U.S. Senator Roger Wicker, chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, presided over a hearing to review the nominations of Vice Admiral Mitch Bradley and Lieutenant General Dagvin Anderson for leadership positions at U.S. Special Operations Command (SOCOM) and U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM), respectively.
During his opening statement, Wicker outlined the significant challenges both commands face in a complex global security environment. He highlighted that SOCOM is tasked with preparing forces capable of countering advanced militaries such as China and Russia while also remaining active against violent Islamic terrorism and ready for crisis response operations.
Wicker noted concerns about SOCOM’s funding levels: “It is clear to me that the role and importance of SOCOM is greater today than at any time since its establishment four decades ago. However, SOCOM’s budget does not reflect this reality. Its budget has remained flat since 2019. Adjusted for inflation, that amounts to roughly a 14 percent cut in purchasing power. To amplify that point, SOCOM identified $757 million in unfunded requirements for Fiscal Year 2026.”
He encouraged Admiral Bradley to discuss how he would address these demands if confirmed.
Turning to AFRICOM, Wicker described increasing threats on the African continent from major powers and extremist groups: “The Chinese Communist Party views Africa as a critical link in Xi Jinping’s unprecedented global military expansion and continues to pursue new bases for the People’s Liberation Army. Vladimir Putin remains fully engaged in his destabilizing campaign to trade security assistance for access to Africa’s abundant natural resources. This is one of Putin’s ways to fund his malign activities around the world. All the while, Islamic violent extremist groups aligned with ISIS and al-Qaeda remain an enduring threat in Africa.”
He pointed out resource gaps facing AFRICOM: “Despite the growing complexity and scale of threats on the continent, AFRICOM remains under-resourced in both manpower and in critical capabilities like intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance.”
Wicker expressed interest in General Anderson’s perspective on Africa’s significance for U.S. national security and how economic tools could be used to counter Chinese influence: “I look forward to General Anderson’s assessment of Africa’s importance to our national security, as well as his description of what AFRICOM’s strategy should be to counter the growing threat posed by China, Russia, and our other adversaries across the continent. I am particularly interested in how General Anderson plans to use America’s economic tools, including the Office of Strategic Capital, to combat Chinese influence.”
He concluded by emphasizing that both nominees will operate amid challenges from aggressive regimes worldwide using various tactics beyond traditional warfare: “If confirmed, our nominees will confront a global security environment that is defined by emboldened, aggressive dictators in Beijing, Moscow, Tehran, and Pyongyang. They view this fight as a global fight, unconstrained by geographic boundaries and the traditional norms of warfare. This axis of aggressors blends conventional military power with asymmetric tactics, including economic warfare, disinformation, and the use of proxy networks to undermine American security interests. The witnesses before us today will play a key role in the Department of Defense’s efforts to combat these challenges, and I look forward to hearing them address these and many other concerns during today’s hearing.”
