The Pentagon released its Report on Countering Extremist Activity Within the Department of Defence on Monday as part of their effort to educate personnel on the threat posed by extremist activity and mitigate threats to the military.
“Extremist activity within the Department of Defence is rare, but even the actions of a few can have an outsized impact on unit cohesion, morale and readiness – and the physical harm some of these activities can engender can undermine the safety of the Total Force. The department will continue to address insider threats and other activities that might undermine unit cohesion, including extremist activity”, the report said.
The counter-extremism working group established by Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin recommended six actions, including developing a training plan on prohibited extremist activity for Defence Department personnel, reviewing and updating policies to provide notice to personnel on prohibited extremist activity, and improving Insider Threat programmes to enhance capabilities and maximise information sharing, the report said.
Fewer than 100 active duty or reserve personnel have been subject to official action for participation in some form of extremist activity over the past year, the report said. However, even a small number of cases can pose a significant problem for safety and unit cohesion, the report added.
