Deputy Secretary of Defense Patrick M. Shanahan meets with Israeli Director General Udi Adam at the Pentagon in Washington, D.C., Apr. 30, 2018. (DoD photo by U.S. Army Sgt. Amber I. Smith)

Deputy Secretary of Defense Patrick M. Shanahan is the invited guest of honor by Assistant Commandant of the Marine Corps Gen. Glenn M. Walters during the Marine Barracks Washington sunset parade in Arlington, Va., May 11, 2018. (DoD photo by U.S. Army Sgt. Amber I. Smith)

From left, Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel, U.S. President Barack H. Obama, U.S. Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Martin E. Dempsey watch as The Old Guard Fife and Drum Corps performs during the Armed Forces Farewell Tribute in Honor of Hagel Jan. 28, 2015, in Conmy Hall on the Fort Myer portion of Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall Obama hosted the ceremony with co-hosts Biden Jr. and Dempsey. (Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall PAO photo by Rachel Larue)

A soldier with the honor guard stands ready for an arrival ceremony, as U.S. Acting Secretary of Defense Patrick M. Shanahan hosts Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga at the Pentagon, Washington, D.C., May 9, 2019. (DoD photo by Lisa Ferdinando)

Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta greets a guest at a Martin Luther King Jr. observance in the Pentagon auditorium Jan. 26, 2012. Keynote speaker the Rev. Samuel ?Billy? Kyles, a civil rights activist, knew King and witnessed his assassination. (Department of Defense photo By Glenn Fawcett/Released)

U.S. Secretary of Defense Leon E. Panetta, center right, hosts an honor cordon welcoming Portuguese Minister of Defense Jos? Pedro Aguiar-Branco to the Pentagon Feb. 27, 2012. (DoD photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Chad J. McNeeley, U.S. Navy/Released)

Deputy Secretary of Defense Pat Shanahan meets with Bosnia and Herzegovina's Minister of Defense Marina Pendes at the Pentagon in Washington, D.C., Sept. 12, 2017. (DOD photo by Air Force Tech. Sgt. Brigitte N. Brantley)

Secretary of Defense Dr. Mark T. Esper exercises with U.S. Strategic Command (USSTRATCOM) and 55th Wing service members at the field house at Offutt Air Force Base, Neb., Feb. 20, 2020. Esper participated in circuit training with more than 40 USSTRATCOM and 55th Wing service members, following up the workout with a question and answer session. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Julie R. Matyascik)

Deputy Secretary of Defense Pat Shanahan learns about the mission at Naval Air Station Whidbey Island, Wash., Nov. 15, 2017. (DOD photo by U.S. Air Force Tech. Sgt. Brigitte N. Brantley)

PRESIDIO OF MONTEREY, Calif. - Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta returned to the Defense Language Institute Foreign Language Center he championed as a congressman to praise the next generation of military linguists he called critical to the United States’ future.

Panetta told an assembly of about 2,500 soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines standing in formation on Soldier Field overlooking Monterey Bay that the language and cultural training they are receiving here is critical to the nation’s economic, diplomatic and security interests. “It is absolutely vital to what the United States is all about,” he said.

For the complete story by Donna Miles, American Forces Press Service, click here.

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PHOTO by Steven L. Shepard, Presidio of Monterey Public Affairs.

Marines perform during the Commandant of the Marine Corps change of responsibility ceremony at Marine Barracks Washington, July 11, 2019. Marine Corps Gen. David H. Berger, the incoming commandant of the Marine Corps, relieved Marine Corps Gen. Robert B. Neller during the ceremony. (DOD photo by U.S. Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Dominique A. Pineiro)

U.S. Acting Secretary of Defense Patrick M. Shanahan and Acting Secretary of Homeland Security Kevin McAleenan meet with U.S. Army Soldiers assigned to the 93rd Military Police Battalion Crisis Response Force, deployed from Ft. Bliss, Texas, and National Guard Soldiers from the 3rd, 141st Infantry Battalion during a visit to the U.S. Southern Border, McAllen, Texas, May 11, 2019. (DoD photo by U.S. Army Sgt. Amber I. Smith)

U.S. Acting Secretary of Defense Patrick M. Shanahan meets with Belgian Minister of Defence Didier Reynders at the Pentagon in Washington, D.C., Feb. 21, 2019. (DoD photo by U.S. Army Sgt. Amber I. Smith)

Deputy Secretary of Defense Pat Shanahan attends a Vietnam War commemoration event, which featured a screening of Ken Burns and Lynn Novick's documentary "The Vietnam War," at the Pentagon in Washington, D.C., Oct. 17, 2017. (DOD photo by U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Jette Carr)

18th Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Martin E. Dempsey joined Secretary of Defense Hon. Chuck Hagel at to address the media in the Pentagon Briefing Room, Sept. 26, 2014. DoD photo by Army Staff Sgt. Sean K. Harp/Released

Deputy Secretary of Defense Pat Shanahan signs the guest book in the living quarters of the sentinels of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier during a visit to Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Va., Aug. 14, 2017. (DOD photo by Air Force Tech. Sgt. Brigitte N. Brantley)

The Commander of Troops for the ceremony, U.S. Army Col. Jason T. Garkey, 3rd U.S. Infantry Regiment (The Old Guard) Commander, escorts the Honorable Ashton B. Carter, 25th Secretary of Defense, as he inspects the Armed Forces Honor Guard during the Armed Forces Farewell Tribute in honor of the 25th Secretary of Defense at Conmy Hall, Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall, Va., Jan. 9, 2017. (DoD Photo by U.S. Army Sgt. James K. McCann)

U.S. Acting Secretary of Defense Patrick M. Shanahan hosts German Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen, at the Pentagon, Washington, D.C., April 12, 2019. (DoD photo by Lisa Ferdinando)

18th Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Martin E. Dempsey joined Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel for a press briefing in the Pentagon Oct. 30, 2014. Topics addressed covered current military operations against ISIL and military action in the Ebola crisis in West Africa. DoD photo by Army Staff Sgt. Sean K. Harp/Released

SOUTH CHINA SEA (Nov. 5, 2015) Two MV-22 Ospreys, assigned to the Medium Tiltrotors of Marine Squadron (VMM) 265, land on the flight deck of the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN 71). Theodore Roosevelt is operating in the U.S. 7th Fleet area of operations as part of a worldwide deployment en route to its new homeport in San Diego to complete a three-carrier homeport shift.(U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Josh Petrosino/Released)

Soldiers of the 3d U.S. Infantry Regiment (The Old Guard), participated in a Armed Forces Farewell Tribute in honor of Chuck Hagel, Twenty-Forth Secretary of Defense, at Conmy Hall, Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall, Jan. 28, 2015. Hagel served as the Secretary of Defense for two years and present for the ceremony was President of the United States Barrack H. Obama, Vice President of the Untied States Joseph R. Biden, and General Martin E. Dempsey Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. (U.S. Army photo by Spc. Cody Wes Torkelson)

18th Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Martin E. Dempsey attends the U.S. Marine Corps passage of command ceremony held at Marine Barracks, in Washington, D.C., Sept. 24, 2015. Gen. Joseph F. Dunford relinquished command to Gen. Robert B. Neller. Gen. Dunford will take over as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff on Sept. 25, 2015. DoD photo by Army Staff Sgt. Sean K. Harp/Released

SecDef' 13: Redrawing the security map - Parallel session III: EU-NATO: The search for a common cyber-strategy

Secretary of Transportation Elaine Chao speaks at the opening ceremony for the U.S. pavilion at the Paris Air Show June 19, 2017, in Paris, France. (DOD photo by U.S. Air Force Tech. Sgt. Brigitte N. Brantley)

U.S. Acting Secretary of Defense Patrick M. Shanahan meets with Belgian Minister of Defence Didier Reynders at the Pentagon in Washington, D.C., Feb. 21, 2019. (DoD photo by U.S. Army Sgt. Amber I. Smith)

The Commander of Troops for the ceremony, U.S. Army Col. Jason T. Garkey, 3rd U.S. Infantry Regiment (The Old Guard) Commander, escorts the Honorable Ashton B. Carter, 25th Secretary of Defense, as he inspects the Armed Forces Honor Guard during the Armed Forces Farewell Tribute in honor of the 25th Secretary of Defense at Conmy Hall, Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall, Va., Jan. 9, 2017. (DoD Photo by U.S. Army Sgt. James K. McCann)

Marines perform during the Commandant of the Marine Corps change of responsibility ceremony at Marine Barracks Washington, July 11, 2019. Marine Corps Gen. David H. Berger, the incoming commandant of the Marine Corps, relieved Marine Corps Gen. Robert B. Neller during the ceremony. (DOD photo by U.S. Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Dominique A. Pineiro)

Marine Corps Gen. David H. Berger and Marine Corps Gen. Robert B. Neller render honors during a passage of command ceremony at Marine Barracks Washington, July 11, 2019. (DOD photo by U.S. Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Dominique A. Pineiro)

Defense Secretary Ash Carter and Marine Gen. Joseph F. Dunford, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, provide testimony to the Senate Armed Services Committee at the Dirksen Senate Office Building in Washington D.C. Sept. 22, 2016. DoD Photo by Navy Petty Officer 2nd Class Dominique A. Pineiro

Acting U.S. Secretary of Defense Patrick M. Shanahan meets with the Austrian Minister of Defense Mario Kunasek at the Pentagon in Washington, D.C., April 10, 2019. (DoD photo by U.S. Army Sgt. Amber I. Smith)

Deputy Secretary of Defense Patrick M. Shanahan is the invited guest of honor by Assistant Commandant of the Marine Corps Gen. Glenn M. Walters during the Marine Barracks Washington sunset parade in Arlington, Va., May 11, 2018. (DoD photo by U.S. Army Sgt. Amber I. Smith)

Soldiers of the 3d U.S. Infantry Regiment (The Old Guard), participated in a Armed Forces Farewell Tribute in honor of Chuck Hagel, Twenty-Forth Secretary of Defense, at Conmy Hall, Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall, Jan. 28, 2015. Hagel served as the Secretary of Defense for two years and present for the ceremony was President of the United States Barrack H. Obama, Vice President of the Untied States Joseph R. Biden, and General Martin E. Dempsey Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. (U.S. Army photo by Spc. Cody Wes Torkelson)

Deputy Secretary of Defense Pat Shanahan learns about the mission of Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Wash., Nov. 14, 2017, from the Airmen and Soldiers stationed there. It was his first opportunity to observe military unit readiness firsthand outside the Washington, D.C., area. (DOD photo by U.S. Air Force Tech. Sgt. Brigitte N. Brantley)

Secretary of Transportation Elaine Chao speaks at the opening ceremony for the U.S. pavilion at the Paris Air Show June 19, 2017, in Paris, France. (DOD photo by U.S. Air Force Tech. Sgt. Brigitte N. Brantley)

18th Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Army Gen. Martin E. Dempsey talks with Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel at the National War College on Fort Lesley J. McNair during a strategic dialog meeting, May 8, 2014. The Secretary of Defense, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and all U.S. combatant commanders are attending the dialog. DoD photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Daniel Hinton

Col. Rick Gibney, the 119th Wing commander, shakes hands with United State Secretary of Defense Dr. Robert Gates, right, May 14, as Gibney and Col. Kent Olson, the 119th Wing vice-commander, greet Dr. Gates upon his arrival at the North Dakota Air National Guard, Fargo, N.D. Dr. Gates is flying into Fargo to speak at the North Dakota State University graduation ceremony. (DoD photo by Senior Master Sgt. David H. Lipp)

Deputy Secretary of Defense Patrick M. Shanahan speaks during the Reagan National Defense Forum at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, Calif., Dec. 2, 2017. The forum brings together leaders and key stakeholders in the defense community, including members of Congress, military leaders, industry, scholars and administration officials. (DOD photo by U.S. Air Force Tech. Sgt. Brigitte N. Brantley)

Service members from the U.S. Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force and Coast Guard participate in the Armed Forces Farewell Tribute in Honor of Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel Jan. 28, 2015, in Conmy Hall on the Fort Myer portion of Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall. U.S. President Barack H. Obama hosted the ceremony with co-hosts Vice President of the U.S. Joseph R. Biden Jr. and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Martin E. Dempsey. (Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall PAO photo by Rachel Larue)

Service members from the U.S. Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force and Coast Guard participate in the Armed Forces Farewell Tribute in Honor of Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel Jan. 28, 2015, in Conmy Hall on the Fort Myer portion of Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall. U.S. President Barack H. Obama hosted the ceremony with co-hosts Vice President of the U.S. Joseph R. Biden Jr. and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Martin E. Dempsey. (Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall PAO photo by Rachel Larue)

Service members from the U.S. Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force and Coast Guard march in review past the official party, including Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel, U.S. President Barack H. Obama, U.S. Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Martin E. Dempsey, during the Armed Forces Farewell Tribute in Honor of Hagel Jan. 28, 2015, in Conmy Hall on the Fort Myer portion of Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall. Obama hosted the ceremony with co-hosts Biden and Dempsey. (Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall PAO photo by Rachel Larue)

The Marine Corps band performs during the Commandant of the Marine Corps change of responsibility ceremony at Marine Barracks Washington, July 11, 2019. Marine Corps Gen. David H. Berger, the incoming commandant of the Marine Corps, relieved Marine Corps Gen. Robert B. Neller during the ceremony. (DOD photo by U.S. Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Dominique A. Pineiro)

Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Martin E. Dempsey gives remarks at a farewell ceremony for Under Secretary of Defense for Policy Dr. James N. Miller at the Pentagon, Jan. 7, 2014. DoD photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Daniel Hinton.

Secretary of Defense Robert M. Gates (center) and Medal of Honor recipient Staff Sgt. Salvatore Guinta (left of Gates), pose for a group photo with Soldiers from the 1st Squad, 1st Platoon, Battle Company, 2nd Battalion, 503rd Infantry Regiment before Guinta's induction ceremony into the Pentagon's Hall of Heroes, Nov. 17. Giunta, the first living Medal of Honor recipient since the Vietnam War, received the nation's highest military honor for rescuing two squad members during an insurgent ambush on his platoon in Afghanistan's Korengal valley in October 2007. (Photo by Cherie Cullen)

Deputy Secretary of Defense Patrick M. Shanahan is the invited guest of honor by Assistant Commandant of the Marine Corps Gen. Glenn M. Walters during the Marine Barracks Washington sunset parade in Arlington, Va., May 11, 2018. (DoD photo by U.S. Army Sgt. Amber I. Smith)

U.S. Vice President of the United States Michael Pence, Vice Chairman of the Korean War Veterans Memorial Foundation U.S. Army Col. Richard Dean (Ret.) and South Korean Ambassador to the U.S. Cho Yoon-je stand for a photo following a flag presentation to the Korean War Veterans Memorial Foundation at the Korean War Memorial in Washington, D.C., Sep. 20, 2018. The vice president presented a flag to the foundation that was among the flags that wrapped the cases of some 55 remains of fallen Americans from the Korean War. (DoD photo by Army Sgt. Amber I. Smith)

Deputy Secretary of Defense Pat Shanahan and his family visit the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier during a visit to Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Va., Aug. 14, 2017. (DOD photo by Air Force Tech. Sgt. Brigitte N. Brantley)