Patrick Shanahan

Acting Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan abandoned his quest for the top Pentagon job on Tuesday as reports emerged of domestic violence in his family, plunging the leadership of the US military into new uncertainty just as tensions with Iran are rising.

The United States will no longer "tiptoe" around Chinese behaviour in Asia, with stability in the region at threat on issues ranging from the South China Sea to Taiwan, acting US Defence Secretary Patrick Shanahan said on Saturday.

The US defence chief said President Donald Trump's administration was seeking to deter Iran but not start a war, after he briefed members of Congress.

President Donald Trump intends to nominate acting defense secretary Patrick Shanahan to remain in the top Pentagon job, the White House said Thursday, placing a relatively low-profile and soft-spoken former Boeing executive atop the military at a time of mounting tension abroad.

US President Donald Trump plans to nominate acting Pentagon chief Patrick Shanahan as his next secretary of defense, the White House announced Thursday.

Acting Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan called for tougher action against sexual assault in the US military Thursday after an annual Pentagon report said the number of assaults in 2018 had risen from recent years.

The Pentagon said on Thursday that it stood by Acting Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan's assessment last week that debris from an Indian anti-satellite weapons test would eventually burn up in the atmosphere, despite a subsequent, more negative assessment by NASA.

Acting U.S Defence Secretary Patrick Shanahan warned any nations that might be considering anti-satellite (ASAT) weapons tests like the one India carried out on Wednesday to "not make a mess" in space, noting the debris that can be left behind.

Acting Pentagon chief Patrick Shanahan said today he had authorised $1 billion to build part of the wall sought by US President Donald Trump along the US-Mexico border.

The Pentagon Inspector General said on Wednesday that it would investigate a complaint that acting Pentagon chief Patrick Shanahan, a former Boeing executive, violated ethical rules by allegedly promoting Boeing while in office.

Acting US Defence Secretary Patrick Shanahan is focused on de-escalating tensions between India and Pakistan and has urged them both to avoid further military action, the Pentagon said on Wednesday, without saying if he had spoken with his counterparts from either nation.

Acting Pentagon chief Patrick Shanahan made an unannounced visit to Afghanistan Monday, where he met with President Ashraf Ghani as the United States leads a push for peace talks with the Taliban.

In his first Cabinet meeting of the year, President Donald Trump stuck a dagger in a major initiative advanced by his foreign policy team: Iran's leaders, the president said, "can do what they want" in Syria.

Patrick Shanahan, the acting US defense secretary, started his first full day at the Pentagon's helm Wednesday by telling colleagues he sees China as a key priority.

U.S. President Donald Trump on Sunday said he was replacing Defense Secretary Jim Mattis two months earlier than had been expected, a move officials said was driven by Trump's anger at Mattis' resignation letter and its rebuke of his foreign policy.

Acting Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan abandoned his quest for the top Pentagon job on Tuesday as reports emerged of domestic violence in his family, plunging the leadership of the US military into new uncertainty just as tensions with Iran are rising.

The United States will no longer "tiptoe" around Chinese behaviour in Asia, with stability in the region at threat on issues ranging from the South China Sea to Taiwan, acting US Defence Secretary Patrick Shanahan said on Saturday.

The US defence chief said President Donald Trump's administration was seeking to deter Iran but not start a war, after he briefed members of Congress.

President Donald Trump intends to nominate acting defense secretary Patrick Shanahan to remain in the top Pentagon job, the White House said Thursday, placing a relatively low-profile and soft-spoken former Boeing executive atop the military at a time of mounting tension abroad.

US President Donald Trump plans to nominate acting Pentagon chief Patrick Shanahan as his next secretary of defense, the White House announced Thursday.

Acting Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan called for tougher action against sexual assault in the US military Thursday after an annual Pentagon report said the number of assaults in 2018 had risen from recent years.

The Pentagon said on Thursday that it stood by Acting Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan's assessment last week that debris from an Indian anti-satellite weapons test would eventually burn up in the atmosphere, despite a subsequent, more negative assessment by NASA.

Acting U.S Defence Secretary Patrick Shanahan warned any nations that might be considering anti-satellite (ASAT) weapons tests like the one India carried out on Wednesday to "not make a mess" in space, noting the debris that can be left behind.

Acting Pentagon chief Patrick Shanahan said today he had authorised $1 billion to build part of the wall sought by US President Donald Trump along the US-Mexico border.

The Pentagon Inspector General said on Wednesday that it would investigate a complaint that acting Pentagon chief Patrick Shanahan, a former Boeing executive, violated ethical rules by allegedly promoting Boeing while in office.

Acting US Defence Secretary Patrick Shanahan is focused on de-escalating tensions between India and Pakistan and has urged them both to avoid further military action, the Pentagon said on Wednesday, without saying if he had spoken with his counterparts from either nation.

Acting Pentagon chief Patrick Shanahan made an unannounced visit to Afghanistan Monday, where he met with President Ashraf Ghani as the United States leads a push for peace talks with the Taliban.

In his first Cabinet meeting of the year, President Donald Trump stuck a dagger in a major initiative advanced by his foreign policy team: Iran's leaders, the president said, "can do what they want" in Syria.

Patrick Shanahan, the acting US defense secretary, started his first full day at the Pentagon's helm Wednesday by telling colleagues he sees China as a key priority.

U.S. President Donald Trump on Sunday said he was replacing Defense Secretary Jim Mattis two months earlier than had been expected, a move officials said was driven by Trump's anger at Mattis' resignation letter and its rebuke of his foreign policy.