The 78th Secretary of the Navy (SECNAV) Carlos Del Toro released his strategic guidance that defines “my vision to build, train, and equip the world’s most powerful naval force to meet both today’s operational demands and the warfighting needs of the future.”

Del Toro writes:

I have characterized the most pressing challenges facing the Department of the Navy as the “Four Cs”: China, Culture, Climate Change, and COVID. The People’s Republic of China represents the pacing challenge against which we must plan our warfighting strategies and investments. Cultural challenges that we must tackle include confronting sexual assault and harassment, promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion, preventing suicide, and demanding integrity and accountability across our naval leadership. Climate change poses a rapidly intensifying spectrum of risks to our operating environment, our allies and partners, and our planet. And COVID has posed an unprecedented test of the resilience of our people, their families, and our health system. We must tackle these Four Cs with a sustained sense of urgency and a strong bias for action.

To read the guidance: SECNAV’s Strategic Guidance