Mark Milley

"[And in Ukraine, we are learning the lesson that] aggression left unanswered only emboldens the aggressor. Let us never forget the massacre that we have just witnessed in Bucha. Know the slaughter that occurred in Mariupol. And the best way to honor their sacrifice is to support their fight for freedom and to stand against tyranny."

"The nature of war is not going to change. Its still a political act. Its a decision by humans to impose their political will on their opponent by the use of violence."

"George Floyds death amplified the pain, the frustration and the fear that so many of our fellow Americans live with day in and day out. I have many policemen in my family, and I am personally outraged by George Floyds brutal and senseless killing. The protests that have ensued not only speak to this injustice, but also to centuries of injustice towards Black Americans. We, as a nation and as a military, are still struggling with racism, and we have much work to do."

"The 6th of January was one of the days of high risk. Neither I, nor anyone that I know of, to include the FBI or anybody else, envisioned the thousands of people who assaulted the capitol. To basically encircle the Capitol and assault it from multiple directions simultaneously, and to do what they did, that was something else. The 6th was pretty dramatic. Thats about as dramatic as youre going to see it, short of a civil war... What you might have seen was a precursor to something far worse down the road."

"We are proud of you. You have a difficult and dangerous road ahead, and no one should underestimate it. But you also have the opportunity to navigate those dangerous roads ahead and to lead our nations most precious resource: the young men and women who don the cloth of this nation, the American soldier."

"We dont want to lose thousands of soldiers to [the ACFT]. This fitness test is hard. No one should be under any illusions about it, but we really dont want to lose soldiers on the battlefield. We dont want young men and women to get killed in action because they werent fit."

"Combat is not for the faint of heart, its not for the weak-kneed, its not for those who are not psychologically resilient and tough and hardened to the brutality, to the viciousness of it. Weve got to get this Army hard, and weve got to get it hard fast."

"Youll be fighting with robotic tanks, ships and airplanes. Weve witnessed a revolution in lethality and precision munitions. What was once the exclusive province of the U.S. military is now available to most nation states with the money and will to acquire them."

"We who wear the cloth of our nation understand that cohesion is a force multiplier. Divisiveness leads to defeat. As one of our famous presidents said, a house divided does not stand."

"Equality and opportunity are matters of military readiness, not just political correctness."

"As senior leaders, everything you do will be closely watched, and I am not immune. As many of you saw, the result of the photograph of me at Lafayette Square last week, that sparked a national debate about the role of the military in civil society. I should not have been there. My presence in that moment and that environment created a perception of the military involved in domestic politics. As a commissioned uniformed officer, it was a mistake that Ive learned from, and I sincerely hope we all can learn from it. Embrace the Constitution, keep it close to your heart. It is our North Star."

"If you cant get in shape in 24 months, then maybe you should hit the road."