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Yet another Obama-era alumnus has been appointed to serve in the Biden administration’s defence and national security team.
The US Department of Defense has confirmed the appointment of Kathleen Hicks as the 35th Deputy Secretary of Defense.
Deputy Secretary Hicks, who will serve under Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, returns to the Pentagon where she served as the principal deputy undersecretary of defense for policy and the deputy undersecretary of defense for strategy, plans and forces in the Obama administration.
The new appointee joins the Biden administration’s defence and national security team from the Center for Strategic and International Studies, where she has served as the senior vice president and director of the International Security Program.
In her new role, Deputy Secretary Hicks will be responsible for leading the Pentagon’s day-to-day business, which includes managing the defence budget.
She is among several other Biden appointees who served in the Obama administration, including Secretary Austin, Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas, Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines, and National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan.
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