{"id":56728,"date":"2020-03-06T01:51:48","date_gmt":"2020-03-06T01:51:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/navytimes\/uncategorized\/2020\/03\/06\/esper-says-new-virus-wont-prevent-military-operations\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T09:58:30","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T09:58:30","slug":"esper-says-new-virus-wont-prevent-military-operations","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/navytimes\/news\/pentagon-congress\/2020\/03\/06\/esper-says-new-virus-wont-prevent-military-operations\/","title":{"rendered":"Esper says new virus won\u2019t prevent military operations"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

WASHINGTON \u2014 The U.S. military and its warfighting command centers in the Pentagon are prepared to continue operations even if there is a local outbreak of the new coronavirus, Defense Secretary Mark Esper said Thursday, as the department began finalizing its response plans<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Although only one soldier<\/a> and a handful of family members and Defense Department civilians have so far tested positive for the virus, tens of thousands of troops are in countries and regions that have been hardest hit, including South Korea and portions of Europe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The nation\u2019s more than 2.1 million active duty, Guard and Reserve forces are spread all around the globe. And they are one of the nation\u2019s last lines of defense against any outside threats or disasters during an outbreak, as well as a force that could be used as a last-resort to maintain order or enforce quarantines within the U.S. in the case of a pandemic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOur national military command center has the capability to go for weeks at a time if they have to be locked down inside the building if we have some type of outbreak,\u201d Esper told reporters during a Pentagon press conference. He said the Pentagon is finalizing plans to prevent the spread of the virus across the force and military installations and also mitigate it in the event of any outbreak.<\/p>\n\n\n\t