Top 30 Mark Esper Quotes

We closely track the systems Boeing builds for us, and they’re some very capable systems. So that’s been my focus. It is something that I look at every month. I look at the metrics for all major combat systems and our platforms, which Boeing builds many, and they’re successful platforms.

A collective security relies on everybody doing their fair share.

The bottom line is this: in an era of mounting fiscal challenges and competing demands, we must actively seek ways to free up time, money, and manpower to invest back into our top priorities.

In many cases, the reason why our child development centers are not at full capacity is that we have an insufficient number of providers.

Our legacy platforms have served us well for decades, but we’re running out of upgrades that will keep us ahead. Technology is changing too fast, and our enemies are too adaptable.

If you see something that doesn’t make sense, ask. Change it. Think about dollars, think about your soldiers’ time, think about efficiency.

The goal is to deter war, and this can only be done with a strong, modern, and ready military that has overmatch in all domains.

Now, ‘high-intensity conflict’ is a fancy word for saying tanks on tanks, aircraft shooting each other out of the sky, a great deal of violence at a level we haven’t seen since probably the Korean War or World War II, where you have big armies facing off against one another.

The Army is a big mixing bowl, and we know that we wear one uniform. We identify with one set of Army values. We serve one Constitution, and we see ourselves as one team.

The biggest challenge is clearly China, in the years 2035 and beyond. I mean, the size of the country, its economy, and everything – they’re – it is a big strategic competitor for the entire Department of Defense and country.

The Brits are escorting their ships, and we will escort our ships, and I assume other countries will escort their ships.

I can’t tell you what the Army end strength will be. I know it has to be above 500,000. I know it has to be above 500,000 in the regular Army – and I’ve always said associated growth in the Guard and Reserve.

I went to war for this country. I served overseas for this country.

The National Defense Strategy remains our guiding document, and everything we do should support its stated objectives.

I’ve got a lot of military kids who are not in on-base child care, and they should be. So it’s things like that I’m going to change, either from a funding perspective or a policy perspective.

I think, generally, the NCOs and officers in a platoon or company want to take care of their soldiers, and they understand it doesn’t run from nine to five, like in the civilian world.

The surest way to deter adversary aggression is to fully prepare for war.

We may be a little bit late – we are late – coming to the recognition that we are in a strategic competition with China.

If Turkey procures the S-400, it will mean they will not receive the F-35. It’s that simple.

The international rules-based order in the wake of World War II is the order that has ensured prosperity and security now for 75 years. I’m fully committed to that.

Good alliances are made of strong, capable partners.

The Army I grew up in was focused on high-intensity conflict against a peer competitor called the Soviet Union.

We are extending basic training. It’ll be the longest and toughest in the world.

Stay focused on your mission, remain steadfast in your pursuit of excellence, and always do the right thing.

It’s my commitment to the nation’s security, it’s my commitment to the men and women in uniform that drives me. Not anything else.

We do not want war with Iran.

AI will allow the soldier to act and think much more quickly. Whoever gets to AI first, I believe, will have dominance for many years afterward.

I think artificial intelligence will likely change the character of warfare, and I believe whoever masters it first will dominate on the battlefield for many, many, many years.

Together, we will remain the most ready and capable military force in the world, which is what our nation expects and deserves.

If confirmed, my overall guiding objective for our relationship with India would be to solidify an enduring strategic partnership underpinned by strong defence cooperation with an Indian military able to collaborate effectively with the United States to address shared interests.