A top navy official says today the US Naval Fleet is facing challenges similar to the cold war era of the 1980’s.
This week 100 members of the U.S. Navy are in Sioux Falls as part of the city’s Navy Week. A navy admiral spoke to the downtown Sioux Falls Rotary Club and answered questions about current operations.
US Navy Rear Admiral Bret Muilenburg is the commander of Naval Facilities and Engineering. Muilenburg says the global threats and challenges today are similar to the 1980's.
“Our CNO has said we’re back in the age of global superpower competition and so we have some relationships on the world stage that we need to manage in that way. With Russia back in international waters and platforms, and China who has aspirations to grow their navy. So those are two relationships who we’ll need to keep a close eye on,” says Muilenburg.
Mulilenburg says the navy’s Chief of Operations has four priorities. These include strengthening navy power, building a network of partners, and working to stay ahead in technology advancements.
“The CNO has challenged really all of us in the navy, every single person, individuals, and teams to advance their level of knowledge. He likes to show us a chart that shows the navy’s current level of increasing our knowledge over time and then he shows the rate of progression of a certain adversary or adversaries that are out there who like to become the world’s dominate navy. And he shows those lines cross in the future. And the challenge to us is to learn faster,” Muilenburg.
Muilenburg says the navy has 276 ships and 43 are currently deployed.
This week’s activities in Sioux Falls lead up to the United States Navy Blue Angels Airshow this weekend.
Listen below for Muilenburg's full speech.