injuries to be as serious as physical combat wounds.

Secretary of Defense Mark Esper initially said that more than 10 ballistic missiles hit al-Asad during the strike, damaging tentage, a parking lot and other equipment. He characterized the aftermath as nothing “major” at the time.

Even so, Army Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, predicted that Iran’s intent was to kill Americans on Jan. 8, and later disclosed Iran’s missiles were lethal 1,000- to 2,000-pound munitions.

“These things have bursting radiuses of 50 to 100 feet, and that’s just the shrapnel in the actual blast. These are very, very significant, serious weapons,” Milley said Jan 30.

“And you know, if you’re within a certain range of that thing, there’s no helmet or anything else that’s going to save you,” Milley added.

U.S. Army Maj. Gen. Michael D. Turello, commander of Combined Joint Task Force-Horn of Africa, declared a public health emergency Thursday for American forces under his command spread across the Djibouti base cluster, CJTF-HOA announced in a release.

The public health emergency applies to defense personnel, contractors and U.S. troops spread across Camp Lemonnier Djibouti, Chabelley Airfield and the port of Djibouti, the release detailed

Camp Lemonnier is the largest U.S. installation in Africa, which houses roughly 3,000 American troops. There are roughly 6,000 U.S. troops across the AFRICOM area of responsibility, according to details in an inspector general report released in February.

“Combating COVID-19 is my top priority,” Turello said in the release. “By declaring a public health emergency, it keeps our forces, and those of our host nation partner, as healthy and as safe as possible.”

The announcement of the public health emergency raises questions about the readiness of forward deployed U.S. forces in the AFRICOM theater of operation as Djibouti represents the largest concentration of American troops in the region.

But Maj. Karl Wiest, a spokesman for AFRICOM, said there has only been one case of COVID-19 in Djibouti, and that was a contractor. However, there are no current COVID-19 cases across the Djibouti base cluster.

AFRICOM told Military Times it does not see a readiness issue.

Wiest said the declaration by CJTF-HOA commander was “strictly a precautionary measure to increase our ability to control the appropriate movement of all personnel at the right time to the right places.”

AFRICOM has been busy as of late combating a resurgent al-Qaida linked militant group known as al-Shabab across East Africa. Shabab has launched a couple of brazen raids over the last eight months targeting bases housing U.S. forces.

A raid by Shabab on the Manda Bay, Kenya, base in early January resulted in the death of one U.S. service members. The raid was beaten back by Marine Raiders.

“This preventive measure factors in our mission responsibilities as well as the health of our force and Djiboutian partners,” Turello said in the release. “We are doing our part to contain the virus and minimize its impact. This is how we work in the current environment.”

The public health emergency is effective for 30 days. Combined Joint Task Force-Horn of Africa said it will work with interagency and host nation partners to determine whether to extend the declaration, the release detailed.

As COVID-19 has impacted U.S. readiness and even sidelined the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier Theodore Roosevelt, there’s a brewing perception that America’s adversaries Russia, China and Iran are taking advantage of the chaos to prod American military weakness as the U.S. stumbles during COVID-19.

But a former U.S. defense official and other analysts say recent aggression by America’s adversaries is nothing new and fit a pattern of behavior established over the years. There is, however, fear the virus could cause miscalculation leading to a broader conflict.

“It’s just a continuation of kind of what’s been going on for some time,” said Mike Jones, who served as U.S. Central Command chief of staff in 2011 under then-commander James Mattis. “I don’t think this is brand new.”

On April 19 there was an “unprofessional” and “unsafe” intercept of a U.S. Navy P-8A Poseidon over the Mediterranean Sea, the Navy announced. It was the second intercept of a P-8 over the same waters in less than a week — though the Navy deemed the first incident as safe and professional.

On April 14, 11 Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps vessels harassed six U.S. warships operating in the Persian Gulf. On Wednesday, President Donald Trump tweeted he has instructed the Navy to “destroy” any Iranian gunboats if they harass U.S. warships.

At the Pentagon on Wednesday, the vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. John Hyten, a former commander of American, called Trump’s tweet a useful warning to Iran.

Voice of America reported that China has stepped up patrols in the South China Sea and that a Chinese aircraft carrier with five other ships were spotted conducting an exercise near Taiwan in April.

“You’ve also seen that the Chinese Communist Party is exerting military pressure on Taiwan and coercing its neighbors in the South China Sea, even going so far as to have — so far as to sink a Vietnamese fishing vessel,” Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Wednesday.

The Ticonderoga-class guided missile-cruiser Bunker Hill, amphibious assault ship America, Arleigh-Burke class guided missile destroyer Barry, along with the Australian Anzac-class frigate Parramatta teamed up for operations in the South China Sea on April 13, according to the Navy.

Retired Marine Lt. Col. Dakota Wood, a senior research fellow with the Washington, D.C.-based think tank The Heritage Foundation, told Military Times that recent machinations by American adversaries fit “established patterns of behavior,” but still serves as a reminder that global competition still rages and the U.S. military needs to be postured to deal with it.

“Whether it is exploiting a perception of U.S. military readiness, only they would know that,” Wood said.

“Before COVID-19 even became a part of our vocabulary we had Iranian gunboats that would make runs at U.S. Navy ships,” he explained. “The Russians have been buzzing our aircraft for a very long time.”

“I think it’s business as usual despite COVID-19,” said Aaron Stein, the director of Middle East and national security projects for the Foreign Policy Research Institute. “Iran has not stopped its policy of coercion, stemming from U.S. actions taken to reimpose sanctions.”

But COVID-19 could create false perceptions of weakness and disunity causing an adversary to wrongfully assume the U.S. will not respond to certain actions that could turn into a broader conflict.

“The U.S. is politically weak — COVID-19 is proving it every day. Whether or not these actors want to press the Trump administration is a different question,” Eric L. Robinson, a former U.S. defense, official told Military Times.

Robinson said he helped advise Elizabeth Warren’s presidential campaign regarding counterterrorism issues.

“COVID-19 merely is a factor that can lead to miscalculation,” Jones said. “If they were to assume this is one more destraction that would keep the U.S. from responding to an attack or challenge it could add to the possibility of miscalculation.”

Jones said American diplomats need to be working hard during this time to ensure countries know America’s red lines to avert a conflict.

Prior to Trump’s tweet threatening Iran, U.S. officials have been clearly voicing that America’s forces stand ready to deter and react to any aggression despite the ongoing pandemic.

“Adversaries who think now is the time to challenge the #USA: you’re dangerously wrong,” Secretary of Defense Mark Esper tweeted in mid-April.

“This pandemic does not curtail our duty. From patrolling the high seas to escorting Russian bombers out of U.S. airspace, our mission continues,” Esper tweeted April 14.

Russian aircraft on several occasions over the last two months have entered the Alaskan Air Defense Identification Zone, but they have not breached U.S. air space.

“To those who wish us harm, make no mistake: even with the challenges that this disease has brought to our shores, the Department of Defense stands ready to meet any threat and defend our nation,” Deputy Secretary of Defense David L. Norquist said in early April.