announcement hezbollah would suspend attacks ou.s. forces. >> good afternoon, everybody. a few things here at the top and then get right to your questions. up front, i want to express again the condolences to family

members and loved ones from the three u.s. soldiers killed in jordan and the iran proxy drone attack at our thoughts and prayers continue to be with them. of note, the u.s. army reserve announced earlier today that specialist kennedy sanders and specialist briona movette have been posthumously been ranked.

the medical staff will determine whether any service members will require transport to the u.s. for further treatment. in terms about final details of the drone attack itself, there are many questions including how the one way attack drone could have penetrated the facility air defenses and point of origin and what specific iranian proxy group is responsible. i can tell you u.s. central command is continuing to look in all important questions and will keep you updated as new information becomes available as we are able to. what we do know is iran backed militias are responsible for continued attacks on u.s. forces and we will respond in a time and manner of our choosing. while we do not seek to escalate tensions in the region, we'll take all necessary actions to protect our troops, our facilities and our interests.

shifting gears, yesterday the u.s. ambassador to the czech republic and the czech defense minister signed a contract for the purchase of 24f-35 fighter aircraft. the acquisition of these f-35's will increase of the czech miliy and strengthen nato and the bilateral security of czechia and the united states. with the signing, the czech republic includes 10 countries that employ the f-35. all foreign military sales are coordinated through the u.s. state department so i would refer you to my colleagues at state for more information. finally, deputy assistant secretary of defense for western hemisphere affairs dr. daniel ericson hosted the prime minister of trinidad and tobago dr. keith rally at the pentagon, performing the duties, melissa dolan joined the meeting to emphasize the strong support of the u.s. support of trinidad and tobago.

d.o.d. leaders expressed concern for the leadership in the caribbean community and in co-hosting the uomin security conference along u.s. southern command in november of 2024. they further commended their robust partnership between the trinidadnd tobago defense force and delaware national guard that celebrates the 20th anniversary this year through the state program. they exchanged views on illicit tracking and defense and training, cybersecurity and frameworks to facilitaterity op. the meeting reaffirmed the u.s. and d.o.d.'s commitment to partnership with trinidad and tobago and working together to improve caribbean regional security and resilience. with that i'd be happy to take your questions. we'll go to a.p.etary austin provided the president's response options at this point or is the building still looking at the best way to deter future strikes? and i have a couple others.

general ryder: i'm not getting into the specific conversations the secretary had with the president. as i've highlighted we'll respond in a time and manner of our choosing. reporter: is the building still looking at options how best to respond at this point? genera ryder: i'm not getting into specifics as it relates to future operations but reiterate we'll respond in a time and manner of our choosing. reporter: take that another way, you said from the podium the u.s. does not seek to widen this war. how do you deter iran which is clearly supplied and endorsed some of these attacks from keeping them from doing this again and leading to another proxy attack on u.s. forces? general ryder: again, as a reminder, our forces are in iraq and syria and in the region supporting the defeat of isis is the mission we've been focused on. when we need to, we will protect our forces.

i'm not getting into telegraphing or discussing future operations other than to say we'll respond in a time and manner of our choosing. jennifer? reporter: general ryder, have you contributed to any group responsible for the drone strike? general ryder: central command is still assessing but we are confident that this attack was sponsored by iranian backed proxies. reporter: so hezbollah just put out a message on telegram suggesting telling its fighters not to attack u.s. bases in iraq and syria, suggesting thilsuppon other ways and suggesting that even if the u.s. strikes them not to respond. what is your response to ryder:e reports and don't have a specific comment to provide other than actions speak louder than words. thanks. laura? reporter: i have a question, first of all, can you speak a

little bit about the drones that are based at tower 22? we saw some reporting yesterday there was confusion whether the drone coming to the base was friendly, or friend or foe and we know these drones should have software to distinguish between the two so i'm wondering whether you can tell us those drones do have software? general ryder: no, i'm not getting into the specifics on the kind of capabilities as it relates to intelligence surveillance reconnaissance capabilities that we have. in terms of the reasons behind how this one attack drone was able to penetrate the security air defenses is something central command is looking at now and i'm not going to be able to get into the specifics of that. reporter: the second question on a different topic, there was another report today saying that the u.s. is open to reopening discussions with turkey to let

them buy a f-35. i wonder if you could speak on that from the d.o.d. perspective and are you aware of those discussions? general ryder: i've seen the state's comments. i'd refer you to discuss that with turkey maintaining the s-400 and currently is not something that is on the table but would refer you to state. let's go to missy. reporter: a couple questions. is there any update on whether secretary austin will come and talk to us sometime soon? general ryder: i don't have a date to announce but am aware of the request and will keep you updated. reporter: can you clarify are the troops at jordan on tower 22 and other bases, are they under i.r. authority or some other authority and can you specify that? is it right there are about 3,000 troops in jordan? general ryder:ck to you to the r

of forces deployed in jordan. the forces that were -- the three soldiers that were killed as we highlighted they were there in support of operation inherent resolve. reporter: does that mean they're under o.i.r. authority? general ryder: operating in support of o.i.r. reporter: do they report to the commander of o.i.r.? general ryder: i don't want to get into the chain of command. if they're there supporting o.i.r. the commander can request assistance from those forces. reporter: the last question, and i think we asked sabrina this yesterday and think it was maybe something you were looking at, have there been any new information about any steps that may be taken to protect american forces in the region, like in terms of air defense or new steps to make sure that something like this doesn't happen again. general ryder: for operation security reasons, i'm not going

to be able to go into specifics other than to say that u.s. central command, of course, is taking this very seriously and that we will take necessary steps and measures to make sure our forces are protected and recognizing this is a dangerous neighborhood but to answer your question, we will take steps to ensure our forces are protected. ions, first, qatar's prime minister expressed concerns yesterday that the u.s. response to the jordan attack could potentially affect the negotiations over a is that part of the pentagon's calculus in determining a u.s. response to this? general ryder: i don't have anything specifically on that other than to say again, as part of any decisionmaking process, we take a wide range of considerations into account. again, to include what our broader regional goals are, which from the very beginning have been to prevent the situation in israel and from expanding into a broader

conflict and just leave it there. reporter: it's been two days since the attack in jordan, is there concern that in responding it could give theroups time to prepare, to disburse from likely targets, etc.? general ryder: i'm not going to get into any details about what a potential future operation could look like. you've heard both the president and secretary austin say that we will respond in a time and manner of our choosing. three u.s. service members were killed, over 40 wounded. by the way, these service members were deployed into the region to contribute to regional security and stability in support of the international coalition to ensurthe lasting defeat of isis. so there will be consequences and i'll just leave it at that. reporter: just a quick question on the red sea, since the houthi are mainly attacking foreign

ships, what authorization does the pentagon have to strike targets in yemen? general ryder: again, in terms of the strikes, these are all being taken under united nations section 51 in terms of right to self defense and again, our focus is there twofold, to protect international shipping and mariners transiting the red sea as well as to degrade and destruct houthi capability to conduct these kinds of attacks.3 reporter: i have something on this and several topics. the section 51 that you mentioned, the four strikes on yemen, yemen did not attack any u.s. ship so what defense are you talking about, defending it as national commerce is not part of intnational law. general ryder: what are you suggesting? what are you suggesting? reporter: i'm suggesting when you refer to this section from the u.n., you're saying the u.s.

was attacked by houthi before the first -- general ryder: the international community has been attacked and the u.s. working alongside international allies and partners are working together to help deter and disrupt their ability to stop these attacks. reporter: you referenced something in the u.n. that did not apply to this situation prior to the january 1 wave of attacks in yemen. general ryder: i think that international mariners have the ability, or have the right to be defended transiting international waterways, so happy to engage with you offline. reporter: but their country is not -- ok. can i ask a different question? general ryder: tom? reporter: you have a pro iranian militia pulling back and you say actions speak louder than words, change the calculus in the building? would you be concerned if you do

strike any groups, you are escalating in the face of them standing down, given that you repeated -- the administration said do you not seek to escalate? general ryder: i'm not going to get into hypotheticals and i'm going to refrain from editorializing on those kind of comments after 160-plus attacks against u.s. forces. reporter: the same question. do you welcome the hezbollah statement for suspicion of their attacks on forces in iraq and syria? general ryder: i provided a comment on that. reporter: yesterday the pentagon talked about forces in iraqi -- [indiscernible] could you speak of the operation with the forces and do you

assess it? general ryder: we have a long-standingelationship going back with the pesh morga as it pertains to the association with the iraqi security forces. the statement we posted yesterday i think lays out what efforts are being made to further bolster and strengthen that relationship within the auspices of the government of iraq and the iraqi security forces and we'll continue to use that opportunity to help ensure that our pesh morga partners have the capabilities they need to support broader iraqi security and stability and when we have updates we'll pass that along. let me go to the phone real quick. eric schmitt, "new york times." reporter: can you give us a little bit of chronology on sunday morning, what time did the drone attack take place? how quickly were the most seriously injured, whether they be medical vacked to iraq --

medevacked to iraq and just kind of looking ahead in terms of any additional air defenses you may be moving to the region or realigning in the region to do this, to help protect forces? general ryder: on the last question again, you know, if we have details provided on the different types of air defense systems that we would be moving into the area, i don't have anything to say but to ensure central command will take steps to ensure our forces are protected. in terms of time lines i'll take you. again, this attack happened saturday night, our time sundayn we'll come back to you with what we're able to provide on that. reporter: i want to go back to the k.h. statement. really unusf the messages in the statement

refer to suspicion of these attacks and don't want to embarrass the sudan government but at the same time they're saying iran was not always happy by escalation against u.s. credt and administration at large pressure or■> messaging to iran and iraqi authorities as maybe a direct result of issuing such a statem general ryder: again, we've seen that and i'm going to stay where i was earlier. actions speak louder than words. reporter: i want to be clear on a point, part of your answer to missy and to eric, you said to missy we will takes are protectd and we'll announce it. but i want to ask specifically, you are air defense or force protection measures? you make it sound like there will be changes coming? general ryder: i'm saying we'll

take necessary steps to ensure our forces are protected. i don't have specifics. reporter: above and beyond the measures currently in place? general ryder: we're always assessing force protection. i'll just leave it broad like that. especially again in light of recent events. reporter: the forces at power 22 are they receiving hazardous duty and other pay? general ryder: my assumption is yes. reportare they eligible for combat ribbons? general ryder: i can't take that one. reporter: yesterday you said the secretary is going for a follow-up appointment and does that mean any changes to his health? general ryder: he went to the appointment last night and left the doctor's office. as i understand it, it's part of

his planned physical therapy. still recovering well and still healthy and still in the building. reporter: you mentioned he'd be going to the dignified transfer. will any that be open? general ryder: can you contact the air force mortuary, they issue access. it's up to the families whether they're open or not but you can put in that request with them. reporter: one other thing, i didn't understand there was in issue around filming part of the arrival of secretary stoltenberg and what the challenges were of filming his actual arrival? general ryder: i'm not tracking specific challenges. reporter: we weren't allowed to film the walkup but only upstairs. i'm trying to understand. general ryder: we followed normal protocol for a visit, as i understand it, by the nato secretary-general. so typically because it's not a

country, it's not afforded honors, per se, so it was the standard arrival, the secretary arrived in the building per standard p and the pool, because of the size of the room, was invited to come in and cover the top of that meeting.u under, were they allowed to film the outside part, the arrival part? general ryder: i don't know they wereot. i'm not tracking anybody saying they couldn't. we followed normal procedure for any type of d.v. visit to the pentag■0. thanks. sir? reporter: i have a couple on ukraine and the middle east. do they have any updates on weapons deliveries to u.c.i., ts currently being delivered to ukraine, will there be any announcements? general ryder: no new p.d.a. announcements, we're standing by for a supplemental from

congress. that were procured before that? general ryder: i don't have anything specific to announce right now. of course we'll continue to work with ukraine to deliver those capabilities as they come online. reporter: can you tell us more about the ongoing inspector general's visit to ukraine and what they'll be looking in to and things like that? general ryder: i'd have to refer you to the inspector general's office. jeff. reporter: thank you. the national defense authorization act includes a lot of funding to replenish the defense department stock house of munitions like artillery and munitions but can't be any restart because of the spending bill. is the defense department still on a continuing resolution mean it hasn't been able to replenish any of its stocks of shells or missiles or at least get started on new contracts?

general ryder: thanks, jeff. you're talking about in terms of ukraine or just in general? reporter: for each of the services as funding for shells and missiles, especially considering that so many have been given to ukraine. this ishe ammunition buildup for the u.s. military? general ryder: i'd refer you to each of the services to talk about their current status. but as you highlight during a continuing resolution, we are limited in terms of -- in many ways in being able to extend contracts and it disrupts training and delays maintenance and imposes uncertainty on the work force. again, each of the services can talk aboutividual impacts. let me go to bill stewart, reuters. reporter: at the white house today there talk about a tiered response to a drone strike in jordan could be

multiple actions as opposed to a single reaction. and on the k.h. statement, could you offer a little more -- what do you mean actions speak louder than words? would you like to see them make good on this to suspend operations on u.s. forces, can you elaborate what you meant by that? general ryder: on your first question, again, we're not going to telegraph or discuss details with any future operations. and again, on the statement that's out there, you know, i don't think we could be any more clear that we have called on the iranian proxy groups to stop their attacks. they have not. and so we will respond in a tim. when i say actions speak louder than words, there have been three attacks to my knowledge

since january 28th. and i'll just leave it there. got time for just a few more here. let's go to howard altman, war zone. reporter: thanks, pat. a couple questions. one, have you -- can you confirm the political reporting that the ground launch bomb could be delivered to ukraine as soon is as tomorrow, and has the pentagon been informed of ukraine by any change at the top of its command as there has been discussion about the general being replaced. has ukraine said anything definitive to the pentagon? general ryder: on your latter question, i'm not tracking any changes. obously it's for ukraine to discuss the internal domestic affairs. as far as the small diameter bomb, as we acknowledged last year, we will provide ukraine with the underlaunch small diameter bomb as part of theai .

however, due to operation security reasons, we're not going to confirm specific time lines and defer to ukraine to talk about any delivery but we do, as i mentioned, continue to work closely with ukraine and our industry partners to ensure uk use the capabilities that we're delivering to them and as quickly as possible. thanks. sir? reporter: recognizing there's an ongoing investigation to it, is there any indication because of the drone attack it was a result of a technology failure or gap versus human error in terms of recognizing what the technology and information was saying? general ryder: the question. syncom is looking into that. the other aspect of this which i know you all appreciate is the operations force protection aspect in terms of, you know, vulnerabilities, not something

we would talk about certainly from the podium here. all that to say we do recognize and appreciate the interest, and i can tell that you syncom is looking into all of that. yes, ma'am. reporter: do you have any concern whether you're responding to this attack that this situation would be exploited and did that effect? general ryder: i'm not sure i understand what you're asking. you have any concern, while you are responding to this attack on the american troops in jordan, that any party, whether it's a lie or not, would exploit this situation to their own benefit? you've been saying you don't want to widen this war p. and did you convey any message to any party speaking here and

specifically about lebanon? general ryder: again, you know, we are not -- first of all, taking a step back and looking at the broader region, we fully recognize the tensions in the middle east from the very beginning of the israel-hamas conflict. we've been very clear we'll work very hard with our allies and partners in the region to prevent a broader conflict. when it comes to the situation in iraq and syria and jordan, our troops were attacked and three service members were killed and 40 wounded. the president and the secretary have both said that we will respond in a time and place of our choosing. again, i'm not going to go into details of what that could look like other than the fact that there will be consequences, and i'm just going to again, leave it right there. nancy, last question. [. reporter: you said syncom is investigating. who is investigating? is there one person?

can yo give us some -- we heard several -- general ryder: term of art, i would not use the term "investigation." they're reviewing it. "investigation" has a specific, you know, connotation. obviously it's up to syncom whether or not a formal investigation, typically after any type of incident there's some review or investigation. but my point know, u.s. central command and leaders within the command are looking at this. i don't have a specific name to pass along to you but i can tell you we're taking it very seriously. reporter: right. but we heard the term yesterday. what you're telling us is there's not one person looking■= into this? is there some sort of, i don't know, there's no kind of -- general ryder: i'll have to get back to you on that, nancy. thanks very much. appreciate it. [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2024]