The US government began 2019 with a national security shake-up while plans for US troop levels in Syria and Afghanistan remain unclear.Just before the start of 2019 US Defense Secretary Jim Mattis phoned Deputy Secretary of Defense Patrick Shanahan to officially hand over his post."Our department's leadership, civilian and military, remains in the best possible hands," Mattis wrote in his farewell memo to Pentagon employees. "I am confident that each of you remains undistracted from our sworn mission to support and defend the Constitution while protecting our way of life. Our department is proven to be at its best when the times are most difficult. So, keep the faith in our country and hold fast, alongside our allies, aligned against our foes."
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