USSPACECOM hosted international military leaders for a multilateral meeting about Operation Olympic Defender
U.S. Space Force Gen. Stephen Whiting, U.S. Space Command commander, posed for a photograph with senior leaders from left: New Zealand Defence Force Air Vice Marshal Darren Webb, Chief of Air Force; United Kingdom Royal Air Force Air Vice-Marshal Allan Marshall, Ministry of Defense assistant chief of defense staff; French Space Command Maj. Gen. Philippe Adam, Air and Space Force space commander; Australian Defence Force Lt. Gen. John Frewen, Chief of Joint Capabilities; German Ministry of Defence Maj. Gen. Wolfgang Ohl, deputy director of General Military Strategy, Missions, and Operations; and Commander of the Royal Canadian Air Force Lt. Gen. Eric Kenny, during a multilateral meeting about Operation Olympic Defender (OOD) in Colorado Springs, Colorado, April 12, 2024. Earlier in the week during his Space Symposium keynote speech, Whiting announced the command was inviting Germany, France and New Zealand into OOD, which is a multinational effort intended to optimize space operations, improve mission assurance, enhance resilience, and synchronize efforts among current members: the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada and Australia. The purpose of OOD is to strengthen like-minded nations’ abilities to deter hostile acts in space, strengthen deterrence against hostile actors, and reduce the spread of debris orbiting the earth. USSPACECOM, working with Allies and Partners, plans, executes, and integrates military spacepower into multi-domain global operations in order to deter aggression, defend national interests, and when necessary, defeat threats.