The Secretary of the Navy announced the formation of a new council that seeks to mitigate adversarial economic activities including foreign investment risks, protect innovation and technology, work on supply chain integrity and protect research efforts.
Secretary Carlos Del Toro announced the formation of this new Department of the Navy Maritime Economic Deterrence Executive Council (MEDEC) on Feb. 22 during an event hosted by the Aspen Strategy Group. He said it was stood up earlier in February.
MEDEC will be co-chaired by Vice Adm. Francis Morley, Principal Military Deputy to the Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Research, Development, and Acquisition (RD&A), and SECNAV Chief of Staff Chris Diaz.
Del Toro said potential American adversaries are pursuing action beyond pure military activities, “to include exploitation of the investment, industry, and innovation ecosystems that serve as the engine of the economies of the United States, our allies, and our international partners.”
He said efforts to exploit supply chain vulnerabilities, adversarial capital investments in companies developing technologies critical to the Navy and Marine Corps and intellectual property theft are some of the “concerted actions designed to weaken our competitive advantages not only at-sea, but on the world’s economic stage.”
“With a shift in reliance from the government to the private sector for conducting research and development of new capabilities, it is imperative that we shift our approach as to how we also protect those capabilities at the earliest stages,” he continued.
Beyond the co-chairs, MEDEC includes representatives from the service’s research, development and acquisition community, supply chain and critical infrastructure subject matter experts, and intelligence and law enforcement.
Del Toro said authorities already granted to the Navy Department empowers the council as it seeks to better synchronize existing efforts related to maritime economic deterrence.
He connected MEDEC to the efforts of the 2024 Critical and Emerging Technologies list released by the National Science and Technology Council and the Office of Science and Technology Policy, the CHIPS and Science Act to strengthen investments in research and development, and the 2022 National Security Strategy.
Del Toro also said this is in line with his push for a national Maritime Statecraft that he announced last September (Defense Daily, Sept. 29, 2023).
In his maritime statecraft idea, he outlined several industries that require a whole-of-government approach to “building up industries that are vital to our country’s efforts to re-build and sustain our comprehensive maritime power.”
He argued MEDEC’s work will grow in importance as the government broadens its engagements with business and investment communities responsible for driving critical technology advances.